The Visitor Center is the hub of The Morton Arboretum, where guests can find information, dining, shopping, and accessibility resources.
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The Visitor Center is a welcoming hub for all guests of The Morton Arboretum. It’s the perfect first stop to find information and maps, accessible restrooms, sitting areas, and refreshments. It also houses a sit-down restaurant and a gift shop.
The Visitor Center is open 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. daily from March through October, and 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. daily from November through February.
A covered, open-air breezeway connects the main Visitor Center building to the separate West Pavilion. The breezeway leads to Arbor Court, an open area with outdoor seating surrounded by beautiful seasonal plantings and displays, as well as Scamp, one of the colorful sculptures in the Vivid Creatures exhibition. Arbor Court connects to a number of interesting destinations within easy walking distance, including the Children’s Garden, Meadow Lake Trail, the Ground Cover Garden, The Gerard T. Donnelly Grand Garden, and the Conifer Walk.
The West Pavilion houses the Arboretum’s Plant Clinic and the Sycamore Room, an event and meeting space. The West Pavilion also has accessible restrooms that can be entered from outside and are open from 7:00 a.m. until the Arboretum closes at sunset.
Hours: The Visitor Center is open 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. daily from March through October, and 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. daily from November through February.
Parking: The nearest available parking is in parking lot P-1.
Restrooms: Accessible restrooms in the Visitor Center are available year-round during open hours. Accessible restrooms in the adjacent West Pavilion are open from 7:00 a.m. to sunset.
Seating: Seating is available inside the Visitor Center lobby, outdoors in the Ginkgo Restaurant seating area, in the outside breezeway, and in Arbor Court.
Accessibility: Accessible parking is available in parking lot P-1. In most of the parking lot, the permeable pavers that allow rainwater to drain into the ground have an uneven surface. However, the pavers are smooth in the accessible parking spaces and the pathways from parking lot P-1 to the Visitor Center. Manual wheelchairs are available for loan at the Information Desk in the Visitor Center, as are other aids for guests with special needs. Accessible restrooms are available in the Visitor Center and the adjacent West Pavilion.
Admission: The Visitor Center is included with Arboretum admission.
Water: Inside the Visitor Center, there are drinking fountains with water bottle filling stations. Beverages are sold at the Ginkgo Restaurant and the Ginkgo Café.
Information Desks
Drop by the Information Desk in the lobby of the main Visitor Center building, where friendly staff will be happy to help you get oriented and offer ideas about how to enjoy the Arboretum, whether you’re here for a few hours or all day.
Pick up a map or borrow accessibility aids such as a wheelchair or sensory-friendly backpack. Information Desk staff also can help with ticket purchases for future admission or special events, and registration for classes and camps. Tram tickets and tickets to some events that have a limited capacity must be purchased at the Information Desk on the day of your visit.
Maps and Guides
Printed maps of the Arboretum grounds and other helpful guides are available in English and Spanish at the Information Desk. Maps of the East Side, West Side, the full Arboretum, and hiking trails are available online, as well as Visitor Guides to help guests plan a visit.
Membership Services Desk
Staff at the Membership Services Desk can answer questions about Arboretum membership and help you to select the type of membership that works best for you. Members enjoy free year-round admission to the Arboretum, while their support helps trees thrive around the world.
Accessibility and Inclusion Aids
Manual wheelchairs are available to borrow at the Information Desk by leaving an ID. Personal wheelchairs, motorized mobility devices, and strollers are welcome at the Arboretum.
You can also borrow a sensory support backpack containing headphones, fidgets, visuals, and other calming tools. Backpacks can be checked out by leaving an ID at the Information Desk or in the Children’s Garden.
Indoor, accessible restrooms are available at the Visitor Center, the Children’s Garden, and the West Pavilion.
Dine and Shop
The Ginkgo Restaurant is a fast-casual sit-down restaurant that offers internationally inspired meals including vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free options, as well as craft beers and wines, baked goods, and coffee. Brunch is offered in addition to the regular menu on Saturdays and Sundays. The menu and venue are also available for private events and catering.
An outdoor seating area is available for Ginkgo Restaurant customers.
The Ginkgo Restaurant is open Monday through Friday from March through October, and Wednesday through Friday from November through February, from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. On Saturday and Sunday year-round, the restaurant is open from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
The Ginkgo Restaurant is closed during normal business hours on Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year’s Day, Easter, and Mother’s Day.
