Nichols Arboretum

Love this place a lot. A great place to walk your dog, take a jog, read a book or have picnic with friends. My favorite part of this arb is each summer, Shakespeare in the Arb, which starts from 2001, will take place here. The show is always awesome. This year’s show is Love’s Labour’s Lost. All the actors and audience move to different locations in the arb when scene changes.
Show starts at 6:30pm and ticket office opens at 5:30pm. If you come to the show during weekend with great weather, come around 5pm! Two years before, I came 3 times to finally get ticket. It’s great show, so many people come. The show last 3 hours. Bring chair/​blanket to make yourself more comfortable.

The Arb is what makes a trip back to Michigan so special. I love living in Los Angeles, my current home, but Los Angeles is, for the most part, fabricated beauty. Michigan is natural beauty, and Ann Arbor residents/​visitors are privileged to get to experience such a wonderful wealth of natural beauty so close to such a precious city.
Whether you’re on a date with your significant other, out for a jog, writing a paper on your laptop, sunbathing, biking/​roller blading, etc. the arb is a perfect spot to spend your afternoons. I wish I spent more time here as a student, but I’ll take advantage of it every chance I get now!

If I were only visiting Ann Arbor for a day, I would spend the whole day in the Arb. It’s the best place to hike, picnic, or just lay in the sun and enjoy being outside.

Love walking through the trees here. The peony garden is not to be missed, so many vintage varieties. The bench down by the river is a wonderful place to rest for a bit. Trails are nicely hilly, fellow runners and walkers are friendly and it feels peaceful here even when there are lots of other people around.

This place is beautiful! I was truly blown away by the peony garden. I felt lost in a good way. Lost in nature and I definitely wasn’t complaining. The flowers are blooming in many different colors and each bed had a description of the peonies growing in it. I really appreciated how well maintained this park was. The trails were so beautiful! I took «Shakespeare’s gentle path way» and was amazed at how beautiful the trees and trails were with the sun shinning right above me but at the same time, still feeling and nice breeze from the shade the trees provided. This park was extremely peaceful and relaxing and everyone around seemed so happy and at ease. The atmosphere was amazing and you could find natures beauty in every inch of this amazing park! Many many trails to travel and this was a dog friendly park as well. This was my first time here and definitely will not be my last! Get here before peony season is over!

My favorite place in Ann Arbor, hands down! Whenever I have a visitor from out of town, I take them here for a stroll. I can’t believe that this gorgeous space is located in the middle of town. As soon as I set foot in «the Arb,» I feel like I’m lost in nature, far away from the busy-​ness of life.
I almost always enter through the entrance on Washington Heights, and I’m greeted by a beautiful garden (during the warm seasons). From there, I run or walk down the steps to the river. I love running laps around what I call the «prairie.» It’s so refreshing to get lost here and enjoy the peacefulness!
One of the best ways to spend an afternoon is to sit by the river at one of the benches or steps. Just remember to wear bug spray during the summer months! I also love going out to the open field to read a book or to play a game of frisbee. I’d also love to have a picnic here this summer!
I’ve also visited during the winter. Few people think to do so, and it’s evident by the vast area of untouched snow. It’s relaxing to sit on a bench for a bit and admire the beauty of winter.
I can’t say enough about the Arb. It’s the best place for mini retreat from the city no matter what time of year!

Wow.
I was totally 100% blown away by the arb. I walked here from my office in A2 and it only took 30 minutes to get to this amazing ‘park’. It really isn’t a park but more of a giant cultivated garden managed by U of M and it really shows. Diverse plantings, well managed trails and beautiful views. It seems much more like nature and muss less like a sterile park.
I think what really shocked me was the sheer verticality of the place. Five minutes after walking past hundreds of peonies I am on a trail with one sinking 20 feet below me and one 20 feet above. This leads to both stellar views and a great sense of isolation and nature.
I went for a pretty solid 6 mile hike here and only tackled a small percentage of the trails. Next time I am in A2 I will want to check it out again.

