Stroll - or take a boat or tram -- through the magnificent 155-acre

Norfolk Botanical Garden, featuring more than 20 themed gardens. Located adjacent to the Norfolk International Airport, this oasis of natural beauty dates back to 1938 when WPA workers, most of them African American women, cleared the native vegetation to plant what has become one of the largest collections of azaleas, camellias, roses and rhododendrons on the East Coast.

From the award-winning Bicentennial Rose Garden to the expanding Virginia Native Plant Garden, diverse natural beauty can be explored in many signature gardens, both cultivated and wild.

Special events are held throughout the year, including the Birds, Blossoms & Blues Festival (May) , winter holiday Garden of Lights (Nov-Jan), the Grapevine Wine Social and the Coronation of the International Azalea Queen (April), changing summer exhibits, and in September 2006, the grand opening of World of Wonders: A Children's Adventure Garden. Open 365 days, mid-October-March, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. and April-mid-October, 9 a.m.-7 p.m.

Admission: Members, free; adults, $6; seniors, military and youth 13-18, $5; youth 4-12 $4, children 3 years and under are free with adult.