I certainly understand the challenges of COVID, but if you can't even operate at 50% functionality, stay closed!Gardens horribly overgrown, frog attraction looked and smelled like death, most small attractions not working, failed paint throughout, 60% of the lightbulbs throughout burned out, butterfly garden was poorly maintained with dead butterflies about, dangerously slippery on painted concrete where moss and mildew has built up....on a positive note, my son made a hat out of construction paper and we saw a cute rabbit.... other than that the place should be condemned. read more

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Every time I come here it's packed with people but that's a great sign that the place is popular. There are so many fun things for kids to do and it's great watching my daughter have so much fun. I had a Groupon de so it wasn't too expensive to go. Overall I love this place. read more

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Maybe I had such an underwhelming time because I went in the fall...but this place is downright creepy. It was dirty, standing water everywhere, and just seemed very run down. There wasnt much to do here. The butterfly house was kinda tiny and we didnt see many butterflies. I didnt see a snack stand anywhere. The Christmas decorations were shotty and dirty. I might try and go back in the Spring. read more

Its cool because its at least one playground remaining [in the current wave of children-oriented play sites] which doesn't 'look exactly like every other playground'. In contemporary times--whether its from too many lawsuits, too many parents unfit for their roles; too much news-media scare-mongering, or maybe we're just in an age where people thrive on pointless anxiety--whichever--the landscapes we bring our kids to for recreation these days are disturbingly uniform, homogenous, bland, conformist, and sterile. Yes. That's the ultimate result. See, every kid these days constantly wears a protective helmet; every kid has blinking sneakers to track them at night; every child is kept on a springy leash...and when we let them out for 'structured play', it must be pre-arranged that all the objects they might encounter are 'movie-inspired'; 'designed-by-committee'; curvy and bright; and molded of rubber, foam, and non-shattering plastic. Mass-produced by a handful of faceless companies. Heck-- have parents started surgically inserting RFID transponders under kid's skin (like pet-owners do with dogs) yet? Its all so ..overly-safe. Where is there left any "strange terrain" for young minds to explore and discover on their own? All intrigue is removed from the typical playground environment. All surprises have been taken away. All 'mystery' gone. Well. Not that's not the case, with this little site in New Jersey next to the State Aquarium. Its got a whole different aesthetic. Its old-school; its perplexing and quirky. Fodder for the imagination. Somehow, a little personality crept through. At least this "Children's Garden" LOOKS like something. LOOKS just a little bit different. Kinda like the long-lost Hansel'n'Gretel playground designs (which are practically forbidden at this point). Its a playground that reminds children that they are children, rather than lab experiments. No, its not 'less safe' in any way from anywhere else you might take your offspring--its a very harmless, gentle habitat. But the value of taking your toddlers here (and other places like this) is that they might grow up with some sense that the world has variety. Maybe they'll wind up remembering you once took them out for tiny adventures; when they're grown-up. read more

Date of Visit: August 2014 Another reviewer used the word "Quirky" to describe this place and they are right, it is very quirky! We attended on the Pirate, Princess and Peach day and had a great time! I think some of the other reviewers were perhaps expecting a bit too much and therefore missed out on the charm of this place. Here are my thoughts... Price: Cheap! $6 Atmosphere: Again, quirky. Laid back. Very friendly staff members. Excellent for young children... my two year old loved it, but I imagine that my 7 year old nephew would have been bored. What I liked: We attended on an event day which I think added to the fun of this place. I would definitely recommend going on a day that they host an event. I really liked the little amphitheater and Snow White show they performed. I also really liked that they had a lot of picnic space and that the park had a lot of shade. The butterfly house had an attendant that was able to identify the different types of butterflies and even offered up sprigs of butterfly bush to visitors to lure butterflies. What my daughter liked: The carousel, the water sprinklers, the butterfly house, the train ride & the Snow White show. Final Thought: It costs $6 to get into this place, it's not Disney World, and I think it was worth every cent of those $6. read more

I went there today with my 16 month old daughter for a birthday party. She had a great time. We rode the train and got on the carousel. There were activities all over such as design your own cookies. It's a beautiful garden and think it's perfect for children 6 and under. The restrooms were clean as was the rest of the garden. read more

