Accessibility – Washington Park Arboretum

Here at the UW Botanic Gardens, we strive to make our spaces accessible to people of all backgrounds. We are currently working on expanding our resources to enhance the experience of our visitors.

We would love to receive feedback for how we can improve your experience in our gardens. Please email urbhort@uw.edu and we will do our best to accommodate your needs.

Parking

Accessible parking is available in the Graham Visitors Center parking lot at the Washington Park Arboretum. Arboretum Drive is closed to general public traffic, but is available for visitors with limited mobility to offer greater Arboretum access. There are many parking lots along the drive that you may use during your visit. Please drive very slowly are be aware of pedestrians, bicyclists and maintenance vehicles.

Trails and Benches 

  • You can download trail maps for both locations (pdf) or pick them up at the Graham Visitors Center and Merrill Hall ($1 suggested donation).
  • While most of our trails are accessible, some areas have varying levels of accessibility.
  • Those with limited mobility are welcome to drive and park in the lots located along the Arboretum Drive.
  • All 16 benches on the Arboretum Loop Trail are fully accessible. You can view those on our interactive basic map. Some users have difficulty viewing the map in certain browsers. If this happens for you, try switching browsers.

Restrooms

One wheel-chair accessible stall is located in each of the Graham Visitors Center restrooms.

Menstrual Products

Menstrual products are currently not available in our bathrooms Facilities on UW main campus do provide free products and locations can be found here.

Service Animals and Pets

  • Service animals are welcome in both outdoor and indoor spaces.
  • Dogs are more than welcome at the Washington Park Arboretum and Center for Urban Horticulture as long as they are on a leash and get picked up after. No dogs allowed in the Seattle Japanese Garden. See the Seattle Municipal Code on Animals for more information.

We are continuously working with Seattle Parks and Recreation to get accurate information about the ADA accessibility of trails throughout the park.

Programs

Connect with the UW Botanic Gardens from the comfort of your home: UW Botanic Gardens at Home.

Online Classes: Our adult education department is now offering classes online to facilitate learning at home. Check out upcoming classes & workshops, professional continuing education, and symposia.

Youth & Family Activities: Explore the natural world around you with our Youth & Family Self-Guided Adventures. And join us for Virtual Story Time with the Miller Library!

We would like to increase the accessibility of our in-person programs. If you have ideas about organizations we may be able to partner with or other ideas for accessible programming, email us at urbhort@uw.edu.

Audio Tours

Audio tours are available for the Pacific Connections Garden which highlights iconic plants from five countries/regions connected by the Pacific Ocean: Australia, Cascadia, Chile, China, New Zealand.

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