LAKE WALES, Fla. — Bok Tower Gardens in Lake Wales is reopening to the public June 1.
It closed on March 13 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
What You Need To Know
- Bok Tower reopens in Lake Wales
- Tower been closed since March 13
- Bok Tower Gardens
Members were allowed to visit the last week in May. One of the members, Jessica Cabrera, visited the day before the grand reopening. She said it was the first time her children had left the house in 12 weeks.
“It’s very easy to social distance. As you can see, there’s literally no one around here right now so I felt like this was a good comfortable first place to go out with the kids because it’s real easy to be by yourselves,” explained Jessica Cabrera.
In preparation for re-opening and keeping guests safe, staff was seen cleaning doors, and signs were posted asking people to stay six feet apart and wash their hands frequently.
“We ask all of our visitors to bring a mask with them. We don’t require it to be worn in the gardens as long as you can properly physical distance,” explained Marketing Director Erica Smith.
Smith said they initially were going to have a few more rules in place.
“We were going to have timed ticketing and timed entry but over this last week we really saw how kind everybody was being and how respectful so we were able to not have to do timed ticketing. So now you’re able to come and we have regular gate operations,” Smith said.
According to Smith, there will be a lot of surprises in store for guests this summer, including live carillon concerts five days a week. Typically the concerts are recorded during the summer.
“They are going to really see some areas that have been really opened up and the gardeners have been really concentrating on revitalizing our beds so it really is a beautiful time in the garden for everyone to come back to,” said Smith.
Some areas will remain closed including the children’s garden, new exhibit hall, and Pinewood Estates.
The gardens are also limiting its daily capacity.
Shuttle service to the Carillon Tower and Pinewood Estates is not available.
The gardens’ staff is urging people to stay home if they don’t feel well or are experiencing COVID-19 symptoms.
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