Surprise Proposal at the Montreal Botanical Garden

Jimmy planned a surprise proposal at the Montreal Botanical Garden, during a tour of the gardens with his girlfriend Brianna and their friends.

Check out this surprise proposal at the Montreal Botanical Garden below:

View of the Olympic stadium from the Montreal botanical garden — View of the Olympic Stadium from the Montreal Botanical Garden

Couple walking in the greenery of the Montreal botanical garden — Garden of Innovations

I followed the group around taking a few spy photos as they visited the gardens with their friendly tour guide Danielle.

Then, Jimmy popped the question and I photographed the big emotions of the moment!

Man knee down proposing to fiancée at the botanical garden

Woman showing engagement ring to friends

It was so fun that their friends were there to celebrate with them!

Emotional man holding fiancée in his arms

Couple holding hands walking with friends inside the botanical garden

We took a few relaxed portraits in the gardens after the proposal.

Reflection of a couple in a pond — The lily pond in the Perennial Garden is great for reflection photos

Montreal Botanical Garden access and rates

The Montreal Botanical Garden is usually open year round. However, due to COVID-19 restrictions, opening times may vary and you may need to reserve your visit time. You can check their updated opening hours here.

Access to the outdoor gardens is free to visitors during the winter, but starting in May, you’ll need to purchase entry tickets.

In 2021, admission is $21.50 for adults. If you are a Quebec resident, admission is $16.50.

If you are a Montreal resident, get yourself an Accès Montreal card for $8.50 at your local municipal office. The card is good for 1 year and gives you free access to outdoor gardens during opening hours at the Botanical garden.

Choosing where to propose at the Botanical Garden

Because the Montreal Botanical Garden is a huge space with many windings paths and over 20 unique garden areas with different themes (alpine, food plants, rose gardens, shrub garden, shade plants, arboretum, etc.) the possibilities are endless and it can be tricky to find your way around.

If you’re going to propose at the Botanical Garden, it’s important to choose a spot that will be easy for you to find and with nothing that can obstruct the view of your big moment. You want it to be so easy for your photographer to find you as well!

Best places to propose at the Montreal Botanical Garden:

The Perennial Garden is close to the entrance of the Botanical garden. It has lots of flowering plants and doesn’t have too many too many structures that could block the view. It also has a lovely lily pond. See map and info
The Garden of Innovations is nearby and also close to the entrance. It has lots of flowering plants as well as beautiful vines. See map and info
The Japanese Garden is beautiful and minimal and even has a open pavilion where you can take shelter in case of rain. I love the tall pine woods near there. See map and info
The Flowery Brook and Garden is an open space with flowing gardens, lilac bushes and a few trees that has a countryside feel. See map and info

Where NOT to propose

While the Rose Garden might sound like a romantic place to propose, I’ve found that the flat flower beds in the Rose Garden are more interesting for horticulturists than for photos. The large sections of roses are visually boring and don’t make a great backdrop for photos.
The Peace Garden is a beautiful little garden with a fountain and tulips. However, it’s so close to the restaurant terrace that proposing here would be very public and distracting.
The Chinese Garden with its distinctive pavilion and structures can make an amazing photo location, but the architecture can get in the way when it comes to a surprise proposal. Last time I photographed a proposal there, construction and pavilion columns got in the way of the photo and I had to quickly run to get a different angle of the big moment. For that reason, I’d recommend sticking to the more traditional flower gardens, which don’t have as many decorative elements to block the view.