What an absolutely beautiful hidden gem Bok Tower Gardens is!!! If my friend hadn't told me about it I wouldn't have stopped to check it out. What a vast array of beautiful landscape to walk and explore; 250 acres worth!! We barely scratched the surface and I look forward to going back to explore more! I love how all the plants are labeled so we know what we are admiring!! We so enjoyed the gardens and the tower, and next time will explore more of the nature trails. We also enjoyed the children's garden, Hammock Hollow, where my 5 year old could explore on terrain more fitting to her size!! We grabbed a bite to eat at the cafe; delicious sandwiches and ice cream!! Was a nice treat before exploring the gardens. Make sure to also take time to go inside their mini museum and learn the history behind Bok Tower and Gardens, as well as learn more about the making and insides of the tower itself. Bok Tower Gardens is a place you could spend your entire day exploring, as well as just relaxing on a blanket with a picnic relaxing!!

Absolutely loved it! So much so that I purchased a membership, which grants you either free admission or 50% off admission to about 50 gardens or history centers throughout FL. A regular annual membership is $60 but it’s only $30 for students. Bok Tower Gardens is well-kept, with a wonderful variety of greenery and plenty of places to sit & enjoy. There were a lot of people picnicking and napping. Definitely worth the trip. Bring some snacks and a blanket and you can easily spend a few relaxing hours here.

Seriously beautiful and worth a visit at least once. The singing tower is stunning and very well maintained. Also enjoyed a good portion of the general gardens walk, lots to see! Make sure to take in the views around the tower itself, the elevation is a rarity in Florida and so nice to see.

A must go for garden fans. This garden has grown over the years to add a vegetable garden, the Pinewood Estate, a nice little cafe etc. Very clean facilities admission is around 15 dollars. There is a beautiful tower with carillons ( bell like instruments). The music plays out over a large path of trails and there are camelias, azaleas, tropical plants and some rather exotic things too. The Victoria Water Lilies are some of my favorites. The Pinewood Estate is a separate fee to go inside, but you can tour the grounds and I do encourage you to do this. The tour itself is quite nice too if you like rustic old estates. There is a great children's area and paths that are paved and some that are mulch. You can also hike the surrounding area which has some pine upland areas. Take some quarters to feed the fish surrounding the tower on top of the hill " mountain ". This is a high elevation for Florida and you do have some nice views looking out. The small cafe has some nice food and there is a little gift shop and garden shop. Picnics are easy to do with many tables under the trees. A very good place to go with family of any age. Highly recommend this place.

This place is beautiful. We spent half a day there walking around and looking around at all the beautiful plants and trees. It was amazing to walk around and check out the grounds and old buildings. The tower is amazing and we stayed for the carillon bells. I can't explain the beauty at this place, just spectacular. The food at the Cafe is delicious, great salads and sandwiches. I really enjoyed this place and recommend, so relaxing and a place to de-stress.

Beautiful garden. Trails were paved and mulched, well kept. Bathrooms were cleaned. I enjoyed the walk through the garden. Looking at the map, I thought it was a lot bigger but after walking, it fell just right. Not too short, but also not too long. Perfect for younger kids. As you drive in, you pay at the front gate, then drive to the parking lot.

I really like this place. The Bok Tower was beautiful to look at. Great place for pictures. There are different things for the kids to do ( water walkway, hammock, musical instruments, fairy gardens,....and many more). My two years old love the water walkway. He spent 30 minutes running back and forth through the water. There are different many different sections in the garden for the kids to do, not your boring walk in the park. Fun for the whole family. Great place to walk your dog or having a picnic.

Beautiful Tower and Gardens stunning flowers peaceful to walk and admire all . The tower singing melodies with bells sounds so cute. Very clean a lot to walk but is stunning . Coffe place with sandwiches drinks and gift shop .

