Bok Tower Gardens
Bok Tower Gardens is a lovely site where you can enjoy a peaceful walk through 50 acres of beautifully landscaped gardens and simply relax in this picturesque setting while listening to music from the majestic Singing Tower.
Visiting Bok Tower Gardens with Kids
Yet, what if you are visiting with kids? What will they enjoy doing at Bok Tower Gardens? This was a question I kept asking myself before my own family’s first visit. I wasn’t exactly sure what there was to do for kids, aside from the play area. And I didn’t know what they would enjoy here? Or even if it was worth going to, considering its admission price for a family of five.
I soon found out all the answers to my questions. And now that we have visited, I would love to share with you what we’ve learned. Hopefully this post can help answer some questions that you may have about visiting with kids and help you better plan your own family’s visit to Bok Tower Gardens.
In this post, I will let you in on kid-friendly activities to try throughout the gardens, fun family-friendly areas that kids will love and where to find the secret hidden gems that are scattered throughout Bok Tower Gardens that your family won’t want to miss.
Hopefully these tips will help make your family’s visit to Bok Tower Gardens even better and you can have a really fun adventure with your family.
Where is Bok Tower Gardens Located?
Bok Tower Gardens is located in Central Florida.
It is approximately 1 hour & 20 minutes east of Tampa or 1 hour & 20 minutes south of Orlando.
Admission, Hours & Food
Open: 365 days/ year from 8am-6pm (with last admission at 5pm)
Cost: Adults are $15, Children (ages 5-12) $5,
Children under 5 are Free, and Dogs are $5
Food: The Blue Palmetto Cafe near the Welcome Center or
You can bring your own food and have a Picnic!
I highly recommend having a picnic in this beautiful park. There are several shaded picnic table locations to choose from or you can easily find numerous beautiful settings throughout the gardens to simply lay down your picnic blanket and enjoy the view while you dine. (We’ve enjoy picnicking by the Carillon Bell Tower, but I’ll get more into that later.)
Bok Tower Gardens Map
When you arrive at Bok Tower Gardens you will first come to an entrance gate where you will pay for admission and you will receive a map of the gardens. From here it is a 1.5 mile drive to get to the main parking lot for the Gardens.
Click here if you’d like to print out a Guide & Map of the Gardens ahead of your trip.
Bok Tower Visitor Center/ Shop/ Café Area
After parking, you will first come to the Welcome Center area of Bok Tower Gardens (shown above). Here you can watch an 8 minute orientation video, find restrooms, pick up food at the Blue Palmetto Café and/or stop by the shop.
Hammock Hollow Children’s Garden
A Top Stop For Families
If you are visiting Bok Tower Gardens with kids (ages 5-12), Hammock Hollow Children’s Garden is one place you’ll definitely want to go at some point during your visit.
This play area is located just past the Café, when you enter, and to the right.
Family Tip: Head to the main Gardens first, while your kid’s legs are fresh, and then come back to this fun play area later if they start to lose interest in the gardens or just need a little time to play. This play area could also be a fun reward for their excellent behavior in the gardens too.
What is Hammock Hollow Children’s Garden?
Hammock Hollow Children’s Garden is a 2.7 acre play area where kids can climb, build, dig, create and explore. There is even a small water section where kids can cool off in some fun misters, spray jets and fountains that dance across a path. (The fountains only work when the secret button, located on both ends of the River walk, is pushed.)
At the Hammock Hollow Children’s Garden, I love how each activity subtly (yet brilliantly) teaches kids about the people and animals of Central Florida and their habitats. For example kids can scramble up a rocky terrain like a bobcat, crawl into a fun gopher tortoise burrow and dig in the sand, climb up a gigantic web like a spider, play inside a Seminole inspired Chickee hut and more!
Hammock Hollow Children’s Garden is a great addition to Bok Tower Gardens for families so don’t forget to check it out.
Now let’s head out into the main Gardens at Bok Tower.
The Gardens at Bok Tower
At Bok Tower Gardens, exploring the gardens is how you’ll spend the majority of your time here. And it’s not just on a single paved path like several other gardens I’ve been too. Here you will also get to wander along many smaller interconnecting trails that weave all throughout the gardens.
