This park, with camping and cabins, offers activities from hiking to horseback riding to kayaking to biking.
I love the natural beauty and outdoor adventure in Florida, but I understand the allure of Disney.
Fortunately, we found the perfect place to combine the two.
My husband and I recently returned from three nights in Lake Louisa State Park while our daughter and her family splurged on a three-night Disney visit. Before and after, we were together, first in an Airbnb in Cocoa Beach, a one-hour drive from Orlando; then afterward, we met for a few hours hanging out at their Animal Kingdom Lodge pool before heading to the airport.
We weren’t alone in combining Lake Louisa and Disney.
Another couple we met while hiking on the beautiful trails was part of a family where some folks went to the theme parks and others stayed at the nature park. In the campground, we chatted with a young man folding up his tent. Turns out, he’s a server at the premier restaurant at Epcot. To cut down on his long drive, he camps at Lake Louisa periodically and commutes from there.
Lake Louisa State Park borders a wilderness
While it is a half hour from the Disney property — so close you can hear the Magic Kingdom fireworks at night — Lake Louisa is bordered on the west by the Green Swamp wilderness. The park is a terrain of rolling hills, oak trees draped in Spanish moss and lakes lined with cypress trees.
More than 100,000 acres of Green Swamp, located between Orlando and the Gulf, have been preserved as public land because it is a critical recharge area for the Floridian aquifer as well as the source of the Hillsborough, Withlacoochee, Ocklawaha, and Peace rivers.
As a result of all that undeveloped land, Lake Louisa State Park attracts wildlife including deer, bobcat, gopher tortoises, fox squirrel, bald eagles, osprey and, of course, alligators.
What makes Lake Louisa special?
- It’s hiker heaven. There are 20 miles of trails, with some offering big trees and shade. Other trails include former orange groves where you may see some fruit on the trees.
- The cabins at Lake Louisa State Park are large and comfortable. Because there are a lot of them, they are easier to book than most state parks cabins, particularly for weekdays.
- Campers will find the campground beautifully situated between two lakes. There are also luxury “glamping” site, equine camping and two hike-in primitive campsites.
- A small sandy beach gives you the option of taking a dip or wading. The water is so tannic it is almost red and the lake is lined with picturesque cypress trees.
- Kayaking and fishing is popular on the small lakes, where you can rent kayaks or paddleboards or bring your own. We found a hidden gem kayaking spot nearby too.
- Lake Louisa State Park is a great destination for bicyclists — both within in the park, where you can rent bikes, and at nearby Van Fleet Trail, a 29-mile rail trail, or the West Orange trail, a 22-mile trail a half hour north.
- The park concession offers horseback riding, a rare attraction at Florida State Parks.
- Even during a busy Spring Break week, the park felt remote and quiet.
Hiking and biking in Lake Louisa State Park
Lake Louisa State Park is perfect for hikers and bikers because there are more than 20 miles of trails that are also used by mountain bikes and equestrians.
There are also seven miles of paved roads with minimal traffic, and we saw many road bicyclists using them. You can rent bikes at the camp store at the Dixie Lake Picnic Area. For use on paved park roads only.
If you bring your own mountain bike, you can pedal on 20 miles of unpaved multi-use trails in the park.
We loved the variety of trails available in the park. Some trails climbed sandy hills and led to small round lakes with lily pads. Others went through beautiful cypress swamps.
We particularly enjoyed the trails that went through old citrus groves. On one February visit, the forest was decorated with brilliant orange fruit and we picked some tasty tangerines as a trail snack. Some of the trees had reverted to their root stock, the sour orange – and, boy, is that name accurate.
(If you’re interested in hiking in former citrus groves, take the trails around Hammond Lake and in the southeast corner of the park.)
On a foggy morning, the hiking trails along the centrally located Big Creek were magical, with Spanish moss hanging from live oak trees and a half-dozen deer leaping through the woods.
The beach at Lake Louisa State Park
The largest of a half dozen lakes in the park, Lake Louisa, is lined with picturesque cypress trees. It has a small beach with dark orange tannic water and very white sand.
We saw people swimming at the beach, apparently not put off by the sign that warned about potential alligators. There are no life guards.
There is a bath house, rest rooms, picnic tables and a playground at the beach area. Families will appreciate the Lake Louisa State Park playground, located near the beach.
An unusual state park treat: Horseback riding
Not many Florida State Parks have concessions for horseback riding, but Lake Louisa has a variety of equine options.
You can arrange horseback trail rides in the park, starting at $80 for a three-mile, one hour ride. Here’s information. The minimum age is 8. The horseback riding concession also offers riding lessons, both group and individual, as well as special events, such as date-night sunset trail rides followed by champagne, and early morning mimosa rides.
If you own a horse, this park also offers an equestrian primitive camp with five horse paddocks, fire rings, non-potable water supply, picnic tables, a pavilion, grills and a self-composting toilet. Equestrians may use 15 miles of the unpaved multi-use trails in the park.
Lake Louisa State Park cabins
The cabins in Lake Louisa are terrific — among the best in Florida state parks, and we’ve stayed in most of them. Each of the 17 cabins is located on a hill overlooking Dixie Lake. Each has a huge screen porch, perfect for watching sunsets over the lake.