Wonderful place. Full of happy memories and great times for anyone that ventures in, serene, beautiful with great paths to explore.
Plus if you always wanted to have your picture taken with flowers, you could do a lot worse than their Peony garden! (EARLY SUMMER ONLY!)

Updating my review to include a rave for the INCREDIBLE peony gardens here. It’s my favorite time of year and it’s currently upon us so I felt obligated to update to share my love.
Over 270 varieties of peonies can be found here and they hold over 800 bushes and can bloom up to 10,000 flowers at peak time. They come in a variety of colors, shades of pink, red, white, and some yellow. And the smells! it smells incredible there thanks to all those stunning blooms. During certain days they also have performances in the garden. Last year when I was there they had a lovely concert of Chinese flower music put on by the Confucius Institute at UofM. It was such a lovely afternoon.
The park itself is pet friendly so there are lots of dogs moseying through the gardens with their humans (our pup loves going there with us). Pack a picnic and spend an afternoon here taking in the sights or bring a camera and capture all the beauty to tide you over to the next year.
The Arboretum is huge so FYI – the peony garden is located near the 1610 Washington Heights entrance.

Nichols Arboretum is a very lovely park right next to the U of M medical campus. Parking may be potentially a little tricky, but we were here on a weekend so there were a few more options. The great thing is that admission is free! This would be a great place for families, dog-​walkers, or really anyone who loves spending a little time in nature.
There are several miles of easy– to moderate-​intensity trails, my favorite of which pass by the river. Their gardens, especially the peony gardens they have now, are also lovely. The blooms are huge, colorful, and very fragrant! This would be a great place to spend a few hours on a nice spring/​summer morning or afternoon.

Beautiful, well maintained trails and park in middle of the busy city.
The have entrances/​parking in few places. I recommend the Nicolas dr parking gets you right on the trial along the Huron river.
Trail terrain can be flat or rolling hills depends on which one you take. There are plenty of benches to rest. Beautiful city views.
Ideal for kids.
A taste of outdoors just in our backyard without hours of drive.

My fav land of trees and breath of fresh air in A2. Private, ethereal, wonderful scapes for the mind and the soul. Lovely

Absolutely beautiful park. Unseasonably warm weather had the temperatures in the 60’s when we were here in March. The weather was perfect for a walk in the park. There are many areas to sit and enjoy the scenery. There wasn’t a lot of greenery and flowers this time of year, but it is a peaceful and beautiful park. We enjoyed relaxing and walking at the Nichols Arboretum and will definitely return.

My first introduction to Nichols Arboretum was when this guy I was dating brought me there for what I thought was a nice walk and it turned out he was just bringing me there to break up with me in a public place where he felt «safer».
I’m just joking!
But in all seriousness, if you hang out here long enough you’ll get to see one of those.
It only took me three visits and I broke out in hives and started sweating profusely when I realized what was happening.
Besides, that Nichols Arboretum is seriously amazing.
It’s like very green and lush and there are lots of nice paths to stroll (or run) on.
There’s also a stream which you can kayak in? I think? There’s a map by the front? It looks really complicated and I don’t have an advanced degree yet so cannot explain how you can do it.
And nice pastures to sit on– like picnic on. People do that. I’ve seen that and I’m not judgmental of it at all.
And for some odd reason, it’s never too crowded. Having recently moved from Los Angeles and becoming accustomed to every outdoorsy adventure (hi Runyon canyon) accompanied by the sounds of at least forty other lululemoned folks mouth breathing, it’s very strange for me to come to a place like Nichols Arboretum and never run into too many folks.
So bring pepper spray.
It’s also free so if you’re
A) a graduate student
B) a high functioning alcoholic undergraduate that enjoys the outdoors
C) an old person
…
This is an especially good place for you to go.
Cats are not welcome.
Warning: sometimes there are weird people here. I say that being completely weird person myself but I literally cannot with some of weird people flopping around on yoga mats in the middle of all those beautiful fields in the middle of the day. KUNDALINI NOT WELCOME YA RECOGNIZE.
Basically, I think you should come here. The «Arb» is really nice and clean and there are weird people here but not too many.

