Hayes Arboretum

"My husband and I got married here and I could have not asked for a more perfect location. We also got a year membership to explore the trails and it's SO worth it. Steve Hayes Jr. was incredibly kind. I absolutely recommend the Woodland Chapel to anyone looking for that simple, yet gorgeous outdoor vibe for their wedding. Chapel was very affordable and out of site from the city. Couldn't be happier with Hayes Arboretum!"

"This gem is hidden in plain sight in Richmond. With lots of walking trails, an auto tour and a nature center with activities for kids of all ages, it's a great place to spend time away from the grind of modern life. And it's very close to the east side commercial zone, not far from downtown. We went with our 18 month old grandson this past weekend and he loved it!"

"Very nice place to bring children and let them experience nature and all it has to offer. Children can actually go play with the old modern outdoor toys and stay off the technology!! Great experience and I’ll be back"

"Really beautiful place to visit. One of the best indoor nature centers I've seen, and we travel a lot!! Also a really incredible outdoor play space for kids, with a teepee, mud kitchen, sandpit, etc. My kids loved the trails too!! Highly recommend!"

"If you're looking for lots of hiking paths with shade and access to wide open fields while listening to the birds chirping this is the definitely the place for you. What's unique is they have an autopath which is just wide enough for one car and they were hardly any cars on it which allowed for privacy in nature for those that are handicapped I can pass for really easy to access, well marked and allowed for some strenuous activity for those that are interested in a challenging walk. There were a few ponds and streams with bridges which was pretty cool. I really liked that it had a diverse amount of activities for different age groups. Behind the educational center you could see that they were teaching kids how to make shelters out of natural wood and trees while also teaching them how to build fires and be conservation-minded. I would definitely recommend anyone that's here for vacation or lives here to check this place out even if you just want a place to go read a book and be quiet. The one thing I did not find impressive was that there were no garbage cans so if you're walking your dog and you had dog waste in a bag there was no place to dispose of it. Also I didn't find any dumpsters either. Other than the lack of trash cans it seemed to have every amenity you could want in an outdoor center."