Located between John F. Kennedy Drive and Park Presidio Drive, the Golden Gate Park Rose Garden offers visitors a spectacular display of colorful, fragrant, beautiful roses.
While the best time to visit the rose garden is in the summer, there are a variety of roses that bloom throughout the year, making it always a good time to visit — and that’s a good thing too because we visited the garden in August! Plus, if you visit in January, you can see the San Francisco American Rose Society hard at work pruning the roses.
The impressive Rose Garden is meticulously cared for with rosesbushes organized in two large rows of rectangular flower beds and delicate climbing roses creeping up a lattice wall.
With more than 60 rose beds planted on the premises, there are beautiful varieties on display in gorgeous, rich hues of whites, pinks, lavenders, yellows, golds, reds, and oranges — some of which bloom twice a year instead of the normal one a year. If you want to try to identify any of the roses, there are some labels throughout the garden.
Know Before You Go
The best blooms of season can be found during Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, July 4th, Labor Day, and Columbus Day.
- The Rose Garden is located in Golden Gate Park at John F Kennedy Drive, San Francisco, CA 94117 (near 14th Avenue).
- Typically roses are in full bloom in mid-May through June. Roses are not in full bloom during the winter months at the Rose Garden.
- The closest restrooms are located at the 14th Avenue East Picnic Area directly adjacent to the Rose Garden.
- The Rose Garden has no vehicle access every Sunday, and every Saturday from the first Saturday in April to the last Saturday in September, due the routine road closures in Golden Gate Park.
