What better way to start the holidays than visiting Longwood Gardens, a serene yet enchanting escape where the spirit of the season blossoms harmoniously with the splendor of nature? Longwood Reimagined: A New Garden Experience curates over 17 acres of their Conservatory and grounds, all for the celebration and enjoyment of horticulture. Reimagining the connections between landscape, architecture, infrastructure, and art offers an exciting journey, transitioning from lush formal gardens to expansive views over the open meadows of Pennsylvania’s Brandywine Valley. This project was made possible through a collaboration between WEISS/MANFREDI and Reed Hilderbrand Landscape Architecture, which brings together innovative architectural design and thoughtful landscape transformation to create a project that seamlessly integrates various elements of the built environment.
For more than 115 years, Longwood Gardens has harmoniously blended art and science to create a horticulture experience of unparalleled splendor. They have enhanced, stewarded, and preserved one of the world’s most essential and beautiful collections of gardens and glasshouses. Longwood Reimagined: A New Garden Experience showcases new buildings, each a masterpiece of architectural design, with wondrous new indoor and outdoor gardens. They have expanded their grounds, connecting them east to west in a beautiful, unified journey of lush, formal gardens, open meadows, and winding paths to breathtaking Brandywine Valley vistas. Paul Redman, President and CEO of Longwood Gardens, said: “As we stand on the brink of an exciting new chapter in Longwood Gardens' illustrious history, I am thrilled to welcome guests to experience Longwood Reimagined: A New Garden Experience during our holiday season. A Longwood Christmas is always a magical time of year, and this year promises to be even more special as we invite visitors to explore new areas and 17 acres of revitalized beauty, including two new glasshouses and stunning gardens and water features.”
The Gardens’ renowned holiday spectacular, A Longwood Christmas, featuring over half a million twinkling lights across hundreds of acres and festive fountain shows, is on view from November 22, 2024, through January 12, 2025. New for 2024, Longwood is also launching Taste of Christmas at The Fountain Room. This is the perfect place to warm up, relax, and recharge. Nestled in the heart of the Gardens, The Fountain Room is an airy, inviting space to savor the season, offering spectacular views of the Main Fountain Garden. Guests will enjoy exclusive access to stations featuring a mix of sweet, savory, and carved-to-order selections, non-alcoholic beverages, decadent hot chocolate, and more. Special tickets are required.
Guests can explore three acres under glass that are exquisitely decorated for the holiday season with unique horticultural highlights, as only Longwood can do. Guests can wander through the East Conservatory, which will be transformed into a snow globe, its delicate decorations forming a vision of snowy winter magic, or discover fantastical holiday trees seemingly floating in mid-air above the lush lawn in the historic Main Conservatory. The Music Room will feature a sweet holiday gathering adorned in peppermint-themed finery. In contrast, the Fern Floor features a shimmering 30-foot tall tree created by Studio Roso of Denmark designed to evoke the crystalline beauty of the new West Conservatory.
In 1906, industrialist Pierre S. du Pont (1870-1954) purchased a small farm near Kennett Square, PA, to save a collection of historic trees from being sold for lumber. Today, Longwood Gardens is one of the world’s great horticultural displays, encompassing 1,100 acres of dazzling gardens, woodlands, meadows, fountains, a 10,010-pipe Aeolian organ, and grand conservatories. Expanding on its commitment to conservation, in 2024, Longwood Gardens acquired the 505-acre Longwood at Granogue, a cultural landscape in nearby Wilmington, Delaware. Longwood Gardens is the living legacy of Pierre S. du Pont, bringing joy and inspiration to everyone through the beauty of nature, conservation, and learning. Open daily, Longwood is one of more than 30 gardens in the Philadelphia region known as America’s Garden Capital.