And it is these smaller trails, that in my opinion, children will especially love to explore. This is not only because these trails let you feel more like you’re exploring through nature, but it is also because along these trails is where you’ll find many of the parks secret, hidden gems. (More on this below.)
First, there is a main path that makes a big loop around the gardens. This path is paved, mostly shaded and stroller-friendly.
This beautiful boardwalk is found just off the main path on the northeast side of the park and it traverses over a wetland area.
But it was the smaller interconnecting paths that my kids and I liked the best. And, if your kids like to explore, then you’ll definitely want to spend some time wandering here.
On these smaller mulch paths, I felt more connected to the nature and the native Florida plant life that surrounded me.
Secret Plant Nooks Hidden Gems
As you wander throughout the gardens, keep an eye out for secret plant nooks. To find them, just watch for any place where it looks like a passageway leads off trail and into the plants. Don’t be afraid to check it out.
Once you enter into these secret plant nooks, you’ll find a nice little cleared out area where you will be completely surrounded by plants. Many of these nooks even have an inviting little bench or chairs to help you really relax and enjoy this little plant world. (One little plant nook our family really liked was one where you are completely surrounded by tall bamboo plants. It was almost magical)
So don’t miss these hidden gems while exploring the gardens. These nooks are also a great place for kids to use their imaginations. And for adults, these nooks would be a perfect place to come, sit and just get lost in your thoughts.
A Great Place to Relax
Several of the secret plant nooks open on one side to beautiful “windows” of scenery in the park (like the one above.) These private nooks are complete with chairs for you to simply relax and enjoy the view.
My kids loved discovering these secret hidden gems throughout the gardens. And while they were all excited about finding 2 chairs out among the plants and deciding who should sit where, I was able to take a few moments (standing of course) and simply enjoy the view.
Endangered Plant Garden
If you are looking for a fun activity to try with your family, head over to the Endangered Plant Garden. Here, in the center of this section is an analemmatic sundial. This is a sundial that when when you stand on the area labeled with the current month, your shadow will fall onto a number on the ground that reveals what time it is!
We had a lot of fun with this unique activity and as you can see from the picture above, we were there a little before 11am.
(Please note that during part of the year with Daylight Savings, the clock may read 1 hour off.)
Pinewood Estate and Gardens
When tours resume, a combo admission ticket is required to go on the house tour.
Unfortunately, when we visited, there were no tours of the house due to Covid, but we did get to walk around the exterior.
For our kids, the front was nothing too special, but the backyard was fantastic!
Pinewood Estate’s Backyard
The backyard of the estate was a fantastic place to let our kids just run on this huge grassy field and burn off a little energy. This inviting field is on a slight hill that ends with a pond at the other end and our kids loved it! A couple other families were here enjoying this inviting field as well and so if you’re visiting with kids, you’ll probably want to check out this amazing backyard too.
The Singing Tower
Click Here for the current Carillon Bell Schedule.
One of the highlights at Bok Tower Gardens is the impressive Singing Tower. This beautiful carillon tower, built in 1927-1929, reaches 205 feet high and is the most photographed spot in the entire gardens. And you can’t miss the beautiful music that comes from its 60 bronze bells that fills the gardens throughout the day.
Fun Facts
The bells are “hung dead” meaning that the bells do not swing and only the clappers move.
Also, there are no electronics used to make the music! This instrument is fully mechanical and is played by a clavier (keyboard) using both hands and feet, like a piano. This keyboard is connected to the clappers (through wires and levers) causing the clappers to strike the bell when played.
I found this fascinating!
Fun Family Activity
You can also feed the Koi fish at the base of the Singing Tower.
The landscape surrounding the Singing Tower is so incredibly peaceful. And it’s the perfect place to have a picnic! Not only are there several large grassy areas, there is also a lot of shade and it’s just a short walk to the parking lot so you can easily get your picnic supplies. And while you eat, you can enjoy the beautiful music coming from the Singing Tower!
Top Picnic Items We Love!
Armadillos!