Let’s call it the heaven on earth. It is absolutely beautiful, you can easily spend time hours and hours there. We were there for almost 2 hours. The garden was beautiful and the tower was stunning. The old house that Bok used to live in was a whole different thing, it really touched my heart. Highly recommend this place to visit.

What a hidden gem! This place is huge and is a little piece of heaven on earth. It's peaceful, serene, beautiful, unique and so special. You can't help but be at peace here. What a spectacular legacy to leave, Mr. Bok. And thanks to all the groundskeepers and staff. Absolutely stunning. I'm not posting too many pics as you must experience yourself. Pictures do not do this place justice.

Definitely worth the visit. The entire grounds is kept so nice. Everywhere you look there are hidden areas to sit. We enjoyed walking up to the tower and getting to listen to the bells, it’s an experience unlike any in our area. We were specifically blow away by how nice the childrens area is. It’s very thought out, and the creativity that was put into it should be celebrated. Overall we had the most amazing day here. Can’t wait to come back and explore some more.

Lovely place and garden to visit. Mystical and peaceful. Great place to go on walks and have family time. Many beautiful flowers. Nice cafe eatery place. Beautiful Bok Tower and its musical bells. Wish the hours would open much later than 6 pm but maybe when daylight savings they will.

The landscape is so diverse and well maintained. There were so many portions of the gardens to explore. The tower was really neat, the bells have a beautiful sound. The Old Florida is very interesting and fun to explore. We would highly recommend a visit, plus it's out in the country. This is an opportunity to get away from all the crazy traffic of a more densely populated area

This is now my favorite place in Florida. BEAUTIFUL. Well taken care of, tons of different plants and flowers, so many different trails. You can easily spend a couple of hours just exploring around this beautiful place, but at the same time, everything is close so it’s not an exerting walk by any means. Ironically, although the tower and music are gorgeous, it was everything around it I would go back for. Loooved it.

This is definitely one of Florida’s hidden treasures. Unspoiled by man’s forward progress, this sanctuary features some extremely beautiful trees, plants, flowers, and foliage. And of course, the main centerpiece is the Bok Tower Bells. If you want to avoid crowds and screaming children, and screaming adults, this is definitely worth the visit. It’s about 45 minutes or so from the Walt Disney World resort. It’s definitely worth the drive.

Wonderful natural areas good for hiking as well as paved trails good for people with strollers, walkers, or wheelchairs. Multiple bird watching opportunities including a sheltered “window by the pond” to see wading birds, as well as a large bird feeder that attracts painted buntings 😃 among others. An inspiring collection of rare native plants, a “kitchen garden” filled with edibles, delightful live carillon concerts twice a day from the tower. (If you are lucky you get to hear Geert D’Hollander and other greats!). Very nice “Hammock Hollow children’s garden” and playground including water games, a giant indigo snake, giant robin nest 🪺 with its blue eggs, giant acorns, fairy 🧚‍♀️ garden, wetland area, musical 🎶 instruments, and much more. Excellent visitors center and interpretative areas. We highly recommend taking the very informative guided tour if it is your first visit to the gardens. Likewise, we highly recommend bringing your own picnic as the “Garden Cafe” was lacking and the young teen-age employees at the cashier posts were rude, ignorant about what they sold, and condescending. Overall this place is a gem.

I have lived in FL for a total of about 18;years and never knew this amazing place was less than a 2 hour drive from home. I also didn't exactly know what Bok Tower was, and had no idea that music come out of the Tower at certain times of the day. For a simplified explanation, the Tower houses a series of 60 bells that play tunes by a single person using a type of keyboard. The gardens are stunning and I really enjoyed walking the grounds. The visitors center has great information on the man who had the Tower built, and a lot of details on the Tower. The Tower itself was not open to the public but twice daily they have someone performing a concert that was about 30 min long. I highly recommend this place!!!

