Enjoy Historic Botanical Gardens in Manteo on Roanoke Island, NC
Walk around an enchanting garden right by the sound. The Elizabethan Gardens is a project of the Garden Club of North Carolina and was created in 1951. Located right by Fort Raleigh National Historic Site, the gardens serve as a living memorial to the time when Sir Walter Raleigh’s lost colonists lived in this very place on Roanoke Island over 400 years ago. Fanciful and elaborate gardens were kept to entertain Queen Elizabeth I during her reign and it is she for whom the gardens are named.
Past the iron gates and bricked walls, discover Renaissance statues, a soundfront gazebo, a sunken knot garden, and a 450-year-old live oak stretching across the Great Lawn. Seasonal blooms bring year-round color, from camellias, magnolias, and azaleas to tulips, foxglove, hydrangeas, crepe myrtles, roses, and more. Beyond a botanical attraction, The Elizabethan Gardens is an award-winning wedding venue (named 2026 Best of the Beach Wedding Venue), a place for garden workshops and floral design classes and children’s programs.
Part of the North Carolina Birding Trail, the gardens offer birdwatching Feb-Dec, along with butterfly releases from spring through fall and popular seasonal events like Eastertide, Autumn Ale Faire, and WinterLights.
