Five Gateway Spots Your Preschooler Will Ask For All Summer

Gateway is built for kids! The neighborhood has its own parks, miles of paved trails, a community pool, and quick access to some of the best preschool-friendly attractions in Lee County. If you’re parenting a preschooler here, you’ve already noticed that summer days fill up fast, and the planning gets easier when you know which spots actually work for the under-five crowd.

This guide rounds up the local stops worth building your week around. A few are right inside Gateway’s master-planned community, and a couple are short drives that more than earn the gas money. Our own Camptastic summer camp runs right out of the Gateway campus too, with weekly themes and a structured weekday rhythm when you want one. Here’s a Gateway-summer game plan that mixes both.

Walk the Linear Park Trail Before the Heat Settles In

Linear Park is Gateway’s spine, with more than two miles of paved walking and biking trails winding through the community. For a preschooler, the win is a flat surface, no traffic, and enough shade in the right stretches to make a morning loop totally manageable. Bring a balance bike, a scooter, or just a stroller, and pick a section close to a parking spot you can use as your start and end point.

The trail also doubles as a quiet science walk if you slow down. Try asking, “Can you find three different leaves before we get to the next bench?” The answer turns into a small collection your preschooler can sort on the kitchen counter back home. Lee County summers are long. July temperatures hit the low 90s most afternoons and storms move in by late afternoon, so plan loops for early morning before the heat builds.

Camptastic Summer Camp at Our Gateway Campus

Once preschool wraps for the year, our Gateway campus rolls right into Camptastic, our summer camp built for preschool-age kids. Each week brings its own theme. Wonder Island leans into discovery and a Splash Spectacular water day.

Every day has hands-on activities and a special event tied to the theme, so your preschooler comes home with a story instead of a sticker chart. Spots fill up week by week. Register for Camptastic at our Gateway campus early to lock in the weeks you want.

Make Lakes Regional Park a Once-a-Week Tradition

Lakes Regional Park is a 279-acre Lee County park about 20 minutes from Gateway, and it’s the closest thing to a “you can spend the whole day here” option for preschool families! The big draw is the Railroad Museum of South Florida, where 1/8th-scale trains run on a 1.5-mile track around the lake. The ride takes you past four full-size operating grade-crossing signals, through a 100-foot tunnel with lights and sound, by a waterfall, and over a 24-foot trestle bridge. Train tickets are $5 for ages 6 and up; kids ages 1 to 5 ride free with a paid adult. Museum admission is free! The playgrounds, train ride, and lakeside picnic spots are all open, and the train alone is worth the drive. Park hours are 7 a.m. to dusk daily, and parking runs $1 per hour up to a $5 daily max.

Pull Locomotive by Brian Floca off the shelf the night after a Lakes Park visit. Floca’s Caldecott-winning illustrations of an 1869 cross-country train trip give your preschooler something to match against the details they spotted at the museum that morning.

Build the Day Around Gateway’s Own Community Spaces

Skip the drive when you want a slower morning. Gateway Fun Park sits at the end of Eagle Pointe Drive with a playground shaded by big oak trees, a basketball court, a sand volleyball court, picnic tables, and a BBQ grill, and the surrounding district maintains more than 15 miles of walking and biking trails plus a heated community pool that families can use through the summer. The pool has shaded seating around it, which matters way more than people realize when the sun comes up over an open deck at 10 a.m.

If your preschooler is in the climbing phase, the Gateway Fun Park playground gives them just enough challenge without pushing past what’s age-appropriate. Let your child try to explain which structure feels “big-kid” and which feels “little-kid.” That ability to self-assess is a real preschool skill that ties directly to confidence and safety!

Keep an Indoor Reset on the Calendar

Some afternoons just don’t work outdoors. Lee County summers bring near-daily rain showers and serious humidity, and your preschooler will hit a wall by 2 p.m. on the worst days. The IMAG History & Science Center on Cranford Avenue in downtown Fort Myers is one of the best indoor reset spots for the under-five crowd, with interactive exhibits, live animal encounters, and the kind of hands-on science play that ties directly into how preschoolers actually learn. The Calusa Nature Center and Planetarium over on Ortiz Avenue adds a butterfly aviary and short shaded trails if your kid needs a slower pace.

Either spot pairs well with a stop at the Lee County Public Library afterward. Borrow two or three picture books, head home for the afternoon nap, and your preschooler is set up for an easy late-afternoon hour at home! We love being part of how Gateway families build summer routines that actually work. At Creative World School in Gateway, our day runs on inquiry-based play in the Exploratorium™, our 3 E’s of Excellence™ curriculum (Education, Exploration, Enrichment), and the Cognia accreditation that backs all of it. Thinking about full-time, part-time, or a summer-into-fall transition? Schedule a tour at our Gateway campus. We can’t wait to meet you.