Chicago Botanic Garden Esplanade

Glencoe, IL

The Esplanade is one of the Chicago Botanic Garden's most public spaces, engaging the visitor with the water, the Regenstein Center (Designed by Edward Larabee Barnes in 1975) and a large event lawn. These gardens are essentially the visitor introduction to the Chicago Botanic Garden as the first spaces encountered beyond the paywall. The Esplanade is a series of interconnected gardens including terraced visitor entry garden with elaborate seasonal displays, a major public events lawn framed by allees of Accolade Elms, linear fountains, an elegant lakeside promenade sweeping along the edge of the Skokie lagoon and a vine-covered gateway pavilion to gardens beyond. Seating, meandering and various seasonal events all add to the garden experience.