ROCK GARDEN CHANDIGARH –COMPLETE GUIDE (TIMINGS, TICKETS & THINGS TO DO) – 2022

Introduction

Chandigarh is a beautiful city in India and it has a number of places to visit like Sukhna Lake, Chandigarh Bird Park, Elante Mall, Chattbir Zoo, Rock Garden Chandigarh, Terraced Garden are named to few. Out of these, the Rock Garden of Chandigarh is famous for its unique style and composition. As the name indicates, it is the “Garden of Rocks” and not the garden of flowers or plants.

The Rock Garden of Chandigarh is a sculpture garden for rock enthusiasts in Chandigarh, India.

It is also known as Nek Chand Saini’s Rock Garden after its founder Nek Chand Saini, a government official who started the garden secretly in his spare time in 1957.

It has spread over an area of 40 acres and is completely built from industrial, home waste, and discarded items. 

Location of Rock Garden Chandigarh

Rock Garden is located in Sector 1 of Chandigarh, and can be easily accessed from all parts of the city. It is located at a distance of 2 kilometres from the famous Sukhna Lake.

Who built Rock garden of Chandigarh?

It is also known by the name of Nek Chand Saini’s Rock Garden. Nek Chand was the founder of this garden and he built this garden secretly in his spare time in 1957. He was a government official in the Engineering department of the Chandigarh capital project.

In his spare time, Nek Chand started collecting materials from demolition sites around the city. He recycled these materials into his own imagination and assembled these waste materials in a symmetrical way to give a look of Human life.

The place where Nek Chand was performing his art had been designated as a land conservancy, a forest area established in 1902 that nothing could be built on.

So Nek Chand’s work was illegal, but he was able to hide it for 18 years before it was discovered by the authorities in 1976.

By this time, it had grown into a 12-acre complex of interlinked courtyards, each filled with hundreds of pottery-covered concrete sculptures of dancers, musicians, and animals.

What kind of things are used to build this garden?

The thing which makes this garden unique is that it contains a magnificent and fabulous arrangement of rocks, broken chinaware, discarded fluorescent tubes, broken glass bangles, coal and clay material, and other household waste material.

These materials create a dramatic world of soldiers, monkeys, village life, women, places, men, and temples.

Open-air sculptures with well-guided small pathways going through different layers of this garden will give you a soothing effect. Waterfalls, pools, open-air theatre, and museums are properly positioned in this garden.

What was there in the place before the garden was built?

The site where the rock garden is situated today was used as a dumping ground for industrial and household waste.

Nek Chand properly arranged some of the solid waste materials in such an engineered way that this place becomes a landmark point today.

What is inside this garden?

This garden is subdivided into three parts:

This first part consists of landscaping elements for a garden waterfall, streams, bridges, pathways, and green lush vegetation. Walls are made up of beautiful ceramic tiles. An artificial hill forms the source of a waterfall which is the main attraction of the garden.

People do a lot of photography at this point. Moving ahead, the artificial water flow streams move parallel with road pathways and these are connected with other sides through small bridges.

The second part of the garden starts when one moves out of the congested gullies (streets) of the waterfall and lush green vegetation into an open area.

Here you will find mirror galleries and an aquarium. If someone wants to take some rest then he/she can take a break as there is a sitting arrangement for visitors. One can enjoy some snacks or drinks in this area as it has small coffee/tea shops.

After this open courtyard area, you will find a doll museum which is a covered structure whose design is based on a village. It will show the daily chores of a household in the village.

There is a room at the end of the doll museum which shows the chronology of the events of the garden through pictures.

The third and final part of the garden leads the visitors into an open sculpture garden. This is the most important and artistically creative part of the garden.

This area displays various structures of human beings, animals, trees, and abstract objects. It is the display of a marvellous art gallery and astonishes any first-time visitor.

Rock Garden Chandigarh Timings

The timings to visit this garden varies according to the season.

Summer Timings
(1st April to 30th September)
9 a.m. to 7 p.m. (Ticket Counter closes at 6:00 pm)

Winter opening hours
(1st October to 31st March)
9 a.m. to 6 p.m. (Ticket Counter closes at 5:00 pm)

Is Rock Garden Chandigarh remaining open for all days in a week?

Yes, it remains open for all days of the week.

What is the best time or season to visit this garden?

As you can visit this garden at any time throughout the year but the best season to visit is October to march (Winter). In the summer season, try to visit in the evening hours (after 4:00 pm).

Entry Ticket for Rock Garden Chandigarh

The entry fee is only 30 INR per Adult & 10 INR per Child of age 5 to 12 years.

How to reach to Rock Garden Chandigarh?

Chandigarh is well connected to other cities of India and easily accessible by various means of transport. You can reach Rock Garden of Chandigarh by adopting any of the following means of transport:

By Air – International Airport, Chandigarh has daily flights from Delhi, the National Capital of India, and from other major cities of India. The Delhi to Chandigarh flight takes approximately 50 minutes. The airport is just at a distance of  15 km from Rock garden of Chandigarh and you can easily book a taxi/cab/autorickshaw to anywhere in the city from the airport. You may use Makemytrip.com to book your air tickets.

By Rail – The Chandigarh Railway Station is situated just 8 km away from the city center and is well connected to the major cities of India.  Rock Garden of Chandigarh is located just at a distance of 13 KM from Chandigarh Railway Station. You can easily book a taxi/cab/autorickshaw to anywhere in the city from the railway station. You can use IXIGO app to easily book your train tickets.

By Road – Chandigarh is well connected with roads to almost all cities of Northern India and bus service is easily available from all nearby major cities like Delhi, Shimla, Amritsar and Rajasthan. Ola and Uber’s cabs are easily accessible here.

Rock Garden Chandigarh Review

You definitely should visit the Rock Garden of Chandigarh. It is a wonderful place for your family, friends and loved ones to enjoy. I visited this place many times. It is the best place to spend your time in calmness enduring the beauty of nature.

It took me 3 hours to completely explore this garden. I also enjoyed some street snacks (Pani-poori & Dahi Chaat) outside the Rock Garden Park. I would recommend visiting this garden in the afternoon (After 3:00 pm) to enjoy the Sunset view which is breathtaking from inside the Rock Garden Chandigarh.

You can also click a bunch of memorable photographs here. Some scenes in the 2021 Bollywood Movie “Shershah” were filmed in the Rock Garden Chandigarh.

I hope this information would be helpful for you. If you have any queries related to Rock Garden of Chandigarh then feel free to leave a comment in the comment box below. I would feel glad to answer your query.

Read about the other Places of Chandigarh by Visiting the Link below: