Gardens · South West England
The Eden Project
Also known as: Prosiect Eden, Tionscadal Éidin, Edenva
In or near Rescorla.
Cornish biomes housing the world's largest covered rainforest.
Andrew Tryon — CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons licence
Plan your visit
- Typical visit
- 1 h–2.5 h
- Best time of year
- Spring & summer (Apr–Sep)
- Nearest railway station
- Par · 2.9 km
- Dog-friendly
- Wheelchair accessible
Getting there & planning your visit
The Eden Project is located in Cornwall, postcode PL24 2SG, and is approximately 2.9 km from Par railway station. Entry is paid, and the site is wheelchair accessible.
About
The Eden Project is the visitor attraction in a former china clay pit near St Austell, Cornwall, opened in 2001. Its two giant geodesic biomes house the world's largest covered rainforest and a Mediterranean climate house, with a third outdoor garden of UK temperate planting. The structure — a sequence of bubble-shaped ETFE-cushion domes — has become a landmark of regenerative architecture.
Photo gallery
Protected designations
- Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty: Cornwall
Designations sourced from Natural England open data under OGL v3.
From the Wikipedia article
The Eden Project is a visitor attraction in Cornwall, England. The project is located in a reclaimed china clay pit. The complex is dominated by two huge enclosures consisting of adjoining domes that house thousands of plant species, and each enclosure emulates a natural biome. The biomes consist of hundreds of hexagonal and pentagonal ethylene tetrafluoroethylene (ETFE) inflated cells supported by geodesic tubular steel domes. The larger of the two biomes simulates a rainforest environment (and is one of the largest indoor rainforests in the world) and the second, a Mediterranean environment. The attraction also has an outside botanical garden which is home to many plants and wildlife native to Cornwall and the UK in general; it also has many plants that provide an important and interesting backstory, for example, those with a prehistoric heritage. There are plans to build an Eden Project in the seaside town of Morecambe, Lancashire, with a focus on the marine environment.
Excerpt from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0. See the source article linked in Sources below.
Background
History
, from the main entrance]] The clay pit in which the project is sited was in use for over 160 years. In 1981, the pit was used by the BBC as the planet surface of Magrathea in the TV series the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. By the mid-1990s the pit was all but exhausted. The initial idea for the project dates back to 1996, with construction beginning in 1998. The work was hampered by torrential rain in the first few months of the project, and parts of the pit flooded as it sits 15 m below the water table. The rail link was never built, and car parking on the site is still funded from revenue generated from general admission ticket sales. A bus service links the site to St Austell…
Architecture
The project was conceived by Tim Smit and Jonathan Ball, and designed by Grimshaw Architects and structural engineering firm Anthony Hunt Associates (now part of Sinclair Knight Merz). Davis Langdon carried out the project management, Sir Robert McAlpine and Alfred McAlpine did the construction, MERO jointly designed and built the biome steel structures, the ETFE pillows that build the façade were realized by Vector Foiltec, and Arup was the services engineer, economic consultant, environmental engineer and transportation engineer. Land Use Consultants led the masterplan and landscape design. The project took 2½ years to construct and opened to the public on 17 March 2001.
Description
The Core is the latest addition to the site and opened in September 2005. It provides the Eden Project with an education facility, incorporating classrooms and exhibition spaces designed to help communicate Eden's central message about the relationship between people and plants. Accordingly, the building has taken its inspiration from plants, most noticeable in the form of the soaring timber roof, which gives the building its distinctive shape. Grimshaw developed the geometry of the copper-clad roof in collaboration with a sculptor, Peter Randall-Page, and Mike Purvis of structural engineers SKM Anthony Hunts. It is derived from phyllotaxis, which is the mathematical basis for nearly all…
Sourced from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Coordinates
- 50.3619, -4.7450
- District
- Cornwall
- Parish
- St. Blaise
- Postcode
- PL24 2SG
- Parliamentary constituency
- St Austell and Newquay
- Established
- 2001
- Nearest railway station
- Par — 2.9 km
- Official site
- www.thegreencenter.net
Sources
- manual: the-eden-project (manual)
- wikipedia: Eden Project (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Featured in these 7 guides
Itinerary
Cornwall: a coast-to-coast itinerary
Five days, twenty fishing villages and the country's best beaches.
Itinerary
A Cornish summer fortnight
Beaches, Eden Project, Tintagel — two weeks west of the Tamar.
Itinerary
Cornwall coast in 7 days
Land's End to Tintagel via the south and north coasts.