And make sure you keep an eye out for armadillos along the paths near here. We found these little guys beside the path between the parking lot and the Singing Tower as we made our way to the grassy field for our picnic lunch.
They were so little and so cute. And one actually came right up by my feet! This was very cool!
And I was excited to play with my new camera and have a chance to take some really fun Florida wildlife shots! (This camera takes amazing pictures, so if you are looking to upgrade I highly recommend checking this camera out. And if you are looking for a convenient way to carry a camera of this size, check out our favorite camera backpack bag. It’s comfortable, has quick-access compartments, a ventilated back panel, a hydration/ laptop sleeve and it easily holds all of our camera equipment & lenses. Yet amazingly isn’t bulky. We love it!)
Pine Ridge Nature Trail & Preserve Trail
Another activity your family might want to try at Bok Tower Gardens, is to hike the 3/4 mile Pine Ridge Nature Trail or the 3 mile Preserve Trail.
Pine Ridge Nature Trail
The 3/4 mile Pine Ridge Nature Trail itself can be reached from several points on the east side of the park. To walk the full trail, you should start at the trailhead off the main paved path up near the pond area. You can also join this trail from another trailhead off the main path that is just north of the Children’s Garden. (This connects to a midpoint in the trail though.) From the trailheads you will want to walk south until it leads you back to the parking lot/ visitor center area.
(Our family made the mistake of taking the path that joins the trail at a midpoint that is just north of the Children’s Garden. Then we walked north to the other trailhead. It was here we realized our mistake and had to retrace our steps back south until we reached the parking lot. So try to start this trail either by the parking lot or at the trailhead in the gardens up near the pond on the east side.)
The Pine Ridge Nature Trail is a trail that takes you through an endangered longleaf pine forest habitat. Our family enjoyed this short trail, but please note that this trail is very exposed so make sure you have water with you when you hike.
Preserve Trail
A second hike your family might like to try is the 3.5 mile, out & back, Preserve Trail. This trail starts from the Visitor Center and goes to the main Entrance Gate.
We unfortunately did not get to hike this trail since it was an extremely hot, sunny Florida day. But if you are able to go, please make sure you take plenty of water with you and have sun protection for your hike.
Bok Tower Gardens Overview
Bok Tower Gardens is a sight that had been on my list to go see for quite a while. We don’t live too far away, but I had been nervous about how to visit with kids. I was pleasantly surprised by all of the fun little things you can do with kids here and it was a fun half-day outing for our family.
But I will say that I thought it was a little expensive ($55) for our family of 5 to walk through some pretty gardens for a few hours and have a nice picnic. (Side note: We are fortunate enough to have some really pretty free Gardens and Parks by our house, so this could be influencing my thoughts on this.) But even so, I am really glad we took the time to visit.
Time Needed
We stayed for 4 hours, because we wanted to hear the 1pm bell music, but we could have easily been done in 2-3 hours.
Check out Bok Tower’s Site’s Itinerary Suggestions Here
Overall, Bok Tower Gardens is a pretty and relaxing park to visit. And it’s a great place to really reconnect with your family and with your own thoughts. I also think it would be a fantastic place to visit with that special someone in your life.
So, now you’re all set to visit Bok Tower Gardens with your family. I hope this post was able to answer a few of your questions and that you were able to find some fun things to do and activities to try with your family at Bok Tower Gardens.
Have an Incredible Visit with Your “Traveling Feet!”
After Visiting Bok Tower Gardens, Check Out:
Spook Hill
Just 10 minutes down the road is the fun and unique site of Spook Hill in Lake Wales.
When you get there, you will first come to a sign that explains the legend behind Spook Hill. Then you will drive your car up to the white line (shown on the picture in the right.) Here you will stop and put your car in neutral. Once in neutral your car will begin to roll backwards. Now at first it looks like you’re rolling backwards down a hill (see how the road slopes up in front of the sign), but very shortly it starts to look like you’re going backwards, uphill!
Tip: Make sure you are able to let your car roll back almost to the legend sign so that you get the full effect of of feeling like you’re rolling backwards, uphill.
This site takes less than 5 minutes.
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- (2 hour drive from Bok Tower Gardens)
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