Time travel back to 1857 and a real working farm…read more The parking area is out by the barn and kearning center theres a gift shop too! I bought a hand made bird house. The land is lovely, and Im sure the walk to the house is awesome but my knees werent up to it quite yet.

We were looking for an easy and close activity around Gainesville for our family. This working farm…read morewas perfect. We found easy parking under the shade of some trees and started at the visitors center where we learned about how the Dudley family donated their farm to the state to preserve it. We picked up a self-guided tour map and explored the farmstead. We enjoyed the turkeys the best. The Tom (also named Tom) was in full display. There is a little gift shop behind the visitors center and we had fun chatting with the staff. It was a delightful walk back in time.

Absolutely love this place! The yearly membership is such a deal if you need an air conditioned…read moreweekend activity for your kiddos. The programming is phenomenal. We are so lucky to have this place in Gville.

This museum for creativity and invention established in 2018 and located in a corner of Depot Park…read morein Gainesville inspires future inventors, entrepreneurs and visionaries. Open four days a week Thursday to Sunday 10am to 4pm. Admission $15 for adults, 5-17 $10, college students snd seniors $12.50 and under 5 is free. Established and named after Robert Cade, the lead inventor of Gatorade, reflects his view of combining science and art in a manner of purposeful creativity. There are exhibits on inventions and technology that came from University of Florida. The museum caters to people of all ages and young children. STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and math) workshops are available where attendants can meet living inventors. A little gift shop located at the front lobby. Parking is free.

When I learned about the Mayan excavations in the area, and the possibility that the dugout/boat on…read moredisplay in the museum may be of Mayan origins, I knew that I would end up here eventually. Many years passed until I finally had the opportunity to visit. I was not disappointed. The location of this park is very urban, but once you enter the park you feel like you are in a magical land, with the river, the sun, the moon, the marshes greeting you. The pottery found looks strange to me, I see an extraterrestrial and a spaceship. One of the rock pillars also has a similar extraterrestrial face, and one of the hands in the pottery has tattoos on it. I don't know what happened here, but I "feel" something here, and I like it. This place feels like sacred ground. I hope that I can visit again and again.

Beautiful park, the rangers were very knowledgeable and helpful. It was a warm day, but the breeze…read morewas nice and they have a lot of places near the water to sit and relax. The top of mound was gorgeous.

The first time I visited this museum was in 2017. It was awe and there's so much to see here and…read morenew things to learn about. This facility also includes a butterfly garden, which is very interesting. I have managed to visit every year. There plenty of parking at this facility, to include a parking garage as well. If you love museums and live in Florida, I highly recommend visiting this museum.

The Florida Museum of Natural History is absolutely amazing! They have different seasonal exhibits…read morewhich are always pretty interesting. The exhibits are beautifully curated, educational, and captivating. The butterfly rainforest is a must-see and well worth the extra charge- it's magical walking among so many vibrant butterflies. The staff were friendly and knowledgeable, and the whole experience was both fun and inspiring. Great to bring kids and my niece who is 4 years old loved the area for kids , she didn't want to leave . It was engaging and creative of them to have a little area dedicated for kids. Whether you're a nature lover, history buff, or just looking for a great day out, this place won't disappoint.

While visiting Gainesville today we stopped by the Harn Museum of Art. This is a FREE admission…read moremuseum which we love. This place is great and they have so many great pieces. Didn't take many photos because I was involved in the moment with my wife and friends and amazed at all the nice art work they have. We stopped and asked the security officer a few questions. One was how long do these art pieces stay out for viewing and also do they transfer them to other museums around the country. He said they rotate out art work about every few years so it keeps things fresh and no they don't transfer pieces. All pieces stay in house. If you are ever in the area you must stop by the Harn Museum of Art! Also next the year Florida Museum of Natural History will reopen after a full renovation and you also must see that!!! Definitely recommend you visit this!

The Harn Museum of Art is one of my favorite places in Gainesville when I want something calming,…read morebeautiful, and grounding. The galleries are thoughtfully curated, the space feels open and inviting, and there's always a good mix of contemporary pieces, cultural exhibits, and rotating collections that keep things interesting. Their Art After Dark events on Thursday nights are such a nice bonus, the museum feels even more alive, and it's a great way to enjoy art in a relaxed, social setting without it feeling overwhelming. Perfect for a solo night, a date, or something different to do after work. I also love the outdoor garden area; it adds to the peaceful vibe and makes the whole experience feel refreshing. I always leave feeling inspired and reset.

Atlas Obscura needs to know about this most excellent place in Gainesville, Florida! Equal parts…read moremuseum, theatre, and local music venue, Theatre of Memory is an absolute must if you are looking for something fun to do (and a little bit different!) in Gainesville. Bill, the docent/curator/museum director, greeted us as we arrived and the tour began almost immediately. He exuded theatricality and really brought the place alive. From the wheel room, to the Beatles exhibit, through the platform shoe and tea collections, Bill had fun stories to tell about everything. We thoroughly enjoyed our late afternoon tour and returned later that evening for a music performance put on by an incredibly talented musician from Maine who played piano music and told stories inspired by nature and place to a sold out audience. This is a really cool place full of food for the thought. We have not stopped talking about things we saw or heard during our visit. A visit to Theatre of Memory is definitely recommended during your visit to the Gainesville area.