What is also exceptional is that they have two bathrooms, making them suited for two families or two couples or a gathering. Maximum capacity is six people, using a sofa bed in the living room. Cabins have heat and air conditioning, ceiling fans and electric fireplaces.
Outside the cabins are fire pits with benches and a picnic table and a grill. There’s also a picnic table in the screened porch.
The cabins are well equipped with the exception of offering absolutely no toiletries and no hangers. (Bring your own bar of soap, dish lotion and paper towels.) Be aware: Not a deal-breaker, but the beds aren’t great and the lack of fitted sheets will give you new appreciation for this bedding innovation.
Here’s a plus: Because there are 17 cabins, Lake Louisa is one of the easiest of the state parks in which to find a reservation, even during peak season on weekdays. With the extra plumbing, these cabins are bit more costly but a definite bargain — $120 a night plus tax.
Lake Louisa State Park camping
There are 60 campsites, many suitable for large RVs. The campsites are situated between two lakes, with easy access to a fishing pier and hiking trails. A dump station is located between Dixie Loop and Sandhill Loop.
The campground has two accessible bathhouses and a small accessible pavilion.
Lake Louisa also has two primitive campsites, Wilderness Point and Pine Point. Both are tucked away in beautiful areas of the park. You must bring everything, including water.
Glamping at Lake Louisa
Glamping — the combo of glamour and camping — is a new feature in several state parks, and Lake Louisa now offers both “luxury tents” and “ecotents” via a concessionaire.
Luxury tents have queen size beds with linens, a heating and cooling unit, electricity, a coffee maker, a chandelier and other amenities. You can add two twin air mattresses for an additional fee. There’s a bathhouse with toilets and hot showers a short walk away. (Just a note here: The cabins in this park — with two bedrooms, two bathrooms and a huge screened porch — are less expensive than the glamping tents.)
Ecotents are located in a separate quieter location and do not offer an electrical connection. Here, the lighting is solar-powered and you are equipped with a single burner propane coffee station, a bottled water dispenser and one queen bed with linens.
You book these sites at the concessionaire’s glamping website rather than the state’s reservation website.
Kayaking at Lake Louisa and hidden-gem, Crooked River Preserve
One of the smaller lakes, Hammond Lake, is popular with kayakers, who can rent boats at the store in the campgrounds. Here are details. You can bring your own canoes or kayaks but they must be hand-carried to the water at the lakes.
We never loved paddling on lakes, but we found an excellent alternative nearby — Crooked River Preserve, about a 15 minute drive from Lake Louisa State Park. You can even arrange to borrow free kayaks or canoes from the Lake County Park Department to use on this scenic river.
The preserve is located at the northern end of Lake Louisa (outside the state park.) It’s a 63-acre site with a hiking trail, It includes the lovely Palatlakaha River, which flows between Lake Louisa to Lake Susan and on to Lake Minnehaha, if you choose.
If you bring your own kayak or canoe, the preserve has a good launch, parking and restrooms. To arrange for a free Lake County kayak, you must fill out an application and send in a $50 check, which is shredded after you return all the gear. Here’s information about borrowing the kayaks and canoes.
Tannins make the river’s water a dark coffee color, but it is clear and clean. There are water lilies, big oak trees plus twists and turns and an Old Florida feel. The river has a number of widely spaced houses and docks.
We paddled up to Lake Susan and crossed it to take a peek into Lake Minnehaha. On Lake Susan, there were several osprey nests with chicks making a ruckus as mom or dad swooped in from fishing trips with food. Without paddling into the lakes, the river itself is 1.5 miles long and can be done in an hour or two.
Lake Louisa State Park opened a few years after Disney World
The park was developed in the early 1970s from land that had been homesteads, citrus groves and cattle ranch lands. The land was purchased by the state in 1973 — just two years after Disney World debuted — and opened to the public as a state park in 1977.
In 1910, John and Louise Driggers Hammond settled the land around Lake Louisa. The homestead included their home, a turpentine still, sawmill, shingle mill, a combination school and church, commissary, workers cabin and cooperage. The family exported their goods using steamboats and barges across Lake Louisa.
In 1943, the Bronson family acquired some of the property and established orange groves and a cattle ranch.
Lake Louisa State Park; official website
7305 US-27
Clermont, FL 34714
352-394-3969
What’s near Lake Louisa State Park: Great bike trails
For bicyclists, the top place to suggest would be the Van Fleet State Trail which is only 25 minutes away. The Van Fleet State Trail is a paved rail trail that runs 29 miles through some of the most rural and undeveloped land you’ll find in Florida.
Also appealing for bicylists is a nearby historic town that is built around a bike trail. The West Orange Trail runs down the middle of main street in Winter Garden. Here’s more about visiting Winter Garden and staying in the Historic Edgewater Hotel, which caters to bicyclists.
These Florida Rambler stories cover other excellent places to hike, bike, camp, kayak and explore near the Van Fleet Trail.
Kayaking Blackwater Creek and Lake Norris: Florida Rambler
Smooth riding on the Seminole Wekiva Trail: Florida Rambler
Wekiva Falls: Fab spring and gateway to scenic river: Florida Rambler
Cool Camping near Orlando: Kelly Park/Rock Spring: Florida Rambler
