When we moved out this way, I had a friend tell me how wonderful "the big playground behind the…read morechurch" was. Took a year or two to realize this is the place she meant. We've had multiple birthday parties for our kids here and attended others. The covered Pavillion with bathrooms is excellent. They had plugs for the crock pots full of food we brought. It's maintained daily, something I found out the time I arrived at 7am to sweep and blow leaves away and clean the tables. A lady showed up after I was done to do all that and thanked me instead. Oops! Oh yeah, then there's the huge playground. My kids have loved this place and all the wooden things to run around, through, up, and over for ages!

This is for sure in our top three favorite parks now!…read more It's tucked back behind Sky Zone, so it's quiet and has plenty of trees to shade it perfectly and allow for a nice breeze. The play structure is huge and offers so much to engage with and use imaginative play. There are multiple slides, as well as a few different areas with plenty of swings. We easily spent a few hours and didn't know the time had passed. Lots of space to run, jump, and climb. It is all very sturdy and safe, as well as clean.

This location has a nice variety of options. You can park here, but it will get packed quick . The…read morefacility has bike rentals and this is Just a walk away from the farmers market on Saturdays or enjoy a nice trail walk.

Winter Garden Station is the perfect turnaround point on the West Orange Trail -- and a great…read morelittle destination in itself! Located just outside of downtown Winter Garden, it's got a small park area, clean rest areas, and even a bike rental shop attached for anyone looking to ride the trail instead of walk it. We used this as our midpoint stop after walking from Chapin Station, and it was great to catch our breath here before exploring downtown. The area feels very safe and family-oriented, with plenty of space to sit, hydrate, and people-watch. Plus, you're just steps away from all the charm (and coffee) of downtown Winter Garden. If you're looking for a scenic and easy spot to start, stop, or finish your trail journey -- Winter Garden Station is the way to go. #WestOrangeTrail #WinterGardenStation #BikeFriendly #OutdoorFun #DowntownWinterGarden

Beautiful park with a big lake. They have a pavilion you can rent for events, a playground for kids…read more5-12 years of age and another one for younger children. They also have basketball & tennis/pickleball courts, and a pool/splashpad you can pay for during the hot months. They hold the 4th of July fireworks here and it's a beautiful display.

BBQ & Brews Ribs on the Ridge Haines City set up Lake Eva Park, something for all ages. Pit Masters…read morefills the air with sweet smell of bbq smoke drifting via air. There's foods, games, music, right off the lake. People gathering to view, see, partake in this event that's been so long in the making, Kids playing with frisbee, balls, laughter enjoying a good family day. @miracle Toyota giving away, free frisbees to each kid to enjoy the relaxing day. There's Mac & cheese, corn on cob, greens, icees, bbq even the @Budweiser car was present to take pics ask questions. There was variety of food trucks. The bands had windows each played music then another band came set up and the music lived on. The weather was Absolutely gorgeous. Plenty of free parking, sitting, wonderful community event.

Very close to the Villages if you are staying there with family. This playground is large and…read moremodern with safe equipment. It's better than the playground in Sumter Landing. It has 2 sections, one for smaller children pre-school/toddler age. The other section is for older children that require less supervision or guidance. There are only two swings and neither are the toddler seat style. It is also fenced in for added security. The ground is mostly sand so wear your old play shoes! You'll probably run into more of the local kids without parents with them so just be aware of that.

Speer Park is a great park and in many ways perfectly exemplifies what a community park should be…read more It has tennis courts, a beautiful gazebo, a children's playground, two half basketball courts and a pleasant sidewalk to tie them all together. This park is a great addition to the community of Oakland, Florida.

Wide open park with paved walkways leading you throughout to connect everything and lots of trees…read moreproviding great shade. There is a tennis court, a pickleball court, a basketball court, two playgrounds, and a set of swings, plug a large gazebo in the center. There are also plenty of picnic tables throughout. It's not fenced in and there are no bathrooms. I also found that the playground was a bit dirty and there were SO many bugs everywhere. The slides were covered in those tiny mosquito-like gnats. It was kind of gross. As it got a bit later in the morning they went away somewhat, and my son still had a blast on the playground.

We were here at the end of the night and it was beautiful and relaxing. The lights lit up the…read morestructures ready to people to hike and climb. Younger kids will love this play area -- and my 20 yr old son who loves dinosaurs and Jurassic Park. I loved watching him appreciate the scenery was fun.

The Jurassic Park kiddie zone. It's a little playground area…read morewith a lot to run around and see and do. There's a rope climbing area, some slides and other fun mechanics to the little park. Great spot for parents to dump their kids to get a moment to sit and relax.

Located not far from the Mount Dora Lighthouse, this medium-sized park has a shelter area with…read morepicnic tables, playground facilities with climbing features including one shaped like a pirate ship, a walking trail, public restrooms and even barbecue grills. The playground was getting a pretty good workout for a weekday afternoon. A reasonably sized parking lot where I left the van for a walk around the park. Gilbert Park is named for the person who donated the land, Earl Gilbert. [Review 1030 of 2024 - 1906 in Florida - 22058 overall]

One of many in the string of parks along the lake near downtown Mount Dora this cute spot has the…read more bronze alligator statue.

If you have little ones, this is a great place to go. One of…read morethe coolest little spots I found at Disney's Animal Kingdom was The Boneyard. This is located right next to the Dinosaur ride in DinoLand U.S.A. This entire area is undergoing a major renovation but one of the parts that has not changes is the playground and the Boneyard. At first glance, it looks like just a kids' play area--but don't let that fool you. It's actually a super fun place to explore, especially if you need a break from the long lines and walking. The whole area is themed like an old dinosaur dig site, and it's packed with things to climb, slide down, and explore. There's a big shaded dig pit where kids (and yeah, maybe some adults too) can uncover massive "fossils" using shovels and brushes. It's all soft, sandy gravel so it feels safe, and it's surprisingly relaxing to just hang out there for a bit. I loved how detailed the theming was--cranes, tools, signs, bones sticking out of the ground--it really felt like a working dig site. It's also fenced in and well shaded (but NOT air conditioned), which makes it a perfect spot for parents to relax while the kids burn off some energy. An added bonus is this is one of the many places in the park where you can earn a sticker for the Wilderness Explorer Badge. So, if you're in Animal Kingdom with little ones (or even if you're just a big kid at heart), The Boneyard is definitely worth a stop.

Do you want your kids to sleep well for the evening? Take them to the Boneyard!!! Disney theming…read moreis showed off at this gigantic playground area for children. Once you get through the anxiety phase of loosing your child in a maddens of running kids. You can relax and be able to watch your kid from and area at the bottom of the park. As an added bonus, the slides are large enough for my 300 lbs frame to fit through. So I could chase my kids up and slide down with them just in case. There is a bridge that you can cross once inside the attraction. It leads to an excavation site with larger than normal sand rocks. Kids can dig out dinosaur shaped bones or just fill tons of green buckets. Characters will visit the play area from time to time. During our visit we were visited by Pluto who marched around and played with the children. There is stroller parking and alcohol hand gel for when you leave.

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!