Bowman's Beach is a beautiful beach on the tip of Sanibel Island that's left greatly untouched by…read morehuman hand. You'll also definitely get your steps in here as the parking lot of property ~.5 miles to the actual beachfront & water, disclosing walking around to stake out a spot. The biggest reason to come here is for the shelling, which can be fortuitous during the right time of year and even the right area on the shoreline. Honestly, were it not for the shelling it probably wouldn't be a beach I'd come back to. It's nice, of course, but doesn't have that gorgeous cerulean water and ultra soft sand that some of the gulf coast beaches are known for. It does have a lot of amenities on the walk between the parking lot & beach shore, such as bathrooms & changing rooms, rinse stations, a picnic area, educational signs, and even a playground. You also have to pay for parking- and the lot has quite a lot of parking, but if you don't get there early enough on the wrong weekend it could still be tough to find a spot.

This is a little piece of heaven. Beautiful beaches, nice facilities, and not over crowded.read more

Adjacent to the Saint James City Civic Association, this park and playground is thanks to the…read moreefforts of the local, state and international Kiwanis Club. For those who aren't familiar with the Kiwanis, they're all about improving the lives of children and one way they accomplish that is with parks like this one. A small parking lot but otherwise street parking on three sides. The park is fenced which is helpful for keeping little ones from getting too far away from the play area. The park includes picnic tables, some fitness equipment and a pretty large playground that has climbing equipment, slides, rockers and things to interact with. It is all on a mulch base because little ones tend to fall down a lot. That's okay. There is also some open area for running. The park is pretty well shaded. [Review 16761 overall - 1488 in Florida - 274 of 2022.]

Awesome park with trail around little pond. Bathrooms and picnic area makes for a great lunch spot!…read moreTot park for ages 2-5 and older park for 5-12 year olds. Well maintained with fresh mulch and nicely cut grass. Water fountain water barely bubbles out but we brought our own so it wasn't really an issue. Playgrounds are clean and maintained as well. Made for a great morning adventure with the kids. We came on a Thursday morning with our dogs and we were the only ones in the park. Dogs ran free and had a great time. Pack a lunch. Stay for a while and enjoy the parks.

I was here for a picnic lunch and to check out the playground. While I ate, I watched a few careful…read moreparents keeping an eye on their toddlers as they climbed and played and generally had a great time burning off their excess energy. ​This 40-acre property was donated by Rutenberg Homes https://www.yelp.com/biz/arthur-rutenberg-homes-fort-myers-2 for use as a park and opened to the public in 1977. The park has a baseball/softball field, basketball courts, picnic areas with grills, racquetball courts and tennis courts. There is a concessions area when there are big games going on. Plenty of parking. Plenty of shady spots. It's a great park. [Review 13369 overall, 687 of 2020.]

This park is very close to where we ate lunch at the newly reopened Sweet Tomatoes, so after we…read moreate, we headed over to check it out. Lakes Park is a 279-acre public park located along Gladiolus Drive, just south of Fort Myers. It is operated by the Lee County Department of Parks and Recreation. The park was named after its main feature: 158 acres of man-made freshwater lakes that were created when the site was occupied by West Coast Rock Co., a rock and limestone quarry, during the 1950s and 1960s. In 1958, a railroad spur was built to serve the mine, running along what is now Six Mile Cypress Parkway. The track bed had previously been used by the Seaboard Air Line Railroad from 1926 to 1952. In 1978, Lee County purchased the abandoned quarry to preserve the land before opening it to the public as a park on April 21, 1984. My first impression was that this has to be one of the nicest parks I have ever visited. It has so much to offer that I could have easily spent the entire day there. If you visit the park, it is important to note that admission is free, but parking is not. It costs $1 per hour, up to a maximum of $5. Once you enter the park, there is so much to do. There are more than 2.5 miles of paved paths running throughout the park. There is an amphitheater, beach volleyball courts, a boat launch, a fishing area, a train-themed playground, picnic shelters, gardens, a wedding gazebo, and a train museum. You can also rent a boat, kayak, or bicycle. Admission to the train museum is $5, and the 15-minute train rides, when operating, cost $5 per adult. The park also offers story-time programs, a farmers market (October through June), and a two-hour bird patrol tour on the first Saturday of each month at 8:00 a.m. The park is a stop on the Great Florida Birding and Wildlife Trail, a network of more than 500 wildlife viewing sites across the state. On the day I visited, it was blisteringly hot. I recommend visiting during the cooler months. Even so, I was able to walk the boardwalk, where I spotted a variety of birds, and I explored a few of the gardens. The park is so lovely. We have multiple parks on Florida's east coast that offer some of the same features, but here in Fort Myers, you can find it all at Lakes Regional Park.

What a huge and beautiful park. I'm a little jealous we don't have anything like this near us! We…read morelet the kids play on two different playgrounds. There was a splash pad that was closed off due to construction. We saw a community garden, children's garden, and train museum and boardwalk. You can easily spend a few hours here. I think parking was $1/hours or $5 for the day. It's huge here!! I read 279 acres.

