Winter Garden, FL Road Trips

The town is on the shore of Lake Apopka, one of several large lakes surrounding Greater Orlando. To the east of Winter Garden are the inner suburbs of Orlando, as the town is on the eastern fringes of the metropolitan area, the center of which is 14 mi (23 km) away. Winter Garden was founded by Henry Harrel in 1857, and was called "Beulah" before receiving its current name. In 2019 its population was 46,000.

1 Winter Garden Heritage Foundation, ☏ +1 407 656-3244, [email protected]. (updated Jun 2021) 2 History Research & Education Center, 21 E Plant St, ☏ +1 407 656-3244. Th-F 11AM–3PM. (updated Jun 2021) 3 Winter Garden Heritage Museum, 1 N Main St, ☏ +1 407 656-3244. Tu-Sa 11AM–3PM. A small museum with several exhibits about the history of Winter Garden and the surrounding county. free. (updated Jun 2023) 4 Central Florida Railroad Museum, 101 South Boyd St, ☏ +1 407 656-0559, [email protected]. Tu-Sa 11AM–3PM. Shares the history of railroading in Central Florida through photos, exhibits, maps, signage, charts, historic railroad artifacts and more. The last room, the Ken Murdock Gallery, is only open on Saturdays. free. (updated Jun 2023) 5 Lake Apopka. The state's fourth largest lake, Lake Apopka is 12 mi (19 km) long and 10 mi (16 km) wide. It is a part of the St. Johns watershed. The lake was known in the mid-20th century for its bass and was a popular destination for anglers. However, human activities, including the construction of a levee in 1941 and the introduction of pesticides to the lake in 1980, caused significant damage to the local environment. During the 1990s work began to reverse this environmental damage, and by 2010 the condition of the lake had improved substantially. In 2014 a hiking trail near the lake was opened to the public. (updated Jun 2021)

1 West Orange Trail. A 22-mile (35 km) paved trail going from Killarney, passing through Downtown Winter Garden, up to Apopka. 2 Oakland Nature Preserve, 747 Machete Tr, ☏ +1 407-905-0054. (updated Jun 2021)

1 Chef's Table Restaurant, 99 West Plant St, ☏ +1 407 230-4837. M 4–9PM, Tu–Th 4PM–10PM, F–Sa 11AM–11PM, Su 11AM–9PM. 2 Mooncricket Grille, 14 W Plant St (near the junction of Plant St and Main St), ☏ +1 407 905-5325. (updated Jun 2021) 3 Urban on Plant, 132 W Plant St, ☏ +1 407 614-2765. M–Th 11:30AM-9PM, F 11:30AM-10PM, Sa 10:30AM-10PM, Su 10:30AM-9PM. (updated Jun 2021) 4 Plant Street Market, 426 W Plant St (Plant St & Central Ave, west of downtown core). M-Sa 10AM-7PM, Su 10AM-6PM. Local indoor artisan market with a variety of food vendors. (updated Jun 2023)

1 Crooked Can Brewing Co, 426 W Plant St (South end of the Market Street Market Building towards Smith St), ☏ +1 407 395-9520. Su-Th 11AM-11PM, F-Sa 11AM-midnight. (updated Jun 2023)

Winter Garden, like most of Central Florida, is served primarily by the Orlando International Airport (MCO IATA). The easiest way to get to Winter Garden from the Airport is the highway. Winter Garden is located next to two highways: Florida's Turnpike and SR 429. There is a network of Orlando highways in a somewhat grid-like pattern on which Winter Garden is a part. lists the intercity bus companies serving the Orlando Metropolitan area from all parts of the state. The 1 Winter Garden Bus stop in front of the Winter Garden Regional Shopping Center serves as the transfer point between LakeXpress (Lake County) and Lynx Bus (Orange County): Lynx, (first/last stop) Winter Garden Shopping Center (SR-50 & Park Ave), ☏ +1 407 244-0808. Lynx operates public transportation for the Greater Orlando Metropolitan area in Orange, Osceola, and Seminole Counties: $2/trip, $4.50/day pass. (updated Jun 2023) Link 25 Goes by the Greyhound Bus Station on 555 S John Young Pkwy. Passengers transfer between the 105 and the 25 bus along W Colonial Dr (SR-50) between Ferguson Dr and John Young Pkwy. Link 105 runs hourly from Orlando Lynx Central Station in downtown Orlando to W Colonial Dr (SR-50) & Park Ave at Winter Garden Shopping Center via West Oaks Mall. The route begins/ends at the Winter Garden Shopping Center at W Colonial (SR-50) and Park Ave. Link 812 NeighborLink (shuttle). Door to door service from Winter Garden Shopping Center, appointment required. Lynx does not operate cross-county services to Lake County in the west from Winter Garden.

Downtown is small enough to walk around.