If you fancy a day away from the Orlando area why not go to St Petersburg on the Gulf Coast and whilst you are there visit their Sunken Gardens.
St Petersburg is about an hour and a halves drive from Orlando if you do not wish to go there and back in a day there are many reasonably priced motels around that you can stay at. We usually make an early start if we are going for the day and as there is a great selection of restaurants off the I4 we stop off for breakfast along the way. If we are going for an overnight stay we usually then stop at Applebees nearer the end of the journey and have lunch. Our favourite here is their offer of a starter to share and two entrees for $20.
When you get to St Petersburg the Sunken Gardens are located at 1825 Fourth St. N. Opening hours are 10:00 a. m. to 4:30 p. m. Monday to Saturday and 12 noon to 4:30 p. m. on Sunday.
The admission costs are very reasonable at $8 for adults, $4 for children and $6 for senior citizens. When we visited the Sunken Gardens the girls were quite young and still hyped up about Disney so whilst my parents and I went around the gardens my brother took the girls to the beach. However friends of ours who went to the Gardens recently did take their younger children with them managing to keep them amused by buying them a disposable camera each so that they could take photos of the plants and more particularly the butterflies as they strolled around the gardens.
The Sunken Gardens are now owned by the city of St. Petersburg, these grounds were originally carved out of a large sinkhole and shallow lake by a plumber in the early 1920s. Apparently the attraction was in some disrepair but since the city of St Petersburg took it over they put in thousands of plants as well as a wonderful butterfly garden. I believe the site where the Rainforest Information Center is used to be a run down souvenir shop.
It is so easy to relax as you stroll through meandering paths and see some of the oldest and most exotic plants and flowers from around the world. It is so peaceful just wandering through beautiful demonstration gardens and cascading waterfalls. Some of the water areas are filled with Koi and you will also see birds and flamingos as you stroll around. There are seating areas as you go around if you fancy a rest and if you stand still enough you might just get a butterfly to perch on your hand!
If you visit St Petersburg and you want a peaceful relaxing couple of hours do go to the Sunken Gardens you will not regret it.