Lost gardens of Heligan or Eden Project

[bjonesreborn]

Hello wise mumsnetters.
has anyone been to both of these and advise which is better?
we are staying equidistant from both and I can’t decide and won’t have time to visit both.
I love a garden, wisley is one of my favourites but also interested in environment.
can anyone help thanks

Heligan. Much cheaper, much prettier, less commercial.

Definitely Heligan

Heligan every time.

I'd say Heligan too. Beautiful, peaceful and has real heart and soul. It's the sort of place where you can spend all day, have a picnic under a tree and come away completely relaxed. The Eden Project felt like a busy theme park compared.

Heligan for sure.

Helical!

Heligan.
Although I have a soft spot for Eden, despite the hate it gets here.

Are you going with children? The parks are great at both but id say mine prefer Heligan

Wow thanks so much everyone. Looks like heligan it is!! No kids, just a husband!

Heligan

Eden is a complete rip off and very plastic looking. Went there a few months ago.

Heligan is lovely. We took the kids there last summer and spent a lovely day wandering around.

If you like gardens I would say Heligan. I have been to Eden Project but it was a long time just after it opened. I would say Heligan is a spend the whole day wandering place, and has a lovely atmosphere

The tickets for Eden are basically an annual pass, so if you’ll be going back to the area again in the next year it you could go back for free. I caveat that it has been 3 years since I’ve been so I would double check this hasn’t changed. No idea about heligan, it’s been too long since I last went there.

Eden project lost me when I found they had concreted over part of one of the domes as a corporate style entertainment space. Life imitating art.

Heligan is so much nicer imo than Eden

Why so much hate for Eden Project? Its an amazing place!

Heligan is mostly outdoors so wandering around beautiful gardens and scenery. I go with young children and they have an amazing playing field that we spend hours in. Without that I think I would struggle to spend a whole day there as there is not that much to see.

Eden Project on the other hand I could spend a full day wandering around on my own. The Mediterranean biome looks and smells like Greece and stuffed with herbs, vegetables, and pepper plants. The Rainforest biome is incredible (but humid!) and has Rou rou birds wandering around that make the most adorable sound.

The outside gardens are also beautiful and the science museum is interesting. Lots of nice places to eat as well. If I had to pick only one I would definitely choose Eden.

I don't see hate. I just see most people (so far) preferring Heligan. Interesting you say you would find it difficult to spend a whole day there. I've been several times, always spent the full day there.

I find Eden very run down these days. The planting of the grounds seems to have stopped with poorly maintained sections of the gardens. The exhibits all need a good coat of paint.

It's heavily weighted towards selling you things across about 75% of the entire site - shops, restaurants etc feel like they make up more floor space than the domes.

It a great project but for me as a local to come back I need to see improvements. I cancelled my locals pass last year.

We had a fortnight in that area in 2021 and visited both. I did like Eden Project but, I have to go with the majority, Heligan was my favourite by far.

Nicer food in the cafe too.

Are you staying near pentewan? or at the Cornwall? Just trying to work out where equidistant would be 😊
anyway, both are fab. Eden is iconic but heligan is more chilled and there is amazing pineapple fruit cake (trust me) in their cafe

Eden is horrendously expensive for what it is.

We chose it over Heligan and I really regret the choice!

Over 30 quid each. Sausage rolls were the best bit.

Heligan by a country mile. Very special place.

I haven't been to the Lost Gardens of Heligan, but I do have the book 😁and we went to the Eden Project last year. I would like to go back.

The Eden Project is not a garden as such, but more about different habitats & ecosystems in various parts of the world, with the plants to match. Many, such as the tropical rainforest exhibits, would not be possible outdoors in the UK.

So I'd say it really depends on where your interests lie - if you enjoy gardening then Heligan, or if you have an interest in botany & ecology, then Eden.

That’s disappointing - it was lovely when it was a few years old. I took my kids to see Santa there and it was magical, even for an old cynic like me 😁

I like Heligan but it’s not so good on a wet day, I’d say.