Adults and children who love dollhouses, gardens, English villages, trains, miniatures, or an English tea will find something to enjoy at Cockington Green Gardens in Australia. Located in Nicholls in the Australian Capital Territory, Cockington Green Gardens is meticulously detailed miniature village set in the midst of a several acres of landscaped gardens with more than 35,000 flowers complete with a miniature steam train ride. The gardens have been in operation for more than thirty years. Family owned and operated the gardens was originally created by Doug & Brenda Sarah Cockington, the gardens is now a popular destination for tourists and miniature enthusiasts.
In addition to the original miniature English village which is the centerpiece of the attraction the Gardens have also added an international display area containing miniature embassies from around the world. There are now more than thirty countries represented in the International area including Argentina, Australia, Chile, Colombia, Croatia, Czech Republic, Great Britain, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Iran, Israel, Jordan, Lithuania and Mauritius. Over the years embassies have offered to sponsor a site and the international embassy area is now so popular that there is a waiting list for the creation of new displays.
Visitors to Cockington Green Gardens can also visit an indoor exhibition known as the Rose Room which is adjacent to the Parsons Nose Garden Café. The premier installation in the Rose Room is the Waverley Dolls House which contains 34 rooms of miniatures all done in the Georgian style. Other exhibits in the Rose Room include a replica of the house depicted in the book Seven Little Australians which is known as the Misrule A doll’s house and an exhibit of miniature stores called the Chester Shops.
For adult train hobbyists there is an inter city 125 electric train set which traverses through the gardens. The train configuration is based on plans supplied by the British Rail Service. The train in international display area is available for visitors to try and drive the trains around the dual tracks. For kids and adults there are miniature steam train rides which are half size replicas of the Fowler Cane Loco which runs on gas in an effort to be environmentally friendly.
The gardens themselves are well worth the trip to this Australian attraction. The colorful annuals are propagated on site and each season new varieties are added to the display. In addition to the flowers the gardens also feature trees and shrubs with miniature growth characteristics such as miniature conifers, dwarf elms and maples, and other plants native to Australia. The gardens are open all year around and welcome more than 100,000 visitors annually.