We went to Cypress Gardens this morning and spent several lovely hours there. Overall, it's an…read moreinteresting place with a little bit of everything--walking paths and gardens, a butterfly house, the Swamparium, and, of course, the swamp boats.
The gift shop is super small, despite looking much bigger from the outside. The Swamparium was interesting, with fish, snakes, and other reptiles from local waterways and wetlands around the world. I wouldn't want to be close to them, but I also felt bad they were behind glass.
We saw several alligators. We wanted to explore some of the longer nature trails, but they were pretty overgrown and ran right alongside the swamp. We were a little nervous that we wouldn't spot an alligator with enough warning, so we stuck to the more maintained paths. We spent about an hour to an hour and a half walking around.
The highlight was definitely the self-guided boat ride. My husband did most of the paddling, it took some effort! It was so much fun paddling among the cypress trees, seeing the water lilies, watching the ducks, and keeping our eyes open for alligators in the water. The guy running the boat area was really friendly and helpful.
A couple of practical things to know: admission is $10, and if you want to do the boats, sign up as soon as you arrive. We got there around 9:30, about 30 minutes after opening, and were initially told the wait would be about an hour. It ended up being a little over two hours before we got on a boat. You connect to the park Wi-Fi, scan a QR code, and get your place in line.
Overall, I don't know that Cypress Gardens would make my top list of things to do when friends come into town, but if you're a bird lover or nature lover, it's a good spot to experience the Lowcountry. And the boat ride alone made the visit worthwhile for us.