The World's 5 Most Gorgeous Gardens

A visit to a garden can include a touch of beauty and quietness to any trip. It may be a zen rock garden outside a Japanese sanctuary, a maze of box fences around a French chateau or an oasis of prickly plants and palms in the midst of Marrakesh, regardless of the fact that you can't tell dandelions from daffodils, it's difficult to resist their appeal. We've stopped and enjoyed the rose all around the globe to come up with this list of the world's most beautiful gardens.

Butchart Gardens, Canada

This world-acclaimed garden in Victoria, British Columbia, began as a humble limestone quarry. When the deposits were used up, Jennie Butchart, the wife of the quarry owner, changed the rugged space into what would later turn into the Sunken Garden. Throughout the decades the property has been developed to incorporate a Japanese Garden, a Mediterranean Garden and a concert yard where guests can sprawl out on the grass to appreciate fireworks and live music. The gardens are still claimed by relatives of Jennie Butchart.

Hamilton Gardens, New Zealand

At Hamilton Gardens, you can go around the world without leaving the North Island of New Zealand. You can venture from the Italian Renaissance Garden, complete with a bronze wolf figure alluding to the story of Romulus and Remus, into the Indian Char Bagh Garden with its Persian deign and beautiful blooms.

Jardin Majorelle, Morocco

Palm trees, desert plants, fountains and cobalt blue structures are the signs of this small yet stunning garden in Marrakesh. Jacques Morelle, a French artist, affectionately built up this garden for about 40 years before ill health forced him to sell it. Yves Saint Laurent and his partner, Pierre Berge, are the latest owners of the property. A memorial to Saint Laurent was added to the garden after his death in 2008.

Villandry, France

This Loire Valley chateau offers three levels of fabulous Renaissance time gardens, beginning with the geometric Ornamental Garden that uses plant-based symbolism to evoke the numerous shades of love. The Kitchen Garden shows nearly 40 types of vegetables, organised in a brilliant yet orderly patchwork.

Daitokuji, Japan

Japan is renowned for its gardens, meticulously designed and prepared to make peaceful spaces for contemplation. You can see a portion of the nation's best at Kyoto's Daitokuji, where various sanctuaries are encompassed by several types of zen gardens, some with lavish green greenery while others with raked sand.