Itinerary
Britain's botanic gardens tour
Six great public collections from Cornwall to Edinburgh.
Itinerary
Cornwall cliffs and coves in a week
The South West Coast Path's most dramatic 100 miles.
Itinerary
Britain's best autumn colour
Where to see peak leaves in October.
Other places nearby
Eden Project
Botanic gardens · 0.0 km
Metal Giant
Public art & sculpture · 0.0 km
Eden Project
Natural landmarks · 0.1 km
Industrial Flame Plant
Public art & sculpture · 0.2 km
Eden Cloud Chamber
National landscapes (AONB) · 0.2 km
YHA Eden Project
Hostels · 0.3 km
Seed
Public art & sculpture · 0.3 km
YHA Eden Project
Campsites · 0.4 km
Bodelva
Natural landmarks · 0.4 km
Aerial Assault Course
Natural landmarks · 0.4 km
Tregrehan Mills
Historic churches · 1.2 km
Prideaux Castle
Vineyards · 1.3 km
Nearby
📷 5Botanic gardens · South West England
Eden Project
Eden Project — a botanic garden in england south west.
📷 4Public art & sculpture · South West England
Metal Giant
Metal Giant — a public art in england-south-west, United Kingdom.
📷 3Natural landmarks · South West England
Eden Project
Eden Project — a other in england-south-west, United Kingdom.
📷 3Public art & sculpture · South West England
Industrial Flame Plant
Industrial Flame Plant — a public art in england-south-west, United Kingdom.
📷 5National landscapes (AONB) · South West England
Eden Cloud Chamber
Eden Cloud Chamber — Public artwork (installation) by Chris Drury.
📷 5Hostels · South West England
YHA Eden Project
YHA Eden Project — a hostel in england south west. Brand: Youth Hostels Association.
Where to eat & stay near The Eden Project
Places to stay
📷 5Hostels · South West England
YHA Eden Project
YHA Eden Project — a hostel in england south west. Brand: Youth Hostels Association.
📷 5
📷 2Campsites · South West England
Croft Farm Campsite
Croft Farm Campsite — a campsite in england south west.
📷 5Campsites · South West England
Carlyon Bay Caravan & Camping Park
Carlyon Bay Caravan & Camping Park — a campsite in england south west.
📷 5Campsites · South West England
Innis Inn Campsite
Innis Inn Campsite — a campsite in england south west.
📷 5Campsites · South West England
East Crinnis Holiday Camp
East Crinnis Holiday Camp — a campsite in england south west.
Places to eat & drink
📷 7Historic pubs · South West England
The Pack Horse Public House
The Pack Horse Public House in England South West, United Kingdom.
📷 5Restaurants · South West England
Pier House Hotel
Pier House Hotel — a restaurant in england south west.
📷 5
📷 7Historic pubs · South West England
Methodist Chapel
Methodist Chapel in England South West, United Kingdom.
📷 7Restaurants · South West England
The House on the Props
The House on the Props — a restaurant in england south west.
📷 7Other works by Nicholas Grimshaw
📷 5
📷 3Gardens · South West England
'The Ship', Derriford
'The Ship', Derriford — a garden in england-south-west, United Kingdom.
📷 5Botanic gardens · South West England
Eden Project
Eden Project — a botanic garden in england south west.
More gardens in this region
📷 5Gardens · South West England
Avebury Manor and Garden
Avebury Manor and Garden is a garden in the United Kingdom.
.jpg?width=1200)
📷 5Gardens · South West England
Compton Acres
Compton Acres — garden in Poole, United Kingdom.
📷 5Gardens · South West England
Corsham Court
Corsham Court — Grade I listed English country house in Wiltshire, England, UK.
📷 5Gardens · South West England
Cranborne Manor
Cranborne Manor — Grade I listed English country house in East Dorset, England, UK.
Frequently asked questions
- Where is The Eden Project?
- The Eden Project is in South-West England, United Kingdom (postcode PL24 2SG), in the parish of St. Blaise.
- What is The Eden Project?
- Cornish biomes housing the world's largest covered rainforest.
- How do I get to The Eden Project?
- The nearest railway station is Par, about 2.9 km away. Drivers can use postcode PL24 2SG.
- When was The Eden Project built?
- Built or established in 2001. Designed by Nicholas Grimshaw.
- Is The Eden Project a protected site?
- Yes — The Eden Project is part of the Cornwall National Landscape (AONB).
- How do I get to The Eden Project?
- The nearest railway station is Par, about 2.9 km away. Drivers can navigate to postcode PL24 2SG.