One of the most historic and important national parks of the world is Freedom Park in Lagos, Nigeria that holds its important for a number of reasons.
We are bringing you all the information you will need to have before you decided to visit the Freedom Park Lagos; gate fee, opening hours, and events in the park.
Park has a very deep and touchy history.
It was initially used as a prison facility in the colonial era by the British government.
It was initially named as Her Majesty’s Broad Street Prison.
Was used to keep the high ticket prisoners at the island so that they remain locked at this place.
It was renamed as the Freedom Park by the Nigerian government in the 1990s.
Now it serves as the National Heritage, recreational, cultural, artistic, and enjoyment facility.
It is considered as one of the highly demanded tourist attractions in Nigeria.
Brief History of Freedom Park
After Britain declared Lagos a colonial territory in 1861, it was used by the British government as the prisoner facility.
Unlike usual prison facilities, this used to be a comparatively better and expensive facility for the prisoners.
Famed Nigerian Nationalists like Herbert Macaulay and Obafemi Awolowo were a part of this Broad Street Prison.
The British government used to spend a lot of resources and finances to keep this prisoner facility running.
RELATED: Top 10 Beautiful States in Nigeria
After the independence of Lagos from the British government, the Broad Street Prison facility was discontinued in 1979.
Later on was converted into a recreational place and renamed as the Freedom Park in Lagos by the Nigerian government.
The Nigerian government invested in this location to preserve its national and historical importance to convert it into one of the highly demanded tourist attractions in Nigeria after the 1990s.
Freedom Park Address
Freedom Park is situated in the middle of downtown Lagos in Lagos Island.
The exact address of Freedom Park is Old Prison Ground Broad Street, Lagos Island, Lagos, Nigeria.
Freedom Park Lagos Gate Fee:
The Gate Fee of Freedom Park Lagos is N200.
This small fee lets you enter the amazing world of fun and amusement.
The majority of the events at Freedom Park are free of cost where you can enjoy and experience a variety of fun-filled spheres.
It has open-air stages, museums, catchy sites, green belts, and attractive picnic spots.
There are some of the paid activities as well.
For enjoying exclusive events and places in this park that we will discuss later in this article.
Events at Freedom Park Lagos
Park is opened every day from 11 am to 11 pm, except Sunday where the opening hours are from 2 pm to 11 pm.
Freedom Park is a host of a variety of events around the year.
It just depends upon the time of year that determines what events can be expected to happen in Freedom Park.
The common events include Independence Day events, concerts, live shows and performances, musical nights, and spring festivals, etc.
Religious events like Christmas and Easter celebrations are also a part of the Freedom Park.
People also use Freedom Park to celebrate their own events like birthdays and anniversaries.
To enjoy the ambiance of the place along with the open atmosphere that adds beauty to their events.
Things to do in Freedom Park
There are a variety of things to do while you are at an amazing Freedom Park in Lagos.
As you are now aware of its historical background of being a prison, you must be striving to explore the cells where the inmates used to be kept.
There are small cells for the prisoners and it is said that the British government used to keep two prisoners in one cell also.
You can relate to the prisoners like Herbert Macaulay who are treated as national heroes for their struggle to make Nigeria a free and independent state.
They used to be kept here by the British government to suppress their voices for freedom and democracy.
You can buy some amazing artistic stuff and accessories form the shops in Freedom Park.
It has a lot of shops that offer Nigerian cultural accessories to visitors.
There are some of the amazing rings, purses, jewelry, and other ornaments that you would love.
RELATED: 15 Top Tourist Attractions in Nigeria
There are lakes on the sides and the middle of the Freedom Park that offer great picnic and lunch spots for the visitors.
You can find a variety of sculptures in Freedom Park and you can always capture them in your cameras o have photos with them.
The beautiful and well-maintained grassy parks offer great sitting and playing experiences for you and your families.
You can go to restaurants and enjoy a variety of cultural and modern foods in Freedom Park.
The setup and the infrastructure of the restaurants are worth visiting and the quality of the food is also awesome.
It just depends upon the choice and kind of food that you like.
A good mix of traditional, local, Western, and Chinese foods are available in the restaurants in Freedom Park.
You shouldn’t missed
You can see the stages where concerts and shows are performed to amuse the audience.
One of the most interesting and attention-grabbing parts of the Freedom Park Lagos is its human sculptures that are made up of rock and stones.
People love making selfies and photos with them to post on their social media accounts.
That gain substantial engagement form their circle.
You would love to meet the dummies of the drummers and other mixes of different sculptures.
That describe the ancient history of dishwashing, cloth washing, drum beating in ancient times when no facilities were available.
You can explore more of the ancient stuff by visiting the museums in Freedom Park.
Museums contain ancient sculptures, pots, clothes, and other belongings that you would love to explore.
Important notice to the visitors who intend to visit the Freedom Park for the first time!
Visitors must try to visit Park on weekdays because the museums are usually closed on weekends.
Summary:
Freedom Park in Lagos is one of the most intriguing places to be visited in many ways.
The park has so much to offer.
That is thoroughly impossible to ignore this place while you are near the Lagos Island.
