Fun little park just on the beaten path of Woodland Blvd, great place to catch some fresh air and a…read morelittle live entertainment when available. Fun time listening to Anique Jolee! https://instagram.com/aniquejolee?igshid=NzZlODBkYWE4Ng%3D%3D&utm_source=qr

A small park with a…read morebig picture Pioneer Park is indeed a small park, just occupies a corner of a couple of streets. It does have a nice fountain, some cool benches and tables and a interesting sculpture of an alligator. A very pleasant place for a little rest while walking around the center of Deland. However what really catches the eye in Pioneer Park is the gigantic mural that takes up the entire side of a building. The mural probably covers more area the the entire rest of the park. The picture is called Pioneers Parceland and I believe it was dedicated in 1996. Huge, stunning and brightly colored, it has amazing detail and shows the early settlers arriving in the area. We just sat there for a long time taking in the beauty and different parts of the mural. It's so large that you actually have to back away at times to take it all in. The mural at Pioneer Park is a extremely mesmerizing work of art that photographs cannot begin to justice to. It has to be seen in person to truly be appreciated. it shows what a progressive town can do with a small and seemingly useless piece of space.

Great walking trails through the forest, & paved biking trails. Saw lots of friendly bicyclists…read more Air pump & bicycle tools available for bicyclists near the restrooms. Parking gets full, but there's additional parking north on Fatio. Saw small wild blueberries. A tiny red tick dropped from the trees & landed dangling in my hair. Only saw that one. Great shade & lots of plant diversity. Fun seeing the different trees & plants. Saw a Giant Leopard Moth caterpillar also.

I love Lake Beresford. My favorite place to get my outdoor time in. I love how quiet and shady this…read moreplace is. A paved 1.8 mile path to run and even have the option to try the spring to spring trail if you dare. Can't wait for the expansion that's coming.

This playground is incredible! A community funded project, this playground is not to be missed - it…read morehas designs and features I haven't seen anywhere else! We love stopping to play here if we are in the Deland area. Freedom Playground has plenty of parking, bathrooms, pavilions with picnic tables, and playground equipment that can be used by a wide range of ages and body abilities. I love that the park has one main entrance gate to keep kids contained and also has the little kid area separate from the big kid area. There are accessibility features like wheelchair accessible ramps for the playground equipment and a ground level merry-go-round. There's plenty of slides, climbing and obstacles, a zip line, pirate ships, pretend play houses, and all the features you would want in a playground. I love the nods to Florida with multiple gators throughout! Freedom Park is a Florida gem!

From what I've read online, DeLand faced the exact same issue that so many municipalities around…read morethe country have faced and continue to face regarding what to do with their playgrounds. At one point in time it was a thing to build these large destination playgrounds made out of wood. While a nice idea on paper, eventually the upkeep proves to be problematic and expensive. Eventually the municipality is faced with the hard choice of costly renovations that will need to be redone in the not too distant future, demolishing the structure or trying to replace it with something more modern/contemporary. Either way it equals a lot of money that usually is nowhere to be found. Thankfully a few years ago DeLand along with residents, area companies, school children and a newly formed non-profit committee figured out how to replace the original wooden structure. Amazingly over 300K in private donations were raised along with DeLand kicking in the rest and what you have today is an amazing structure/facility. In my own area there have a been a few success stories with places like this: www.savekidscastle.org/ But there have also been a few mismanaged disasters with places like this: articles.mcall.com/2004-11-19/news/3571642_1_playground-jungle-gym-time-capsule What works here: * Lots of parking * Solidly clean bathrooms * Lots of shaded areas * Super safe recycled rubber ground which means no tracking mulch into the car * A very needed water fountain * Lots of different structures/play areas/misters that offer a ton of diversity What doesn't work: * At least when we were here the zipline was in sad shape. It needs to be raised up or just gotten rid of it because it was way too low to be enjoyable. I don't want to lay on the hyperbole but honestly aside one other park (Kids Castle in Doylestown, PA) this place is the nicest that I've ever seen and even though my kids are arguably a bit on the too old side to be enjoying a place like this, they still did. Great job DeLand! What an awesome place for the community!

We visited Hontoon Island State Park on Saturday morning, 9/25, for a hike with some friends and…read moreour girl Lulu. This was my second time visiting, and it was just as enjoyable as the first! One of my favorite parts has to be the little ferry ride over to the island. Lulu was NOT convinced she wanted to get on , but the captain reassured us that lots of dogs get nervous about the ferry, so I scooped her up and carried her aboard. Once we got across, we started our walk and immediately enjoyed all the shaded areas along the trails. The park is HUGE and there is so much to see and explore. Honestly, one day doesn't feel like enough time to really experience everything, and we're already considering coming back to camp! We didn't come across any major wildlife this time, but we saw plenty of birds and heard something scrambling around in the trees that we never managed to spot -- which honestly just added to the adventure. It was another beautiful day surrounded by nature, good company, and my favorite four-legged adventure buddy. Definitely looking forward to coming back and exploring more of Hontoon Island!

Every Florida State Park has a unique feature that it offers. This one is very quaint, small and…read moreoffers some simple amenities. The quick boat ride was cool. They also have cabins and the grounds are well maintained by the staff. If you have a boat, this would be a great place to dock from if that is acceptable. I had a great time here, my first time.

