Such a beautiful state park! We joked it's the grand canyon of Florida! lol! You pay $5 for each…read morecar to enter, and you can park right at the entrance and walk around or you can drive in to the bottom of the Ravine! I thought this was great cause it's about 2 miles to walk the whole thing and we had kids with us that would have a fit with that much walking. You can stop at multiple areas on the drive in and we walked a short way to the suspension bridge and to the bottom, SO pretty down there! A lake/ spring is at the bottom, with lots of vegetation just a beautiful area! Nice bathrooms are also available around!

The Ravines was enhanced in the 1930's with the New Deal; the ravine is a natural sink hole. It is…read morea Fl State Park and they have several trails through the park and it appears locals walk the trails regularly. What is also nice is they have events there too...festivals. The cost is $5.00 per car. We enjoyed the two hanging bridges , paved pathways, small stream at bottom of ravine...one thing the old, steep rock steps need rails to hold onto! Let it be a Scouts of America project or Garden Club....some organization if the state won't pay. I believe it is a safety hazard. Palatka has a real asset with this park!

Great Park. Large scale park with plenty to keep your kids entertained. Good amount of shade to…read morekeep you protected from the sun and if not there is covered seating. Parking is decent and their are public restrooms that are in decent condition. A good place to let your kiddos burn energy if the weather isn't too hot.

Nice resting place by the pond. Wasn't hard to locate as…read moreI'd looked up location prior. Cemetery was well kept and a nice employee answered questions that our group had about other graves.

We always come and visit this beautiful park when we are in Ormond beach. It is hands down the best…read morepark we have ever been to. So much fun, so many different places to play. I wish I had a park like this when I was a kid.

Awesome Playground! Cool Spot!…read more This is a great place with lots going in for kids to play with! So many different things to play with and it's all in a cool wooden theme! Really great place to be grateful for! I really liked the swing under a big tree in the far back corner! It needs some line to reduce the squeaking but it was a happy spot!

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!

Absolutely stunning spot for spending a nice day strolling around the gardens and learning the…read morehistory of this area. They allow fishing, and we met a couple of characters today for sure. Artists were painting and creating their masterpieces as well. Azaleas are in bloom and the roses will be very soon. Love this spot for a photo shoot or they also do weddings here as well. Worth the drive from any direction!

Absolutely beautiful gardens, easy walking paths, restored greenhouse house with plants for sale…read morewith helpful volunteers with garden tips. Clean and accessible bathrooms.

Sunshine Park is the best and safest playground in Jacksonville Beach. It's a modern, fully fenced…read moredestination designed for stress-free play. Just (sometimes) the big kids run wild and it can be dangerous for toddlers or babies. Why it's a favorite: Safe & Clean: Fully enclosed with artificial turf (no mulch or sand). The "Fort": A massive, multi-level wooden-style structure kids love. Inclusive: Separate "Tot Lot" for toddlers and ADA-accessible gear. Bonus: A seasonal splash pad, skate park, and pickleball courts. Verdict: It's the gold standard for a clean, secure, and fun family day. Bring lots of water during the summer!

This is such an awesome park!! Our kids absolutely loved it and we would go back in again when we…read moreare in the area!! So much to do and play on! And they have a little splash play area for those hot summer days!

Little hidden gem this tiny waterfront park , you would never thought it was here. A few parking…read morespaces but has it all . A little play group for kids , covered park benches, some w BBQ's a small pier for watching bird , and you can cast your luck at fishing and even has public restrooms. It's a nice little place just to go and relax .

This is an awesome walking trail, wide path, well maintained, has restroom,water, paddleboard, and…read morekayak rentals. Very scenic

Ferns farms and…read morebaseballs The Chipper Jones Family Sports Complex is of course named after Chipper Jones who played 19 seasons for the Atlanta Braves. He was a great baseball player who happened to be born in the small town of Pierson. This place is also referred to as the Pierson Town Park and of course the town of Pierson calls itself the Fern Capital of the World. I didn't see a whole heap of ferns while I was in Pierson but I did see a very impressive baseball facility. They obviously take the game seriously down here. Not surprising with ol' Chipper as one of their own. The facility has two softball fields, two little league fields, a larger baseball field, and a couple of practice areas and fields. A whole lot of baseball stuff, including some lights for some ball playing after dark. There is also a nice playground and some kind of rodeo place right next door. A huge 16 acres to throw, catch and bat little round objects around. Lots of farms and cows out this way and perhaps lots of ferns. This is also one very, very cool park to play some baseball. Chipper must be very proud.