I LOVE THIS PLACE! This is a place I go for inspo and refreshment. I mention it in my little…read morepodcast episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7q-7dXGM1wc https://open.spotify.com/episode/7AVDzYG9l9OUJzVAxF1e0t?si=1m6pyudZTC6FPpriw7ojwA

It's hard to review an institution such as this one: it's a small museum and has limited…read morehours--apparently mostly by appointment only, so in the scope of museums of history it's not terribly impressive however it is also a historical society committed to the continued exploration of regional history and the stewardship of the same. It's run by mostly elderly, very dedicated, volunteers and it offers community functions that go far beyond simply being a static museum. Plus, it's in the historic old schoolhouse for Old Town, which is a plus and a perfect setting. Aside from the museum exhibits inside, there are several large exhibits on the schoolhouse grounds: alas, these once had plaques explaining what they were but the plaques currently have been removed. That said, there is a large ship's anchor, a huge caldron which probably was used for boiling down salt--an early industry of the coastal part of Dixie County--and a Schofield Iron Works steam engine which was probably used either at a sawmill or turpentine mill--timbering and turpentine were core industries in this region from the 1880s through the 1950s and timber production still remains a leading industry today. Please call or contact them before planning a visit, to ensure someone is actually there. Also, you can tell them at that point what you're seeking--if you're looking for family genealogical records or such so they can better prepare for a visit. They're really nice people.

Wow Im so happy to…read morehave this near by. I absolutely love the immersive art room where anyone can play. Play is si important as an adult. The show of watercolors of the Homeless people are so deeply touching. The artist really captured the soul. Ww will certainly come back

I love love museums, and have been to the Appleton Museum about three times now. This last time I…read moredecided to go during their first Saturday of the month free admission, and so happy I did. The art at the museum is beautiful with a great collection. However, the only thing I wish is of this museum were bigger. While it's easy to spend 1-2 hours here, the museum does feel small compared to others I've been to. Other than that though, the collection is wonderful!

I went on a free tour of Sally Dark Rides and left feeling like my mind was blown. First of all - I…read morehad no idea this was a huge warehouse in Downtown Jacksonville. Nor did I realize most of the dark rides across the whole world are created and developed here! It was amazing!! Our tour guide led us through the building while showing us all of the stages of creating an epic dark ride. This made me think about amusement parks in a whole different way. The tour was about an hour and was very informative. We asked lots of questions and met people from different departments along the way. Highly recommend booking a free tour and checking this out. It would be great for kids as well!

I need to start b my saying that this part of our trip to Florida was not planned! My 11 yo LOVES…read moreanimatronics, most especially, Five Nights at Freddy's (FNAF). He originally wanted to visit a much smaller place in Orlando, which is a one man operation charging $375. It was a bit too far and too expensive for what it was so I decided to do my own research of places he would love, Sally Corporation became the place. I filled out the reservation form online and was told there were no spots available during our time in Florida. I couldn't take no for an answer. I emailed back explaining how much my son wants to be a Robotics Engineer and that we would wait as long as we needed to snag a spot. We got an email back the next day that two spots opened up!!! We made our way downtown and parked for free in the back. We entered to learn that the tour was also FREE...FREE! This facility is HUGE! They are arguably the largest producer of Dark Ride Amusements in the US and don't just make the robotic aspect of the animatronics, but they handle EVERY aspect of the creation and completion. From make up, costumes, design, voices, all of that! We were thrilled to see they had a...yep...FIVE NIGHTS OF FREDDY'S attraction! If you've ever been to he Ripley's in San Antonio, you will see one of their biggest sellers there, a ginormous T-Rex, that's their baby that sells for $90,000! The tour takes you to each department and you are truly immersed in their production. It is an working operation so you get to see the people behind the scenes at work, which was SO DAMN INSPIRING for my 11 yo who has told me for 4 TM years that this is what he wants to do in life. He got to see what his future could be like, which is absolutely priceless. The staff, facilities, location, displays, animatronics, all were 5 stars! Hands down a MUST when in Jacksonville! Come for a 10 or 11am tour and then take the FREE Skyway (Tram) to Hemming Park and Check our Sweet Peet's. Your kids will have the best day ever!

One of the prettier and well decorated rec centers inside of the villages. It's great walking in…read morethere seeing the dedications to the military services as you walk up.once inside you see uniforms from all the services through the years. The pictures are on the walls, are amazing the personal touches and notes that are there . really do make you feel proud to be an American knowing and seeing others that have served before you and some of them even had made the greatest sacrifice. God bless America.

I'm here for a crochet group meeting and then a Zumba Gold class…read more This is a recreational center in the Villages. Also going on right now , is an aerobic dance class, quilting group and a scrabble group meeting. There's probably more but that's all I saw. I've been to this group before. It's fun and relaxing. The Eisenhower rec center is beautifully decorated with a lot of military memorabilia and is just plain pretty.