Orlando: Wild Florida Park Ticket and Gator Shows

About This Experience

This is the park-only ticket at Wild Florida, the same Lake Cypress site that runs the airboats. You drive down, show your ticket and wander at your own pace between alligator pools, a tropical bird aviary, a petting area and enclosures for animals such as sloths, lemurs, zebras and capybaras. A keeper-led alligator demonstration runs at set times, and the Hawk Swamp boardwalk takes you through a patch of cypress swamp.

It is small enough that little legs can cover it, and most families spend two to three hours. Some ticket options add a hands-on encounter, such as feeding capybaras, and those are the part older kids tend to talk about afterwards. Check which option you are booking, because the basic ticket covers entry and the demonstration only.

The listing calls the area the Central Florida Everglades. Lake Cypress is part of the Kissimmee Chain of Lakes, the headwaters of the Kissimmee-Okeechobee-Everglades system, so the swamp you walk through is related to the Everglades but a long way from Everglades National Park.

The honest downsides: it is about 34 miles from the Disney area, much of it is outdoors, and the airboat and the drive-thru safari are separate tickets. If you want a boat ride too, the airboat-plus-park ticket usually makes more sense than buying this and adding a ride on the day.

Highlights

• Watch keepers work with a big alligator during the live demonstration
• Walk the Hawk Swamp boardwalk through a shady cypress swamp
• Step into the tropical bird aviary and see sloths, lemurs and zebras up close
• Look out over Lake Cypress from the 500-foot sightseeing dock
• Move at your own pace, with no boat schedule to fit around naps

What's Included

• ✓ One-day admission to the Wild Florida wildlife park
• ✓ Live alligator demonstration
• ✓ Tropical bird aviary
• ✓ Hawk Swamp boardwalk through cypress swamp
• ✓ 500-foot sightseeing dock
• ✓ An animal encounter only if your chosen ticket option lists one

Not Included

• Airboat rides, sold separately
• Drive-thru safari, sold separately
• Food and drinks at the grill
• Animal encounters not included in your option
• Transport to the park

What to Bring

• Sun hats and sunscreen
• Refillable water bottles
• Hand wipes for after the petting area
• Packed snacks or lunch, since outside food is allowed
• Comfortable closed shoes for shell and boardwalk paths

Good to Know & Caveats

• Most of the park is outdoors; there are misters and a covered playground but no splash pad.
• The Crusher gator show is at 11 AM and 3:45 PM, and depends on the weather and the gator.
• Encounter age minimums: 8 for sloth and porcupine, 12 for lemur and gator feeding. Check the listing for capybara.
• Children under 16 must stay with an adult in the park.
• Shirts and footwear are required; swimsuits alone are not allowed.
• The park is rural, so if you arrive by rideshare, plan your ride home before you go.
• Wheelchairs can be rented on site; stroller rental is not mentioned, so bring your own.

Meeting Point

Wild Florida park entrance, 3301 Lake Cypress Rd, Kenansville, FL 34739, the same site as the airboat dock. Parking is free.