Bogor Botanical Gardens – The Icon

Bogor Botanical Gardens is the main attraction in Bogor City. Of course there are many others places of tourism destination here but the Gardens is still on the top list.

Every year, the number of the visitors attracted by the Gardens are over a half millions people. In average , per day visitors are between 5000-6000 people. However over the weekend or holidays, the numbers increased sometimes approach 15,000 persons in a day.

Bogor Botanical Gardens is not the oldest but it is already old. The age until this post is written almost 200 years old. The Gardens is older than the Singapore Botanical Gardens. It is also the biggest botanic gardens in South East Asia.

The Entrance Fee of Bogor Botanical Gardens 2

The history of Bogor Botanical Gardens

Many literature mentions that Prof. Caspar Georg Karl Reinwardt is the formal founder of Bogor Botanical Gardens. However I believe the embryo was laid few years before.

It was Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles (1811-1816) who should be considered as the father of the place. When he re-landscape the backyard of Bogor Palace, it should be considered as the starting point of the establishment of the botanical gardens.

Later on after Raffles tenure as Liutenant Governor General of British Java was over in 1816, he was replaced by a Dutch named Godert Alexander Gerard Philip van der Capellen. With him came along a Germany botanist, Prof Caspar Georg Karl Reinwardt with a main duty to explore any possibilities found in East India, currently Indonesia that could be used to boost the economy of Netherlands.

Bogor Botanical Gardens
Old Dutch Cemetery inside Bogor Botanical Gardens

In the process to comply with his mission, he then decided it would be easier if there was natural laboratory full of plantations near to him. So then , he proposed to van der Capellen to set one up on the gardens previously Raffles’ playground.

Later, in 1817, the 1st step to establish what Reinwardt had wanted was started . Van der Capellen did this by swinging the hoe as the inauguration. The name given to the parks was Lands Plantentuin te Buitenzorg or National Botanical Garden.

Bit by bit, Reinwardt collected various plantation and tree species from different places. His step was started by collecting species from all over Indonesia. Until the end of his tour of duty, Reinwardt put more than 900 species in the Gardens.

In 1949, Bogor Botanical Gardens were transferred to Indonesian Government after the Recognition of Indonesia Sovereignty. In 1951, the first Indonesian, Kusnoto Setyodiwirjo was appointed as the Director of the Gardens.

Bogor Botanical Gardens inspired the establishment of many similar Botanical Gardens around Indonesia such as Cibodas Botanical Gardens, Batam Botanical Gardens and some other like Zoologi Museum etc.

What can be found in Bogor Botanical Gardens?

As also other botanical gardens in the world, it is not an amusement park. So do not expect to find a roller coaster with screaming passngers. In a matter of fact, probably you should pay a visit to the Gardens if you want to escape from the crowd and noise of busy cities. The place is very quiet and peaceful.

You can also inhale fresh air here. The air inside Bogor Botanical Gardens is very fresh and cool. The landscape is also amazing and beautiful.

Bogor Botanical Gardens
The beauty of Nymphaea Alba, the water lily in Bogor Botanical Gardens

Anyway, since I am sure you would like to see something here to tell, then I will list up a bit what you can find in the Gardens

  1. 15,000 of species from all over the world. Started with only species collected from Indonesia, Bogor Botanical Gardens expand their collection by adding many species coming from many countries.
  2. Almost 200 years old trees. There are Lychee trees planted here back to 1823 that means their age this year is 192 years old
  3. Mexican Garden , a thematic park with full of succulent species from dry continent
  4. Orchid House, the houses to raises hundreds Orchid species collection
  5. The beauty of Nymphaea Alba or Water Lilies or Lotus, on the ponds
  6. The “Broken Heart” bridge, the bridge where many people believe that if you make a pass through this bridge with your lover, then your relationship will end
  7. Mbah Jepra tomb : the tombs complex that does not actually belong to the Gardens but located inside. The tombs are believed to be the cemetery of a previously queen of Sunda Kingdom whose capital was in Bogor
  8. Lady Raffles Monument , the proof of love of Raffles to his first wive, Olivia Mariamne Raffles who died in 1814 due to Malaria
  9. Old Dutch Cemetery, some of the tombs here are older than the Gardens itself
  10. The Giant Lotus, the Victoria Amazonica from Amazon

As a bonus, you can have as much as free Oxygen as you want here..:D. You don’t have to pay US$ 16 or 1,800 Yen as an oxygen bar in Tokyo offers. Absolutely free here. You can also do exercise here because Bogor Botanical Gardens is an 87 hectare lands and surely you will sweat walking around the gardens

Location and opening hours

Bogor Botanical Gardens
The quietness and fresh air can be experienced in Bogor Botanical Gardens

Bogor Botanical Gardens is located around 60 kilometers from Jakarta and right behind the Bogor Palace. How to reach this place will be explained later on separate posting as there are many ways to reach this place.

It opens from 07.00 to 17.00 everyday. The ticket fee is Rp. 25,000/person (US$ 2.- with current exchange rate)
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This is the short description about the most iconic place in Bogor, my rain city. I may tell you more about this Bogor Botanical Gardens in next writings as surely there are still a lot to write more than only a short story.

Mari Berbagi

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