Beautiful place to go for a nice walk or a picnic! It is well-​maintained and a great place to explore in Ann Arbor. Parking isn’t difficult to find either, as there is a residential area across the street that has street parking available. We saw many people also enjoying a picnic there and would definitely go back here again!

I came across this place while Unilocaling for a good dog park in Ann Arbor! Note: Dogs must stay on leash. From my place, its about a 2 mile run to this beautiful park! One thing that freaks me out is how this place is next to a cemetery. I quickly turned around after.
I definitely would come back here with my fiancé or some friends but I’m wayyyy too much of a chicken to wander out here by myself. But don’t let this deter you from going! I saw plenty of people (both male and female) walk around this park by themselves!

I don’t get out a lot. My husband found the Peony Gardens for me way back in the dead of January when it was a fairy tale to imagine. And just last weekend we get the email that peonies were 70% in bloom so we went.
Parking was difficult to find at first but we ended up in a parking garage that was pretty cheap. We ended staying parked there the whole day while we walked around Ann Arbor.
The gardens were busy but with good cause; peonies don’t last long, blink and you’ll miss them. They brought tears to my eyes. The smell was fragrant the blooms were luscious. I was happy. But the garden itself was fairly smaller than I imagined.
So within ten minutes we were done with that portion and decided to explore the grounds. Nichols has plenty of paths, bridges, wildlife, get lost in it nature. We hiked as much as possible with me in a skirt and flip flops. We walked along the Huron River were people were kayaking and frolicking and sunbathing, oddly enough. I was a bit taken aback by those in bikinis laying next to a hiking trail. Some even set up tree hammocks deep in the woods. It makes sense though, it’s nature to experience in the middle of a city full of college students.
We plan on going back as much as possible. I want to picnic, I want to hike more, kayak, do it all. This spot is great.

What a beauty! This arboretum is sooooo huge and has so many trails. We came at 7 on a Sunday morning to run and there were already few runners who have started their way. It was a beautiful morning and just perfect for an outdoor fun and hilly trail work out.
It’s mostly green everywhere and more like a forest to me. There was also the Huron river. It’s well-​preserved and maintained for research and it is founded by University of Michigan and more than a 100 year old garden.
Location is close to the UM Hospital and Mott’s Children’s Hospital. We parked at the Mott’s parking lot.
FREE ADMISSION!

My friend and I decided to go for a walk. This was the park he’d go to back in college.
Past the cemetery, you’ll find lots of greenery, small hills where people are doing their thing with frisbees, trails, flowers, water, a bridge where my friend used to smoke weed at… you know, stuff.
They were having a race down here when we were doing our leisurely walk.

I love the Arb! I’m always suggesting to my visitors that we could visit the Arb if weather permits. Despite my seasonal allergies, I always take a stroll through here just for the beautiful surroundings and to appreciate nature. Sounds hippie-​ish, but hey it’s the truth. If you’re visiting to see the flowers and trees, the best time would be around May, when everything has already started to bloom. You can enter through two different areas, the one near Washington Hts (street) near the School of Public Health is where I like to enter, because you get to see the Peony Garden. Beautiful flowers! The other entrance is on Geddes Rd.
You could do so many things here: walk your dog, let the little ones run around, take a stroll along the river, hike, jog, go for a run, or just enjoy nature. It’s a sweet escape from reality if you need it. Some people use the seclusion as a sweet escape from the law, and take «nature» into their own hands (if you know what I mean…) but hey that’s their decision. I haven’t had a chance to visit during the autumn, but throughout the summer even through mid September (the latest time of the year I’ve visited), the Arb is still looking pretty nice. Highly recommended for nearby residents and visitors alike!