Camden Children's Garden - Drums - Playgrounds Near Me - Camden, New Jersey

If I had to use one word to describe the place, I'd say Bleak. But I'd rather use more words. This used to be a satisfactory place to spend an hour or two with 2 to 5 year olds, but it has fallen into disrepair in the years since my family's last visit. They don't seem to take pride in keeping the place clean or maintained at all. We got there around 11:00 am on a sunday morning and saw trash all over the place. Plastic bags, aluminum foil, chip bags, a discarded plush toy, a baby bottle, and various napkins and other garbage all in plain view. We even saw two EASTER EGGS... IN OCTOBER... unopened and with CANDY STILL INSIDE. They weren't even hidden, they were just lying on the ground out in the open, like bright yellow little reminders that the park is pretty much never tended anymore. In addition to the probably-soiled candy, one of them had an eraser in it. This eraser was once white but was now halfway browned by months of being exposed to the elements. So I took that as evidence that these weren't like new eggs from an autumn egg hunt or something. I know it seems like I'm hung up on these stupid eggs but come on... how can you NOT take that as a sign that they don't give a damn about cleaning the place once in a while? Even if that was a fluke, the park in general just has this feeling like it was left to rot. There's a model train set up near the entrance that doesn't work, and has a couple derailed trains just laying haphazardly across the tracks. There are several water-themed exhibits in that area that are all in various states of damage. There is a little "scouting perch" where you can look through little tubes to try to find multicolored birds and bird houses to match them to some pictures hanging nearby, but most of the colorful birds and birdhouses are gone now so the kids just sit there getting frustrated. There's a greenhouse near the entrance that you can see from outside, but there's no way to enter it. Didn't their site advertise a horticulture exhibit? Their playground was in desperate need of a new coat of mulch, too. There was anti-weed cloth just flapping in the breeze for the world to see. All of that, combined with the fact that we were the only five guests in the park, really brought home that good old fashioned "Exploring an abandoned theme park" feeling. read more

My Grandchildren and I were there on 4th of July explore the gardens and watch the fireworks and we enjoyed ourselves. The Grandkids had fun on the inflatable giant slide, carousel, playground and exploring the various gardens. They also enjoyed making bracelets with beads. Every staff member was friendly and patient with the children. I was most impressed by a coworker there by the name of Andrew. He was so delightful and kept his pleasant personality while multitasking. I would be overwhelmed with the work load he had that day but he remained delightful and attentive....that alone would have me and my family go back to the Camden Children's Garden again! read more

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Had a play date here yesterday with my 2 year old son and his friend who is almost 2. This place is awesome! My favorite was the butterfly house. Of course the kids enjoyed the train ride and the carousel ride. But to see them enjoy the water sprinklers was my favorite part! Definitely will be bringing my son back and would recommend this place especially for toddlers. It's not Disney world but it's a great place to visit. read more

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This place is a hidden gem! Go here instead of the overpriced, overcrowded aquarium next door. My little girl loves it. There's a small train, a carousel, a butterfly garden, lots of little paths for exploring, cool toys, a tree house, a dinosaur garden, wild bunnies etc. Small details add to its charm. All the workers are lovely and kind too. By the way, this place is in a completely safe area next door to the aquarium. We took the ferry over from center city Philadelphia, which was also part of the adventure! Love love love! read more

Great inexpensive place to bring your kids. Friendly staff, clean environment, and nice activities to keep the kids occupied. Im looking forward to having more visits here. read more

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I was there for the very first time this past weekend. I had no idea this place existed!!! We have an Aquarium membership, and this place has an entrance from the Penguin exhibit. I peeked my head inside and my son just about went bonkers pleading for entrance. They've got a huge "splash pad" with water sprays and towers that shower you with water (so bring a bathing suit and rubber soled shoes!). Parents can lay back on their brightly colored benches / chairs tucked away in the shade while the kids entertain themselves in the water. They've got three rides which was a fun bonus. A carousel, a train and something like the Double Shot in miniature (which my 4 yr old son LOVES). The best part, though? I just loved the random places tucked away throughout. It's so much larger than I anticipated. They've got an Alice in Wonderland area, a music area, a butterfly house, a "rabbit burrow" full of tunnels, a farmer's barnyard filled with toys and color, an even a tropical oasis themed area. I was incredulous!!! In truth, some of the hardware could use a spruce-up, but nothing a bucket of paint can't fix. Plus, they hire high schoolers with the caveat that they stay in school while learning horticulture. I LOVE that! What a great incentive while giving them life experience. It didn't seem very crowded because I got the impression that it's a hidden gem. Folks just don't know about the place because they're only open weekends (and Thursdays in July / August). Plus, they've got no marketing budget given their financial constraints. I'm super psyched now that I know this place exists. I'm getting a membership for my family and I because we absolutely loved it, felt super safe, and had a plethora of different areas to enjoy so we never got bored. I'm even looking into doing his 5th birthday party here. That's how much I liked it! I only removed one star because I can see they're in the process of renovation and could definitely do a bit more "sprucing up" with the painting of things like the sprinklers and such. Otherwise, staff was helpful and the experience was great! read more

