Finding magic beyond the kingdom at Bok Tower Gardens

Today’s post is about a stunning and unique attraction in Central Florida beyond the gates of its many theme parks and tourist zones. Before we get started taking a look at Bok Tower Gardens, I’m asking you to donate to the relief efforts now underway in Florida following the destructive force of Hurricane Irma. Beautiful state monuments like Bok Tower Gardens are easily overlooked when news coverage centers on more well-known tourist destinations like Walt Disney World and Florida’s beautiful beaches. As of this posting, Bok Tower Gardens is closed indefinitely due to hurricane-related power outages and safety concerns. Hopefully power will be restored soon to Bok Tower Gardens and communities throughout Florida that are still without power, but in the meantime you can help by contributing to the relief effort.
 

Help with Hurricane Irma Relief

 

• Google.org: Donating via Google is easy and secure and your money will go towards organizations Google believes will have the most impact — the American Red Cross, UNICEF, and Catholic Relief Services.
• PayPal: You can donate to a variety of charities directly via PayPal’s Hurricane Irma relief site, with 100% of your donation going directly to the cause.
• ASPCA: The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals is working to rescue and re-home the hundreds of animals abandoned during Hurricane Irma.

 

 

My last day of my recent Walt Disney World vacation wasn’t spent at Walt Disney World at all.  The day before, V, my friend whose couch I was crashing on all week, asked me if I wanted to do something besides a theme park on my last day.  Since I’ve always just gone to theme parks when in Florida, I was pretty oblivious to what Orlando had to offer beyond its theme parks.  I was on board, though, and left it up to V to decide where we’d go.  The next morning we got up and hopped in the car for the 45-minute drive out to Lake Wales for a visit to Bok Tower Gardens.

 

When V told me where we were headed I was a bit unsure.  It was August in Orlando and the heat was oppressive enough in theme parks, so the idea of walking around in nature with no air conditioning to escape into seemed like a questionable choice.  But going to Florida in August was a questionable choice already and after spending a lot of time cooking on the concrete jungles that are Disney’s Hollywood Studios, World Showcase, and Pandora, I was ready for a change.

 

The drive out to the gardens was peaceful and reminded me a lot of where I grew up in California’s central valley: long stretches of flat land, cows, and a lot more churches than seemed necessary for the population size in the middle of nowhere.  The big difference, of course, was how green everything was — something that is often missing in central California.

 

Once we arrived, it was pretty clear Bok Tower Gardens was going to be a perfect palate cleanser after a week in theme parks.  A visit to Bok Tower Gardens starts out in the Visitor Center, which includes a well-curated Exhibit Hall that delves into the history of Bok Tower, the gardens, Florida wildlife and geography, and the Pinewood Estate.

 

Designed by famed landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. (best known, perhaps, for the National Mall and White House grounds); the gardens are expansive and beautiful, with ample opportunities for hiking, exploring, and wandering.  The gardens are a destignated bird sanctuary; have dedicated endangered plant, pollinator, and wild gardens; and has charming features like the “Window by the Pond” that invite you to sit on a bench in a simple, dirt-floored structure overlooking a pond — signage here encourages you to “enjoy the show” of nature.

When we drove into Bok Tower Gardens, we blind-bought the “combo” admission ticket, which included a tour of the Pinewood Estate.  We had no idea what the Pinewood Estate was but the gentleman selling tickets at the parking toll booth assured us it was the best $6 we’d spend all day and it turned out he wasn’t wrong.  The gardens are lovely but the Pinewood Estate turned out to be a highlight of our visit.  Not only was it a much-needed respite from the heat and humidity but it’s a gorgeous and unique part of central Florida history.

 

The Pinewood Estate is a beautiful 20-room Mediterranean-style mansion nestled on the edge of the gardens that’s packed full of unique central Florida history. We were led from room-to-room of the home by a series of docents that really carried the experience — super knowledgable, friendly, and genuinely invested in the story of Charles Austin Buck—the original owner of the estate.  I can’t recommend doing this tour enough, especially since it’s only a $6 add-on to your regular gardens admission.

The Moon Gate garden, which is overlooked by one of the Pinewood Estate’s largest and most spectacular rooms, which originally belonged to Buck’s daughter.

 

At its 298-foot elevation, the Sunset Overlook behind the Pinewood Estate provides a pretty spectacular view of central Florida.

 

Of course, the star of Bok Tower Gardens is its namesake tower.  Known as the “Singing Tower,” Bok Tower is a 205-foot neolithic and art deco tower that houses one of only four carillons in Florida. The Singing Tower performs carillon concerts daily at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m., with shorter performances every half-hour.  If you weren’t sure (I wasn’t), a carillon is a massive musical instrument consisting of cast bells, played from a keyboard that strikes the bells with clappers to make sound — the Bok Tower carillon features 60 bells.  The Singing Tower’s concerts are lovely and can be heard throughout the gardens, providing an opportunity for a really peaceful, meditative experience — which is something I ended up really enjoying and cherishing after spending a week immersed in the non-stop world of theme parks.

 

The Tower is remarkably rich in detail, with beautifully-sculpted features depicting Florida’s wildlife, wrought-iron gates, and custom tile work.  Photos don’t really do it justice and it’s easy to think the Tower isn’t much to look at from far away.  You have to get close to really appreciate how beautiful it is.

 

The only real bummer is not being able to go into the tower itself.  This is reserved only for Bok Tower Gardens members on specially-sceudled tour days.  If I lived in Florida, I’d become a member just for the opportunity to go into the tower!  For all of us non-members and tourists, the Exhibit Hall has a great cross-section model of the tower (the first photo in this blog post) that shows you the different spaces within.

 

After enjoying one of the shorter concerts in the gardens, V and I decided we had enough heat and hopped on the shuttle from the Tower and headed back to the parking lot.  Thank goodness for the shuttle, as walking back through the sprawling gardens from the Tower might’ve done us both in.

 

Still, even in the blistering heat, I can’t recommend a visit to Bok Tower Gardens enough, especially for folks like me who are so used to visiting central Florida only for its theme parks.  It’s easy to forget Florida has great things to offer beyond its theme parks and beach resorts.  For the Walt Disney World or Universal Orlando guest, Bok Tower Gardens is a pretty great way to relax and breathe a bit after spending a whirlwind vacation in Florida’s incredible, but largely artificial themed environments.

 

 

BOK TOWER GARDENS & PINEWOOD ESTATE

1151 Tower Blvd
Lake Wales, FL
boktowergardens.org
Open daily, hours vary by season
Gardens admission: $14 adults, $10 children
Gardens & Pinewood Estate Combo Ticket: $20 adults, $10 children