Bok Tower Gardens is always a fun place to go and enjoy the gardens. This is a very tranquil place to go. All trails are easily marked and there is facilities and modes of transport for those with handicaps. The cafe on site is very good and fairly priced. If you like the reviews and pictures hit the like button please

Relaxing gem off the beaten path! Florida is known for beaches, theme parks, and nightlife.. and sure, there's plenty of time to do all of that. However there's also time to to explore some of the quieter, little known spots. Bok Tower Gardens sits on top of one of the highest locations in central Florida, surrounded by orange groves and complete with a variety of plant species. There always seems to be something in bloom as you walk the grounds and take in the sweet smells and sultry sounds of nature. Lose yourself here for a day. Bring a date and picnic basket and just relax, relax, relax. Also, if you get a chance, ensure you schedule your visit around the bell performance.. you will NOT be disappointed!

Undeniably beautiful. This garden is enchanting, well laid out and stunningly kept. I would love to be able to climb the tower. The water features and children’s area is also well thought out. This place is almost 100 years old and was a gift to all Americans from Mr. Bok. This place is a true treasure and gift. A must see place

This place is magical. It truly is. I love getting there right at 8 am when there is no one around and just walking the main walk through the garden. It's very quiet in the morning. You can hear the birds chirping and the wind rustling the leaves or knocking the bamboo together. It's so peaceful and serene. It's a fantastic way to start the day. Can't recommend it enough!

Very serene and beautiful garden escape from the city. We had a great time on our relaxing stroll along the many paths they have to walk. Lots of flowers, shrubs, and trees that have labels to let you know what you’re admiring. The tower “sings” at various points throughout the day when they have someone playing the bells (they even have a live viewing area that you can sit and watch the player play). Highly recommend this place if you’re in the Orlando/Tampa area!

Beautiful. Having lived in Central Florida for 10 years I am shocked that I haven’t heard more folks talk about how unbelievable this property is! The tower is stunning. The history is incredible. The grounds are emasculate! Go visit this beautiful garden as soon as possible! It sits at the highest spot and the views are breathtaking! Also pay the extra $7 to see El Retiro which is a house in the property that was designed by the same guys who designed the tower and the gardens.

Beautiful gardens. The music being played with the bell organs was great. Loved the design and thought put into everything. Activities, music and nature. I would love to go every day.

Loved everything about my visit today from the super friendly helpful staff, to the well thought out and maintained gardens. The short movie with the historical information was helpful. Bathrooms located throughout the grounds. Ate at the Cafe on site which was convenient and good to refuel. Saw fish, turtles, snakes, all different kind of birds. Spent 4.5 hours there and still did not see everything. Definitely will be back!

Love this place so Peaceful and Beautiful!! So many different trees and flowers . The Singing Tower is Amazing especially when the bells play and the Views over looking the orange groves are Breathtaking . Don't forget to stop by the Cafe., They have really good food and limited Vegan options . Its across from the Gift shop . We need to go back because we didn't get to see all of the grounds. I like that you can bring your dog for the walk around the grounds . Very friendly atmosphere. Lots of shade along the paths

A magical time in a historic place, filled with awe-inspiring views and lush flora and fauna to fawn over. A heavenly tower of carillon music fills the air, adding to its everlasting charm sitting at the highest point in Florida you will be enchanted and in love instantly. My lovely dog was allowed to accompany me through the winding trails and butterfly gardens. I stopped to feed the koi and admire the etchings in stone throughout. The tour guide who roams the grounds is so delighted to tell you the history of this place it is worth many visits, every time is something new to feel.

We love the many incredible Botanical and Natural Gardens that Florida offers for visits, at the “top” of our list is Bok Singing Tower. On this particular visit we had a goal to hike their trail system along with the Garden. We ended up doing over 5 miles including a variation of terrain. It is no easy feat to hike a grade of significance in Florida. The bonus was the large number of Azaleas in bloom. The music from the carillon echoed in the hills as we traversed the sand and clay terrain. The gardens transported us to far away places with strange sounding names. Then we inadvertently crashed a wedding where the theme from Jurassic Park brought in the Groom and Bride’s entourage. And you know… in that setting it worked.