We found the Surfrider Beach Club through RCI and thought it was an excellent value for the trade…read more The Surfrider is a very well maintained facility with a large pool, hot tub, newly resurfaced tennis court, horseshoe and shuffleboard courts, playground equipment for children, and multiple gas barbeques available for cooking. Guests can borrow kayaks, pool toys, beach umbrellas, beach chairs, and bikes for free. Washing machines and dryers are available for use at no charge. Wi-Fi is also free. The office has a small amenities store that includes sun hats and other sundries for sale, along with free DVDs, books, and games you can borrow during your stay. The 1-bedroom unit we stayed in had an upgraded master bath shower that included a tile seat in the corner of shower, grab bars, and lots of space for shampoo, conditioner, etc. There was plenty of storage space throughout the unit, including a dresser and nightstand in the master bedroom and 4 large drawers below the master bedroom closet. The main room of the unit included a living/dining/kitchen area. There were additional large drawers below the couch in the living area. The furniture was not particularly stylish, but was definitely suitable and made sense for the wear and tear of beach-living. Other than to sleep, we spent most of our time on Sanibel out of our unit, so the furniture was certainly fine for our needs. Both the living area and the master bedroom contained nice sized LED TVs with USB connectors for plugging in other devices. The kitchen, as with most vacation units, was a bit cramped but contained clean, organized dishes, pots, pans, and utensils. There was also a small dishwasher. Unlike another resort we stayed at in Williamsburg, VA, extra coffee filters are available for free if you run out. The management and staff were very friendly and helpful, as were the guests. Many of the guests have been timeshare owners at Surfrider Beach Club for years and are a good resource for giving tips on where to eat and what to do around Sanibel Island. Outside our unit was a screened-in breezeway with chairs. The atmosphere was so laid-back, open, and friendly, we enjoyed sitting outside the unit and talking with our neighbors on either side who were also often sitting outside. The beach is only steps away right in back of the Surfrider. Having such easy access to the beach made it easy to go shelling at low tide. Unlike some other beaches on Sanibel, we had no beach parking fees since a free parking space was included with our unit. The Surfrider Beach Club's mellow atmosphere, easy access to the beach, and many free amenities helped make our stay in Sanibel a truly lovely vacation.

This was our first time staying at this development. I liked it because it is much less $$$ than…read morethe neighboring units on East Gulf Drive....a lot less! I was pleasantly surprised how everything was so well-organized in the small space provided. I especially liked the FREE laundry room, super huge pool, free beach umbrellas and chairs, stunning views from each room, and free WiFi. Staff is very friendly and knowledgeable. The only odd thing is when we moved to the larger unit, we had to go through the bedroom to get to the living room/dining room...okay for us, but a little embarrassing when we had guests visit. Overall, we were very, very pleased, and will return! Count on it!

Went for the first time with my 3- and 6- year old during the hot summer afternoon sun. Four…read moreFreedoms has parking on the north and east side of the playground, from what I saw. Not a lot, just designated parking on the shoulder of the road. The neighborhood was ok. There was a bank. Duplexes, and apartment buildings directly across from the park. It's right off of busy Cape Pkwy, behind a bank. The bonus is that the entire play area is fenced it with "childproof" closing mechanisms. Four Freedoms has an office building that you can rent out, preschool inside, fenced in playground, and a walkway to a beach area, which is only for sunbathers (and currently closed, per posted signage). The play area had artificial turf under the playgrounds and swings. It was nice and cushioned, but also very hot. There were two newer playgrounds for younger kids, an older playground for older kids, 2 accessible swings, 2 baby swings, a tire swing, and 4 normal swings. There were ample, newer, picnic tables, and 4 under a gazebo. There were many mature trees providing shade, but a majority of the swing sets and the larger, newer playground closest to the building remained exposed to the sun, and very hot (around 1:30pm in early August). It would be nice if they had those shade coverings like other Cape parks and elementary schools. There was an entry gate to the play area from each side of the park (north, west, and east). Then, there was a walkway to the sand beach (currently closed), but posted as a sunbathing beach only. Overall nice place and general "safe" feeling with the childproof fencing, and plenty of room for kids to run and jump within. The big con for me was the lack of shade directly over the play areas.

This large park overlooks the Bimini Basin and includes a large and shaded fenced-in playground and…read morea sunbathing beach. Picnic tables, swing sets, bathrooms and benches for parents to sit and watch. I took a bit of time to sit here and chill. Very nice park. [Review 10783 overall, 551 of 2019.]

The star of this park is the covered bocce courts which include lighting, seating and a…read moreprofessional looking area with a large number of courts. I can picture the older Italian guys all here swapping stories and throwing bocce balls up and down. Sadly, the pandemic has much of that shut down so the park is a little quieter these days. Other than bocce, there is a backetball court, picnic shelter with grill and a playground area. The park has a large parking lot with plenty of room. [Review 13257 overall, 575 of 2020.]

Brought my fur baby to the dog park and had such a nice time. They keep big buckets of water and…read moreseating for us humans. Overall was a beautiful park that was well maintained.

Poor bunnies are manhandled by unsupervised children. This place is nothing like advertised…read more Trash everywhere. Poop everywhere. No hand sanitizer in the pumps. Very small and homemade

When I arrived to the location it was a bunch of no trespassing signs & private property signs,…read moreevery website led us to this location. We called the number and it's for a Tennessee location. Very disappointing this isn't organized better.