Ginkgo Café
The Ginkgo Café, open longer hours than the Ginkgo Restaurant, offers freshly made packaged food and beverages, including bakery items, snacks, salads, and sandwiches. Espresso beverages, hot tea, and drip coffee are also available.
There are a limited number of tables and chairs inside the Visitor Center for enjoying carryout items or food brought from home, with more chairs and tables outdoors in Arbor Court.
The Gingko Café is open 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. daily from March through October, and 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. daily from November through February. It is closed on Thanksgiving and Christmas Day.
The Arboretum Store
With more than 2,000 nature-inspired books for adults and children, as well as jewelry, art, home decor, apparel, and accessories, The Arboretum Store offers a wide array of gifts and souvenirs.
The Arboretum Store is open 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. daily from March through April, 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. daily from May through October, and 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. daily from November through February. It is closed on Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, and at 3:00 p.m. on Christmas Eve.
Arbor Court
Just outside the Visitor Center, reached through the open breezeway, is Arbor Court, an expansive courtyard that leads to nearby trails and gardens. Tables and chairs invite guests to relax beneath tall trees amid colorful seasonal plantings, while enjoying Scamp, one of the colorful sculptures in the Vivid Creatures exhibition.
When you walk through the breezeway, with the Visitor Center on your left and the West Pavilion on your right, Arbor Court opens before you. The surface is fine gravel with paved, accessible pathways running through it. Seating is available throughout the courtyard.
To the right is a paved path that leads past the south side of the West Pavilion. Directly ahead, Scamp, an artwork of the Vivid Creatures exhibition, welcomes you to a path leading to the Ground Cover Garden, The Gerard T. Donnelly Grand Garden, and the Conifer Walk.
Off toward the southeast corner of Arbor Court are the entrances to the Children’s Garden and the Maze Garden. Head east along the path following the glass wall of the Visitor Center to the Tram Circle, where guests can find seating while waiting to board the Acorn Express tram, or continue to the Meadow Lake Trail to see more Vivid Creatures sculptures.
Arbor Court is used for events and activities throughout the year. During some special events, food trucks and concessions are available in Arbor Court.
In general, refreshments and beverages are not sold beyond the Visitor Center area, such as along the walking trails. However, on some weekend days and holidays during the summer and fall, the Traveling Tap Beverage Bike offers a limited selection of drinks for purchase with credit or debit card in some locations near the Visitor Center.
Acorn Express Tram Tours run daily through Sunday, November 9, weather permitting. Tram tours board at the Tram CIrcle, which is at the far east end of Arbor Court, to the left as you enter the courtyard from the breezeway.
Narrated live by naturalists with a deep knowledge of The Morton Arboretum, these one-hour rides take you on an adventure through woodlands, wetlands, and prairies.
Tram tickets must be purchased at the Information Desk in the Visitor Center on the day of your visit. Tram tickets cannot be purchased in advance over the phone, online, or for another day.
Event and Wedding Venues
Several locations in and near the Visitor Center are available to rent for weddings, meetings, and other events, including the Gingko Restaurant, the Sycamore Room, the Children’s Garden, and The Gerard T. Donnelly Grand Garden.
Ginkgo Room and Orientation Hall
The Ginkgo Room is a large dining area overlooking Meadow Lake that is ideal for sit-down dinners or formal events. Orientation Hall is the lobby of the Visitor Center. The seasonal gardens in Arbor Court add texture and color, and reflections on the water of Meadow Lake provide a constantly changing backdrop and beauty to any event.
Sycamore Room
The Sycamore Room is an event space in the West Pavilion, across the breezeway from the Visitor Center. With expansive glass walls overlooking the tranquil Ground Cover Garden, the Sycamore Room is available for private events, meetings, and weddings.
Plant Clinic Advice
The Arboretum’s Plant Clinic is in the West Pavilion, just across the breezeway from the Visitor Center. Gardeners, professionals, or anyone with a question about trees and plants can ask plant care and identification questions in person, online, or by phone.
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The Plant Clinic is a leading source of science-based advice about trees, plants, and landscapes, helping gardeners, landscape professionals, or anyone with a question throughout the Chicago region and the world have healthy, attractive, well-chosen plants.
The Plant Clinic also has many online resources that provide science-based advice about trees, plants, and landscapes.
