A Virtual Celebration of Thomas Edison’s 174th Birthday

This year, Edison and Ford Winter Estates is celebrating Thomas Edison’s 174th birthday virtually! The virtual birthday party will start on Facebook at 10 a.m. Additional videos will be launched throughout the day. Friends will be able to watch the videos at their convenience. As part of the celebration, students from the Edison Park Creative and Expressive Arts School will sing, dance and play stringed instruments as they usually do, but this year, they will perform at their school and a recording will be shown on Facebook for all Thomas Edison fans.

The birthday party is sponsored in part by the Edison Pageant of Light, the organization founded in 1938 to memorialize Thomas Edison.

Edison Ford Holiday Hours

December 24, open 9am to 9pm
December 25, CLOSED
December 26 – January 3, open 9am to 9pm
Regular hours (9am – 4:30pm) resume beginning on January 4
The homes and gardens are decorated with thousands of lights for Holiday Nights at Edison and Ford Winter Estates.

Annual Edison Ford Garden Festival

Come visit the Estates on the east side of the property where you will see amazing plants and related garden items for sale from vendors coming from all over Florida. Food, refreshments, and music will also be on-hand.

Admission and parking for the garden festival are free of charge (does not include admission to the historic homes and estates or museum and lab).

Click for event flyer.

Holiday Nights Tree Lighting Ceremony

On Friday, November 27, Edison and Ford Winter Estates will kick off the 45th Holiday Nights celebration with the annual tree lighting ceremony. The event will offer visitors an impressive light show with several new displays. This year’s theme is “Sounds of the Season” and will incorporate musical elements. The American Sirens will perform a jazzy 1920s medley. The event is sponsored by FPL, Sanibel Captiva Community Bank, and Sunbelt Rentals.

The annual tree lighting will take place at the base of the historic Mysore Fig, on the Henry Ford property. The tree will be lit with thousands of animated lights choreographed to holiday music. The lights will reach high up into the branches of the tree and extend onto the ground around it. The Ford property offers ample room for visitors to spread out and social distance.

Holiday Nights tickets for adults are $20, teens (13-19) $10, children (6-12) are $2 and Edison Ford members get in free. Guided Holiday Tradition Tours are $30 for adults, teens are $25, children $18 and $10 for Edison Ford members. Inside-the-Homes Holiday Tours are $50. Lee County residents with identification will receive $5 off Holiday Nights admission on Monday nights.

Veterans Day: Discounted Admission for Veterans

November 11

We’ll be open regular hours, 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Veteran’s Day. Come stroll the gardens and see what’s blooming!
Veterans with ID (VA identification card or DD214 papers) will receive $5 off admission. Discount good for veterans only.

Garden Festival

Join us for the biggest plant sale of the year! Sponsored by Best Value and Humana, the festival will also feature food trucks and live music. More than 40 garden vendors from around the state of Florida will have many types of plants and trees, including palms, fruit trees, bromeliads, hibiscus, butterfly plants, African violets, orchids, air plants, herbs, succulents, cacti and many hard-to-find species. Vendors will also offer garden supplies, such as mulch and special fertilizers. The Edison Garden Shoppe will be open and have unusual tropical and Florida native plants that thrive in Southwest Florida. Ceramic flower pots, vegetable and flower seeds, garden art, and gardening gift items will also be available for purchase. A limited number of carts will be available, so guests are encouraged to bring a cart or wagon
for transporting plants. A designated plant holding tent and loading spot will be offered for anyone needing assistance.

Parking and admission to the festival is free (tours of the homes, museum and lab are not included).

CANCELLED — Vintage Base Ball at Terry Park – Hosted by Edison Ford

Please note: This event has been cancelled.

Edison Ford presents a living history exhibition of vintage base ball in a small tournament format with four teams playing four consecutive games by 1860s rules. Players will wear vintage uniforms, no gloves,

Thomas Edison, at bat, with Philadelphia Athletics’ owner and manager Connie Mack, in Fort Myers, 1927

and use wood bats and lemon peel baseballs. Games will be played at historic Terry Park in Fort Myers – a site with more than 100 years of baseball history. Spectators can complete their spring training journey by experiencing the origins of an American pastime, featuring the Fort Myers Vagabonds, the Central Florida Awkwards, Akron Black Sox, and the Chicago Salmon with commentary from the Boss Lady.

Purchase tickets online or the ticket counter at Edison and Ford Winter Estates. Adults: $5; Kids 18 and under get in free; and FGCU students with ID get in free. Gates open at 9:30, first pitch is at 10:00.

Holiday Hours: December 31-January 1

Holiday Schedule:

Tuesday, December 31 – Wednesday January 1 – Open 9:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.
Thursday, January 2 – Friday January 3 – Open 9:00 a.m. – 9:00 p.m. (final nights of our annual Holiday Nights event)

We will resume our regular schedule from 9:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. seven days a week on Saturday, January 4. We wish you a very happy and prosperous 2020.

Climb the Historic Banyan Tree

Don’t miss a truly one-of-a-kind experience for ages 6 and up!

This fun and challenging adventure is designed to help climbers learn about themselves, others and the environment. Training and equipment provided by Pathfinder Outdoor Education. Climbers will register for a 45 minute session.

Advance registration is required. Members: $35, non-members: $45 (Does not include a tour or admission to the historic property).

Takes place during Edison Ford Kids’ Garden Adventure, a free event featuring unique botanical art, kid-friendly garden vendors, green science interactives, wellness activities, activities with bees, local animals, food and beverages, and more!