Biltmore Gardens Engagement Photography Guide

So you’re thinking about having a surprise proposal or engagement photo session at the Biltmore Estate Gardens in Asheville, North Carolina. This guy is here to serve as an introduction but any information you may need for planning your engagement session or surprise proposal. We suggest everyone planning a proposal or engagement read our Biltmore Guide.

How To Plan a Surprise Proposal at the Biltmore Estate Gardens

The Biltmore Gardens are a perfect place for a romantic proposal. During any season, you can find something blooming; whether that be in the Shrub Garden, Walled Garden, Rose Garden, Conservatory, Spring Garden, or Azaleas Garden, there’s something for everyone. The romance of the gardens and their strategic layout was designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, the great landscape architect who designed New York City’s, Central Park. Your photographer will go over with you the different gardens and what will be blooming, full foliage, or fall colors during the dates you plan to propose.

Photo of a couple standing under a tree in the Biltmore shrub Garden on their Biltmore engagement photo session. They are holding one another and dancing.

Shrub Garden Proposal

The Shrub Garden is found a short walk downhill from the Biltmore House. Here you will find paved paths through the different unique shrubs and trees. The Shrub Garden makes for a beautiful backdrop to your proposal; depending on the time of year, you can still get the Biltmore House in the background of your photos. In early April, you will find that the shrubs and trees in this area start flowering with different white, pink, purple, and yellow shades. A red brick tunnel is just wide enough for a walking path in the Shrub Garden that makes for great engagement shots.

Walled Garden Engagement

From the Shrub Garden, it gently leads into the Walled Garden, where depending on the season, you could find 51,000 tulips or 15,000 daffodils blooming in a grand array of colors. At every corner of the Walled Garden, it’s oozing with romance, and there is no wrong angle to propose. We recommend you propose during an off time for tourists like the early morning, late afternoon, or during the week to avoid getting other guests in the background photos since this is a very populated area.

If you of the tulips in full bloom at the Walled Garden in Asheville, there are red and white tulips in the foreground and bright yellow tulips in the background; oh, there must be thousands.

Rose Garden Proposal

The couple headed to the Biltmore rose gardens along one of the many brick paths, an Engagement photography session.

Within the Walled Garden is its separate area called the Rose Garden. In the Rose Garden, you can imagine, is filled with at least 250 varieties of roses. The roses bloom twice a year, starting in May and another intense bloom in September, with intermittent blooming throughout the summer. The Rose Garden is a perfect place for an engagement photography session. with all its arches made out of roses and the smell of the different varieties filling the area.

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Conservatory Proposal

The Conservatory is a beautiful place for a proposal and can even be a great backup plan in inclement weather. The Conservatory is home to tropical plants and a variety of other plants. The Conservatory does have benches throughout to sit and take a moment to enjoy the beauty. Suppose you intend to book an engagement photography session focusing on the conservatory. In that case, you will have many options as there are many different rooms in the greenhouse, including the desert room, the Orchid Room, and a giant tropical sitting area.

A couple holding one another standing in the fields behind Biltmore Estate. The fields are gold and red creating a very Dynamic engagement photos.

Spring Garden Proposal

The spring garden has a nice dirt path that weaves in and out of the woods and the meadows. The Spring Garden is a lovely, less crowded garden than the others that the Biltmore offers. This location is ideal for proposals and engagements.

Biltmore Proposal in bright sunlight

Azalea Garden Engagement

The Azalea Garden is by far the most extensive garden the Biltmore has to offer. Azalea Garden is great all year round, from the new spring buds to the fall leaves to the giant evergreens of winter. At every angle, there’s a romantic view. There are paved paths that go over and around small creeks. In the fall, the ginkgo trees lay their golden leaves down like a warm quilt covering the path, making for a gorgeous proposal spot.

The Gardens by Season

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Biltmore Gardens in Late March

In late March, you will find the over 200 orchids in the Conservatory blooming. The cherry trees have started to Bud and Bloom the hyacinth, crocus, and all early bulb bloomers in the Walled Garden will also begin to bloom.

Biltmore Gardens in Early April

In early April, forsythias will start to appear in the spring garden. Over 16,000 daffodils and early tulip variety will Display their colors in the Walled Garden. Many of the shrubs and trees around the whole estate will have started to bud and flower

Biltmore Gardens in Mid-April

The peak tulip season is mid-April, with over 74,000 tulips primarily found in the Walled Garden. The dogwoods and redbuds are in full swing. You can walk under and enjoy the long tunnel-like deep color of the wisteria pergola.

Biltmore Gardens Early May

In early May, the place to be is the Azalea Garden with its millions of colorful blooms. You will find all spectrums of colors from pink, purple, white, and yellow heavily blanketing the bushes. Walk along with these blooms while listening to the Babbling Brook in the background.

Biltmore Gardens Late May to September

In late May, the roses in the Rose Garden start to bloom. It will continue through summer intermittently and have a final large bloom in September.

Biltmore Gardens November

With November comes the Fall colors of the Western North Carolina mountain. The first to bring on the colors are the dogwoods with their deep shades of magenta and purple. You will also find Japanese maples bald cypress with red and cinnamon color. The ginkgo trees a golden blanket that creates an amazing surreal location for Engagement photography. 

Biltmore Gardens End of November through December

Colors of winter berries appear on the trees and shrubs as they lose their foliage; it exposes the many bright berries that brighten the winter and feed the birds.