This is one of my favorite places in Florida to see manatees . And I mean hundreds of manatees …read more Big manatees , baby manatees, playful manatees , sleeping manatees .... If you are a sea potato fan , this is gonna be your jam . Make sure you go in the winter months to see the most manatees ! Their website also has a real time chubby mermaid live webcam ! When you go to enter the park there's also a manatee counter so you know how many are currently inside the park ! And there's also a Manatee festival! I've attended it and it's a must visit if you can. There's lots of vendors selling manatee items. When I went, I also got a chance to listen to the manatee sounds in real time because they were able to put a microphone underwater hooked up to headphones and you could listen to them. Very cool. If you want to learn the history of the park and the land, there is an original house on the property that inside features the story of the original family that lived here and how it came to be what it is today. It's very interesting stuff and it's worth a stop inside. Now it's actually a park as well as just a manatee hang out so if you want to kayak there are rentals available. There's a Gift Shop and several restrooms on site. There's also a boat tour that goes out a few times a day. Now I will say that if you're coming for the manatees, you need to make a plan because you are going to likely have to wait in line. The line can be up to 45 minutes to an hour sometimes to get into the park during Manatee season, so be mindful of that when making your plans for the day. Other tips : As of December 2025 , the entry fee is $6. There's a pressed penny machine inside the gift shop . If you have a Florida parks passport , get your stamp at the main entrance where you pay entry fee .

It's a small state park but very worth a visit. I went in September, fully expecting to see zero…read moremanatees, so I was thrilled to see three. The amount of manatees in winter looks crazy. I'm glad I was researching a few days in advance and saw a reservation system was implemented earlier this year. A tricky balance as always, but would have been a shame to get out here a be turned away for capacity. For a summer visit, it was fun to swim from one platform to the other, going with the current makes it easy, though many people choose to float on tubes or noodles. Not the warmest spring but it's consistent! The relatively narrow creek and dense trees make it reasonably shaded.

I write this reviewing the newly renovated park absolutely beautiful, bravo to all volunteers and…read moredonors. Unfortunately, history will repeat itself, it's already started with graffiti (pictures posted). Let's make a stand and keep our park pristine. Call law enforcement on vandalism, tell people not to smoke or litter. Don't tolerate overgrown thugs running amuck scaring the little ones.

Every neighbourhood park tends to be unique, and this one definitely has its charm. The park's main…read moreappeal for me is the walking trail that basically envelops the square-shaped park ground along four roads, and I like how safe it feels perhaps because of its location in a residential area. Although I've never personally visited, there's more than one parking area, picnic shelter and benches with tables, a fancy children's playground, butterfly garden, and a museum.

Lake Colby Park is beautiful! If you've never been, you need to go. The energy around here is…read moreamazing. It's just quiet and peaceful. It's definitely a place that you come when you want some respite.

We checked this spot out for fishing with the kids (beware of gators and snakes) and it was…read morepeaceful and secluded. We got to see a variety of bugs and tons of beautiful deer! There's a little walking path hidden off to the side when you're exiting to circle so don't miss it! Cute little walking paved path we did with the kids and got to see deer, turtles and so many butterflies. If you go out here take a lunch as they have many picnic tables to sit at.

A lonely little…read morepark Cypress Lake Park is a little park on a little lake. Not really a lake, more of a hole with some water. Probably even less water than usual lately because of the lack of rain. It does have a boat ramp but I suspect not very many people use it because there are probably all kinds of nasty things living in that water. All you could is just go around in small circles. The park does have a little playground, hoop court, picnic area and a barbecue grill but not a whole lot more. I suspect some local people bring their kids to the park but probably not a whole lot going on here. The area is actually a pretty lonely place too. It was going to be a new development that was started a while back and then stopped suddenly when the housing market crashed. Some of the roads around the park are still unpaved and houses unfinished. Maybe now that the economy seems to be improving the park and area will start to grow again. It is a pleasant place that just needs a bit of TLC.

This is my DPE deland awareness group meeting place a beautiful place to watch the sunset and go…read morefishing..... watch out for the Gators!!!!

This is a twenty acre park that is a pleasant respite from the grind of the modern world. I would…read moredefinitely recommend this park to go chill oh, maybe grab some lunch and eat it there.

This is a 20 acre park located in Orange City. It's amenities include picnic pavilions, a play…read moreground, athletic fields, and a tennis court. I visited on Sunday because the park was used as the staging area for the Manatee Festival. For a $8 cash only entrance fee the festival had bounce houses, small rides, vendors, exhibitors, food booths, and a dog show. Valentine Park provided parking so you could board the bus that took you to nearby Blue Springs to see the manatees. From what I saw this was a nice park that locals would enjoy.

Over four years ago, I left an amazing recommendation for Horseshoe Park and Fairy Trail. My review…read morestill stands! I returned, like I said, 4+ years later with a different son, who equally enjoyed it just as much as my last son. I have to say I equally enjoyed it myself. It has changed a little bit since the last time I had been there. I think that is what made it all the more interesting to look around! The same would be boring! I love the horseshoe Park and Fairy Trail. That little girl inside of me always comes out when I go there. So thank you for that.

Cool park kinda cool and creepy lots of gnomes and fairy's butterfly's all randomly placed in a…read moreartful type of way