Two celebrated gardens on opposite sides of the Atlantic have formed a new reciprocal membership partnership, giving garden enthusiasts added reason to travel between England and New York.
Beginning in July 2026, members of Brooklyn Botanic Garden can receive complimentary admission to The Newt in Somerset, a 2,000-acre working estate in southwest England. In return, members of The Newt can visit Brooklyn Botanic Garden without paying general admission.
The collaboration connects Somerset’s orchards, woodland and country gardens with one of New York City’s best-known green spaces.
Reciprocal Access Across the Atlantic
Brooklyn Botanic Garden members, including children aged 17 and younger, can visit The Newt during regular opening hours by presenting a valid membership card.
Non-member guests traveling with a Brooklyn Botanic Garden member may purchase a guest pass at The Newt’s Gatehouse. Special events, ticketed programs and non-public hours may be excluded from the reciprocal arrangement.
Members of The Newt visiting Brooklyn Botanic Garden receive admission for two adults and accompanying children younger than 12. Visitors should present a valid Newt membership card and photo identification when entering the garden.
Members should confirm current conditions, opening hours, and ticketing requirements directly with the participating garden before traveling, as reciprocal benefits can change.
From Apple Country to the Big Apple
The partnership brings together two gardens shaped by distinctly different environments.
The Newt is located in the rolling countryside of Somerset, a region known for apple orchards, cider-making and rural estates. Brooklyn Botanic Garden occupies 52 acres in the heart of one of the world’s largest cities.
Despite the contrast, both institutions share an interest in horticultural education, plant conservation and creating meaningful connections between visitors and the natural world.
“Gardening has never thrived in isolation — every great garden around the world is shaped by the ones that came before it and the people tending them elsewhere,” said Harry Baldwin, Head Gardener at The Newt in Somerset.
The partnership also reflects growing interest in garden tourism, with travellers increasingly building itineraries around seasonal blooms, historic landscapes, botanical collections and horticultural events.
Exploring The Newt in Somerset
The Newt’s gardens occupy part of a wider working estate that includes orchards, farmland, woodland, restaurants, farm shops and hotel accommodations.
Its formal gardens have evolved over centuries, with contemporary planting schemes layered over the estate’s historic structure. Visitors can explore the Parabola, Colour Gardens, Kitchen Garden, Cottage Garden, Victorian Cascades, Winter Garden and Four Seasons Garden.
The Parabola is particularly closely associated with Somerset’s apple-growing heritage. Its curved walls shelter a collection of trained apple trees representing numerous varieties, while the estate’s orchards supply fruit used in its cider production.
Woodland paths extend beyond the formal gardens, providing opportunities to encounter deer, birdlife and Great Crested newts around the estate’s ponds.
The Newt also hosts seasonal talks, demonstrations and workshops covering subjects such as pruning, propagation, beekeeping, dry-stone walling and cider-making.
Visitors interested in staying on the estate can learn more through DRIFT Travel’s feature on Yarlington Lodge at The Newt in Somerset.
The Story of Gardening
One of The Newt’s most distinctive attractions is The Story of Gardening, an immersive exhibition tracing humanity’s relationship with gardens across different periods and cultures.
Interactive exhibits explore how landscape design, agriculture, botany and cultural traditions have influenced gardens around the world. Visitors approach the attraction by following an elevated walkway through the woodland.
Nearby, the reconstructed Roman Villa Experience draws inspiration from archaeological remains found on the estate. Its gardens and museum examine Romano-British domestic life and the ways plants were used for food, medicine and decoration.
The Beezantium focuses on bees and other pollinators. Observation hives and interpretive displays reveal how these insects support both cultivated gardens and wider ecosystems.
Together, these attractions position The Newt as more than a collection of ornamental gardens. They create a broader experience connecting horticulture with food, history, agriculture and ecology.
Visiting Brooklyn Botanic Garden
Brooklyn Botanic Garden is home to more than 10,000 kinds of plants and over 30 specialty gardens.
Its collections include the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden, one of the oldest surviving Japanese-inspired gardens created in an American public garden. The landscape incorporates a pond, waterfall, bridges, stone lanterns and carefully selected trees and shrubs.
The Cranford Rose Garden presents thousands of roses, while the Shakespeare Garden features plants mentioned in the playwright’s works. Other areas include the Native Flora Garden, Discovery Garden, Water Garden and C.V. Starr Bonsai Museum.
Cherry blossom season is one of the garden’s busiest periods, with flowering trees creating broad displays of pink and white across Cherry Walk and Cherry Esplanade. Bloom times vary each year, making the garden’s online bloom updates useful for planning a spring visit.
The garden also hosts horticultural classes, family programs, exhibitions and seasonal member events.
Expanding The Newt’s Partner Garden Network
Brooklyn Botanic Garden joins a growing collection of institutions offering reciprocal access to members of The Newt.
Existing partners include Kew Gardens, Great Dixter, Chatsworth, the Eden Project, Blenheim Palace and the Lost Gardens of Heligan in the United Kingdom. International partners include Winterthur in the United States, Chenshan Botanical Garden in China and Babylonstoren in South Africa.
Adding a New York partner strengthens the estate’s connection with American travellers and makes its garden network more useful for members planning international trips.
The partnership may also encourage Brooklyn members to incorporate Somerset into a broader English itinerary. The Newt can be combined with Bath, Wells, Glastonbury, Stourhead and other countryside attractions across southwest England.
Planning a Visit
The Newt welcomes day visitors as well as overnight hotel guests, but access requirements differ depending on membership status and special programming. Tours, tastings, restaurants and certain attractions may require advance reservations.
Brooklyn Botanic Garden also recommends checking current ticketing procedures before arrival. Reciprocal privileges generally apply during regular public hours and may not include ticketed festivals or members-only events.
For current details, visit The Newt’s partner gardens or Brooklyn Botanic Garden’s membership benefits.
