We have been to this park a few times for large events over the years and the city of Mount Dora always does a wonderful job securing vendors, and entertainment. On our most recent visit we came on July 3rd 2026 for their annual fireworks display. We usually go to Red Hot & Boom in Altamonte Springs but when we found out Mount Dora booked Cat Ridgeway and Tonic as their main entertainment, we couldn't pass that up for anything.
Parking for events like this are always a pain; however, Mount Dora was offering free shuttle service from two locations. We chose the First Baptist Church of Mount Dora. When we arrived, there was barely anyone using the service and one of the drivers called us over and invited us in. It was pretty sweet because he was driving a brand-new Mercedes passenger vehicle and we were the only ones in it. He dropped us off near the playground and main parking area and we had to walk around the lake to get to Elizabeth Evans Park. It was an easy walk for us but if you have a disability, I recommend bringing a wheel chair or having an Uber drop you off closer to the park. There is more parking close to the main event but you have to pay $20.
Leading up to the park there was a playground and kid's zone with bounce houses and water slides. As we arrived to the entrance of the park there were several youth groups providing entertainment like gymnastics and aerial silks, which were amazing. There were plenty of food and drink food trucks available but unfortunately there was only one beer/mixed drink tent. I was able to get one beer the whole night, there was always a line and by the time I got up there they ran out of everything except Guinness which wasn't very cold, so that was a bummer.
Cat Ridgeway and Tonic were phenomenal. They had a really nice stage with open seating for anyone who wanted to sit there. We were quick to grab a seat right up front, we couldn't have asked for a better show.
The fireworks show was fantastic, we had great weather and there were no hiccups with that but they did have an issue with the drone show. It was getting late and the free shuttle stopped at 10:30pm and they hadn't started the drone show yet so we had to leave early. When we got back to the pickup area there must have been 200 people still waiting for the shuttle. We said the hell with it and walked back to the church. It took about 15 minutes but it wasn't that bad. It is mostly uphill so once again if you are not able to walk very far this could be a problem.
Two things they need to improve on is the restroom and adult beverage situation. There are clearly not enough restrooms. Just one air-conditioned restroom where maybe four people can use them at a time. They could still keep that but get a bunch of Porto Potties as well. As for the adult beverages; they need more than one tent and they have to separate the lines for mixed drinks and beer. Beer people move much faster than someone ordering 4-5 mixed drinks. Setup two stations so the people ordering beer can grab, go, and get back to the show.
Other than those two issues and the 15-minute walk back to the car at the end of the night everything else was great. I would definitely come back here again for another event like this. read more