Well, the place turned out to be a disappointment to us. I brought my 2 girls here looking forward to a wonderful Sunday day with my family but there was not much to see or do. Their website is deceitful, the reality of the Camden Children's Garden didn't look as pretty as it does on the internet. In my opinion, there is no ground to be charged 9$ for entrance and then 2.50$ for a ride on a kid's train or a carousel. Overpriced, plants are not being taken care of. I gave it 2 stars because we were able to watch penguins through the fence of the Adventure Aquarium and my 8 year old liked the quest. She got a free ice cream after she completed it. Although, there were supposed to be blueberry festival activities for children today, August 11-we didn't see any of them. All the driving we did from Philadelphia for something we could have gotten in the nearest playground...disappointing. I don't recommend this place. read more

So cute. Tons of things to do and explore. The splash pad is refreshing. Loved the butterfly garden and counsel. The train ride was enjoyable. Expensive! read more

We've been with our children a few times now. 2 Girls (8 and 6) and a boy (6). They absolutely love it. It's a mini Longwood Gardens targeted towards children. Just enough for them to explore and learn. Love the addition of the splash pad too! The staff is very friendly as well. read more

Upgrades look great. People are very friendly. It might need more work but way way better than before.

Attended the Goblins in the Garden event over the weekend. Our 2 kids (ages 4.5 & 2.5) had a wonderful time. The staff was kind, courteous, helpful, and very sweet. The kids rode the train & carousel (one of the most interesting I've seen with such an eclectic array of animals) & loved it. Highly recommend this for kids big & small. Located right next to the aquarium, so you can easily do both in one visit. read more

We love this place! I have been taking my daughter for 4 years now at least once a month and IT KEEPS GETTING BETTER. We have memberships to the Aquarium, Zoo, etc,,,thisis hands down our favorite :) read more

An endorsement from the target audience: my three-year-old daughter loves this place and asks to be taken here all the time. I'm usually happy to oblige because it's a perfect place to enjoy time outdoors when the weather is nice. She can run and play in a safe and engaging environment, and it's not like somewhere like Sesame Place where you have to run around frantically to ensure that you get your $40-per-person's worth. This place is $6 a pop and the pleasures are low-key: there is a carousel, a train, tunnels to play hide-and-seek in, scenes from fairy tales like the three little pigs' houses, the tea party from Alice in Wonderland, and giant's chair from Jack and the Beanstalk, a little playhouse with toy food, musical instruments to play, fountains in the summertime, a sandbox with dinosaur "fossils" in the bottom, stuff like that. It seems like every weekend there's some themed event with craft tables or exhibits; one time, for instance, a paleontologist from the state museum was there with a giant mastodon femur that he had dug up, and there are holiday events like a Halloween trick-or-treating parade. Employees are friendly, grounds are full of flowers and shady trees (lots of nice willows to sit under). Been here many times, will be back many times. read more

My family and I went to the Garden this past Fall to try things out again after we had a not so pleasant experience the season before. What a big turn-around from our last visit, the staff was very friendly and accommodating from the minute we arrived. The venue still needs some work, but it was a lot cleaner and brighter than before. Seeing that changes had been made and learning that other upgrades were in the works, I felt compelled to support the work of the Children's Garden and purchased a membership for 2014. Really looking forward to visiting again in the Spring! read more

I recently held a birthday party for my child. I first scoped out several venues for hosting a birthday party. I was trying to stick to a fairy garden theme so this location was the best! I loved Megan, who gave the tour so it was a bonus. On the day of the event, luckily the weather was perfect so the garden looked beautiful! As for the staff, I would give them a ONE STAR. No offense to our host, they were very young and very inexperienced. I did not like that I wasn't told up front that the parking for the garden has to be a validated ticket from the garden. I also did not appreciate a heavier receptionists who gave my guest an attitude when getting the tickets validated. I also had specific instructions I had at the time of my guests arrival, who I consulted TWICE with 2 people in ADVANCE, and yet they were never implemented. I just would NEVER HOST any EVENTS here but I would come back to visit. read more

I visited in August of 2012 or rather re-visited as this was a regular stop when my children were younger. In recent years the garden has had difficulties financially. It remains an oasis in a very urban area. The plants are still so lovely, their central attraction, the train, is awaiting parts for repair. However, gorgeous carousel is still operational and way cheaper than the one at Please Touch Museum. We spent around 1.5 hours and my kids are 6 and 8. We did wonder what was up with the butterfly house which seems to be in the process of plant renovation, but the water sprayers were still on in the plaza. I think they enjoyed the bargain water ice (2.50 for big cup) and playing music in the plaza the most. Considering that they spent only 1.5 hours in the aquarium which costs over 3x as much I think it was well worth the price of admission and as we left my kids were asking about returning to the garden not the aquarium. We bought the membership, because I wanted to support the garden, but I'm sure it will pay for itself because we always enjoy visiting in the fall and at the holidays. In addition, with reciprocal membership I can also use it to get into other gardens . The Garden has been dealt some pretty harsh blows, first by the privatization of the aquarium, and then from State budget cuts. I encourage everyone to support them read more