The first two-time Gold Medal winner honoring the nation's best state park service, Florida's state park system is one of the largest in the country with 160 parks, most of which are open 365 days a year. Florida's state parks, which span more than 700,000 acres and include more than 100 miles of sandy white beach, provide an affordable outing for people of all ages.
New Day. New Adventure.
Alfred B. Maclay Gardens State Park
Alfred B. Maclay Gardens State Park in Tallahassee, Florida is celebrating 55 years as a state park. In recognition, the park has launched MP3 audio guided tours. Park guests can now check-out MP3 players and accompanying maps to experience a guided audio tour of the gardens.
These beautiful ornamental gardens were first planted in 1923 by Alfred B. and Louise Maclay after they purchased the property for their winter home. A masterpiece of floral architecture, the gardens feature a picturesque brick walkway, a secret garden, a reflection pool, a walled garden and hundreds of azaleas and camellias. Lake Hall provides opportunities for swimming, fishing, canoeing and kayaking. Pavilions and grills along the lake shore provide the perfect setting for a picnic. A playground with state-of-the-art equipment keep children active.
The Big Pine and Boy Scout nature trails meander through the wooded hillsides overlooking Lake Hall. Novice hikers could expect to walk the distance of either trail in less than one hour.
The Lake Overstreet trails are popular for hiking, biking, jogging or horse-riding, offering more than five miles of shared-use trails and three miles of bike trails, with views of Lake Overstreet and a spectacular ravine.
Before you go... Park Information.
DEP ANNOUNCES CHANGES TO STATE PARK FEE SCHEDULE
In order to continue to provide high quality visitor services and affordable nature-based recreation, the Florida Park Service will implement a modest fee increase beginning Wednesday, July 1, 2009, in conjunction with the state's fiscal calendar.
As the first fee update in five years, additional state park user fees will supplement current revenue sources used to maintain the state's valuable natural and cultural resources within Florida's 160 state parks. Nearly half of the $81 million used to operate the state park system is raised from entrance and usage fees. Some of the most common fees that will change include:
- Day-use entrance fee for vehicles with up to eight people: average increase of $1.00 - $3.00.
- Camping fees: average increase of $4.00 per night.
- Cabin rental fees: average increase of $10.00 per night.
- Annual Pass: $60.00 for individuals and $120.00 for families up to eight people.
- The Florida Park Service Annual Pass is good for day-use entrance into Florida's state parks and a 33 percent discount for individual admission to Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park, Skyway Fishing Pier State Park and Weeki Wachee Springs State Park.
In addition to these increases, the Florida Park Service will lower the cost of admission at Weeki Wachee Springs State Park in Spring Hill to bring the cost of admission down to rates more consistent with Florida's other state parks. The cost of admission for an adult will decrease from $26.57 to $13.00 and from $18.05 to $5.00 for children.
View a complete list of Florida State Park entry fees [PDF - 96 KB] (Large Print Version [PDF - 61 KB]). All additional fees will be posted on the Florida State Parks Web site at www.floridastateparks.org on July 1, 2009.
For any additional questions on the fee increase please call 850.245.3029.
