FORT LAUDERDALE — Flamingo Gardens in Davie is another beautiful attraction within easy driving distance of Lake Okeechobee.

According to the park’s website, Flamingo Gardens, near Fort Lauderdale,  opened in 1927 and is one of the oldest botanical gardens in South Florida.

Visitors to the park can not only enjoy the wildlife and flowers but can also expect to learn more about the “natural and cultural heritage of South Florida and the Everglades.”

Despite the name, Flamingo Gardens is home to much more than flamingoes. American Crocodiles, more than 45 species of birds, black bears, river otters, panthers and bobcats, turtles and more also call Flamingo Gardens home.

The park boasts an arboretum featuring native and exotic trees, the largest collection of towering Florida Champion Trees, ponds, streams and a waterfall. They also have a large orchid collection, ginger and heliconia gardens, a fragrance garden, tropical fern garden, and many others.

Visitors can also visit the Wray Home Museum, built in 1933. It has been restored to help visitors visualize life in the 1930s.

Sunday afternoons during the month of November offer music from several different genres. Bring your own chair or blanket and enjoy lunch or a snack while you listen.

Through January 2024, visitors to the park can learn more about bats during the Masters of the Night — The True Story of Bats presentation. This presentation begins as visitors walk through a Gothic castle. Visitors are treated to “an up-close look at these small, gentle mammals and walk through centuries of mythic representations of bats in different cultures.  Multimedia elements will introduce visitors to the real and diverse world of bats, their benefits, skills and abilities. Guests have the opportunity to try matching types of bats with the foods they eat, find where bats are located world-wide or put on a pair of ‘bat ears’ to experience the sensitivity of bat hearing, all in the Gallery at Flamingo Gardens.”

As part of a fundraiser to help with reconstruction and repair of the animal habitats, Flamingo Gardens is holding a 5K Walk in the Wild on Nov. 5. “We need to raise $125,000 to complete much-needed reconstruction and repairs to our animal habitats, including the Panther and Bear Habitats, Owl Alley, the Flamingo Pond, and the Rookery,” the website states. 

Click here to register. Registration closes on Oct. 30 at 11:59 p.m.

Flamingo Gardens is located at 3750 S. Flamingo Rd. They can be reached by telephone at 954-473-2955 or on the web at https://flamingogardens.org/. They are open daily from 9:30-5. Adult tickets cost $24. Children 3-11 cost $17.