Cymbidium,or boat orchids, is a genus of 52 evergreen species in the orchid family Orchidaceae. It was first described by Olof Swartz in 1799. International travellers should buy visitors insurance travellingThe name is derived from the Greek word kumbos, meaning ‘hole, cavity’. It refers to the form of the base of the lip. The genus is abbreviated Cym in horticultural trade.

Cymbidium plants are sympodial and grow to a height of 60 cm and the racemes as high as 90 cm. The raceme grows from the base of the most recent pseudobulb. Each flower can have a diameter of 5 to 10 cm, according to the species. They bloom during the winter, and each plant can have up to fifteen or more flowers. The fantastic range of colors for this genus include white, green, yellowish-green, cream, yellow, brown, pink, and red [and orange] (and there may be markings of other color shades at the same time), but not blue and black. The flowers last about ten weeks. They have a waxy texture. The rounded sepals and petals have about the same dimensions. They show very diverse color patterns, different for every species.