Definitely worth visiting these gardens over 200+ acres. Incredible variety of plants and exotic vegetables. Great play areas for kids. Incredible musical tower with bells, called Carillon, popular in Europe.

We had a great time walking around these gardens on a quiet Saturday morning. I particularly enjoyed the endangered plants garden and outdoor kitchen. Walking around here for a few hours brought us peace. It was nice to escape from the busy city and take some time to enjoy nature. Hopefully we will be back again one day soon.

Wonderful!! Serene and enlightening experience in the gardens, the singing bell tower playing Christmas songs, the beautiful museum, gift shop, and Cafe. Easy access, bountiful parking, exceptionally pleasant staff, and decorated with colorful holiday plantings. We spent over 4 hours there, and could have spent hours more to walk all the interesting trails. Great day trip!

Beautiful park with miles of accessible walking paths winding through the gardens. The bells are played live twice a day in the tower and can be heard throughout the park. Very nice visitor center with a continuous playing movie showing the full history of the park. Nice restaurant serving soups, salads, sandwiches, wine, beer, and soft drinks. Clean restrooms at the visitor center and near the tower. Creative playground for kids, and many people bring blankets and chairs and have a picnic under the trees around the tower.

We’ve lived in the Tampa Bay Area for 30 years and have never visited Bok Tower until last month (May ‘23)! We enjoyed touring all the gardens & watched the carillon in the sitting area in the gardens. We didn’t tour the main house just the gardens and children’s area. Children’s area is a really cool, interactive place!

On June 28th my husband and I got married at Bok Tower. It was the most magical and gorgeous day. The staff was a breeze to work with and were some of the most accommodating I’ve seen. They did absolutely everything in their power for us to have a stress free and spectacular day. I can not rave about this place more!

So glad we got the chance to explore the Bok Tower Gardens. This place is massive and so beautiful. Be prepared to walk-around and really take in the beautiful flowers and serene landscape. I even got a chance to grab some of the plants from the gift shop. Reasonably priced and happy to have something to remember the time spent there. This is a great place for a stroll, picnic and some good exercise.

Awesome gardens, enjoyed our visit! While waking through, we asked Terrance (I hope I have his name correct) about caring for certain plants and very graciously, he took the time to share his knowledge. We loved the carrilloneur's concert of Christmas carols! My only critique is that, if you don't live in the area (we drove 1.5 hrs to get there), there's not much else to do in the area (Spook Hill is close by, but that's about it). If you want to make a day of Bok Tower Gardens, take a blanket and picnic to enjoy on the lawn, it's beautiful!

Great family friendly location, awesome museum and tourist center with an 8 minute video explaining the history of Bok Tower. Cafe had awesome food, kids loved it. Awesome scenery. Great children's playground. We will definitely come out again, the kids loved it!

This day across the board was perfect! Weather impeccable for our day out at the Bok Tower gardens! The cafe had very friendly staff . Food was very fresh when ordered! The staff in the information center were thrilled to help us learn about the garden as well! Beyond pleased to have spent a peaceful day here ❤️

It's such a magical place. Every inch of these gardens is spectacular, and beauty can be found around every corner. Thank you to everyone who works so hard to maintain the grounds. Thank you for such a wonderful experience.

Beautiful grounds! Lots of stuff to see and do. Our daughter loved the children's area. Definitely stick around for the bell performance at the tower it's so beautiful!

Beautiful gardens and beautiful tower that rings the bells frequently making beautiful music. Totally worth a stop. The children's area was super cool and entertaining for my 9 and 7 year old boys. Great place to take pictures and great for picnics too (in the winter). The visitor center is very nice too. The café has good food and the gift shop is great as well. The restrooms are super clean.