Major step for family business: Mayfield now open in all its glory

Mayfield Garden has opened up the entire 65-hectare property to the public every day of the year.

Previously, the full garden was only open to guests during the seasonal festivals, which was about 12 weeks of the year.

But the family has now made the decision to open up the entire property to people visiting, no matter what day it is.

"We wanted to ensure that anyone who visits the garden gets the absolute best experience possible whenever they visit," Mayfield Garden director Chris Muldoon said.

"If you make the effort to drive three hours from Sydney to get to Mayfield [outside of the seasonal festivals], you deserve to see the full 65 hectares of garden, as opposed to the 15-hectare version that we previously offered."

In the past, only 15 of the 65 hectares was available to wander and explore during off-peak periods.

But now, visitors will have access to the maze, cascade, chapel, stumpery, water garden, lake and herbaceous border every time they visit.

While this opening means Mayfield will no longer host official seasonal festivals, Mr Muldoon said he doesn't think this will impact the garden, as people still enjoy visiting at different times of the year to explore what each season brings.

"We won't have official seasonal festivals, but of course we expect that the different experiences that each season offers at Mayfield will ensure visitors continue to chase the different seasonal personalities of the garden," he said.

Now attracting around 80,000 visitors a year, Mayfield Garden's popularity has continued to grow.

In addition to the large number of guests being beneficial for the business - which is nestled nicely in the hills between Bathurst and Oberon - it also has a flow-on effect for the wider community.

"We think this latest move will help the business continue to grow, which in turn will deliver flow-on benefits to many other businesses throughout the region," Mr Muldoon said.

While the decision to open up the full garden every day of the year was a major step for the owners of the property, Mr Muldoon said it now puts Mayfield on the global map.

"The opening up of the full garden each day brings us in to line with other major gardens throughout the world - we are now meeting what are reasonable expectations of horticultural tourists," he said.

"It has taken the family a while to make this leap - you've got to remember that Garrik Hawkins initially developed Mayfield as a weekend retreat for his broader family, and over a period of time he has become more comfortable with showing more of the garden.

"But the family is now optimistic that Mayfield will continue to grow, and play an even more important role in growing not only the tourism sector but also the broader Central West economy."