wonder house
Explore

Arts & Culture

in Central Florida

Visiting a destination usually includes exploring the Arts & Culture scene. Would you enjoy a gallery featuring local artists, historical landmarks, local tours, and museums or attending a performing arts event? If you are so inclined, we have plenty of options for you, including one of the last drive-in movie theatres in Florida – Silver Moon Drive-In Theatre in Lakeland.

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Local Artists & Art Galleries

Central Florida art galleries include traditional spaces like Lake Wales Arts Council, The AGB Museum of Art, and Polk State College Lakeland Art Gallery. Nontraditional spaces include Mitchell’s Coffee House in Lakeland–with a delicious latte that tastes just like an Almond Joy.

Bok Tower Gardens

Reigning high above the Central Florida landscape – more than 200 feet high, in fact – Lake Wales’ world-famous art deco and neo-Gothic legend, Bok Tower Gardens, was a tourist attraction the day it opened in 1929. Built upon the highest elevation in peninsular Florida, guests can stroll in the shadow of the tower that houses a carillon – and instrument comprised of a series of bells played by a keyboard. Built on Iron Mountain, what was once a desolate sand hill was transformed into a 250-acre lush tropical landscape that is both a contemplative garden as well as a bird sanctuary.

Local Culture Tours

If architecture interests you, schedule a tour of the historic Wonder House in Bartow.

Lakeland Food Tours  and Winter Haven Food Tours offer visitors a way to enjoy tastings from a smattering of popular local restaurants with the assistance of a local guide.

You can show off your own artistic skills at PicassoZ Art Café in Lakeland, where you can paint along, make your own pottery or arrange an event for any occasion.LKLDarts org logo

Be sure to read about our Museums and Performing Arts scene. LKLDArts.org is also a great resource for Arts & Culture events taking place in Lakeland.

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Bonnet Springs Park

Family looking at nature on the canopy walk at Bonnet Springs Park.

Bonnet Springs Park is located in Lakeland along the I-4 corridor making it accessible to…

Address: 400 Bonnet Springs Blvd
Lakeland, FL 33815

Phone: 863-413-0652

info@bonnetspringspark.com

Ashley Gibson Barnett Museum of Art

Male and female looking at art hanging in gallery at Polk Museum of Art at Florida Southern College in Lakeland, FL

The Ashley Gibson Barnett Museum of Art is one of the top-ten art museums in…

Address: 800 E. Palmetto St.
Lakeland, FL 33801

Phone: (863) 688-7743 x223

Mulberry Phosphate Museum

alligator skull on display at Mulberry Phosphate Museum

Home to an extensive collection of fossils, a phosphate industry gallery, old photographs and memorabilia…

Address: 101 SE 1st Street
Mulberry, FL 33860

Phone: (863) 425-2823

Lake Wales History Museum

2 females looking at exhibits inside Lake Wales History Museum

Lake Wales History Museum features permanent exhibits from Lake Wales history, its industries, a railroad…

Address: 325 S Scenic Highway
Lake Wales, FL 33853

Phone: (863) 676-1759

Polk County History Center

3 women looking at citrus themed Polk County exhibits inside Polk County History Center in Bartow, FL

Housed in a 1908 courthouse, this museum showcases the history of Polk County. Galleries rotate…

Address: 100 E. Main St.
Bartow, FL 33830

Phone: (863) 534-4386

Lake Wales Arts Council

Gallery with hanging art at Lake Wales Arts Council.

Located in a Spanish mission-style church built in 1927. Lake Wales Arts Council welcomes visitors…

Address: 1099 State Road 60 East
Lake Wales, FL 33853

Phone: (863) 676-8426

info@lw-arts.org

Florida Children’s Museum

Florida Children’s Museum

Florida Children’s Museum is the perfect place for hands-on learning. The museum features 6 exhibits…

Address: 600 Bonnet Springs Blvd.
Lakeland, FL 33815

Phone: 863-687-3869

L.B. Brown House Museum

Exterior of LB Brown House Museum and historical marker sign in Bartow, FL.

Former slave, L.B. Brown, built this house turned museum in 1892. Guided tours of the…

Address: 470 L.B. Brown Ave.
Bartow, FL 33830

Phone: (863) 330-3122

lbbrownmuseum@yahoo.com

Frank Lloyd Wright Architecture at Florida Southern College

4 people inside Annie Pfeiffer Chapel, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, on the campus of Florida Southern College in Lakeland, FL

Explore the genius of America’s greatest architect through his most fully articulated vision: the National…

Address: 840 Johnson Ave
Lakeland, FL 33801

Phone: 863-680-4597

fllw@flsouthern.edu

LEARN & DISCOVER

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