Summer camp options abound in and around Cape Coral
Summer camps in Cape Coral and throughout Lee County are now accepting registrations.
This year, the city’s Parks and Recreation Department is offering a mix of options for all ages and interests at nearly a dozen of facilities. There is everything from traditional camps, to speciality camps that focus on fashion design, nature and fine arts, along with tennis, kayaking and paddleboarding.
“We have a wide variety of camps, everything from ages 3 to 15,” Michelle Dean, spokeswoman for the Cape Coral Parks and Recreation Department, said. “From pre-school, to youths and teens.”
The traditional camps consist of guest speakers, field trips, arts and crafts, and such.
“A lot of those have a different theme each week,” she said.
The camps often feature weekly themes, like at the Cape Coral Arts Studio.
“So there’ll be a lot of variety,” Dean said. “It won’t be the same thing each week.”
Last summer, the department implemented of a variation of its traditional camp, calling it the Staycation Camp. Offered at a lower cost than the traditional ones, it does not include field trips.
“It’s a non-traveling camp,” she said. “It was very popular.”
Some of speciality camps include the Eco-Adventure Nature Camp, Fine Arts for Kids Camp, Jr. Lifeguard Camp, Camp Neptune, Beach Buddies Exploration and Splash-ca-teer Camp.
“There’s really a lot of different opportunities that families can take advantage of,” Dean said.
A new option this summer is the Dress Like A Diva Design Camp offered at Lake Kennedy Center.
“The participants learn from a master tailor how to design clothes,” she said.
Open to ages 12-15, the campers will host a fashion show at the end.
Some of the speciality camps also feature weekly themes.
“But some of them are not offered every single week, so check out the guide,” Dean said.
The least expensive camps available include the Kids Tennis Camp Programs at the Cape Coral Yacht Club and the Staycation Camp, as compared to the Super Science Camps at Four Freedoms Park.
Families can stick with one camp all summer, or pick the weeks a la carte for their children.
“Everything is done on a weekly basis,” she said.
Last summer, the department averaged 677 participants per week over 11 weeks.
To view the city’s “Summer Camps 2016” guide, visit online at: www.CapeParks.com.
Guides are also available at City Hall and the recreation centers.
Camp registrations can be completed online or by calling the host facility.
For more information on a specific camp, contact the host facility.
Other options to keep Cape youth busy the next few months include Cultural Park Theatre’s Summer Camp and the Cape Coral Art League’s Kids Summer Art Camp and High School Student Classes.
Open to ages 7-15, theater camp attendees will learn about musical theater in a non-competitive environment, then show off their new skills in a performance. The themes for each two-week session will include When Bonnie Met Clyde, Minion Muse-ical, The Blues Sisters and Inspector Fidget.
The cost for each session is $240.
Over at the art league, the Kids Summer Art Camp features two four-day camps and three five-day camps. The cost is $150 per week for the four-day camps and $175 per week for the five-day.
The themes for the four-day camps include Under The Sea and Fantastic Florida, while the themes for the five-day camps will be Art Around the World, Destination Imagination and Our Animal Friends.
The league also offers Summer High School Student Classes on July 5, 12, 19 and 26.
The course involves a focus on drawing techniques, color design, mixing and composition, with an emphasis on developing a student’s basic drawing skills, color mixing and overall design composition. Participating students are encouraged to bring their own materials and subject of interest to work on.
The cost is $25 for the four-week session; limit of 12 students per class.
For information, visit: www.capecoralartleague.org or call (239) 772-5657.
Lee County also offers a variety of summer camp programs to help make the summer fun, including traditional, teen, specialty and special needs camps. Many campsites fill quickly, so register early.
Families who plan to register for camp at one of the mega-recreation centers – Wa-Ke Hatchee, Estero, North Fort Myers or Veterans Park – need to obtain a family membership first. The county’s Parks and Recreation Department offers $5 off for registering at least two weeks before a session.
Visit online at: www.leegov.com/parks/programs/summer or call (239) 533-7440.
Across the river, Florida Repertory Theatre is featuring its Camp Florida Rep and Camp Mini-Stars, while the Lee County Alliance for the Arts is offering its Annual Summer Arts Camp for the 28th year.
Camp Florida Rep is a theater-intensive summer camp for first-grade through 12th-grade students. Campers attend classes in music, dance, drama and art to produce a full musical at each session’s end.
Camp Mini-Stars is for kindergarteners through third-graders. Campers use their imagination and work on scenes, songs, choreography and art, which culminates in an informal presentation on the last day.
For more information, visit: floridarepeducation.org or contact (239) 332-4488.
The alliance’s 28th Annual Summer Arts Camp consists of eight weeks of hands-on instruction with activities following a different theme each week. It is for first-grade through sixth-grade students.
There are “Minis” Arts Camp available for children ages 4-5.
The Lee County Alliance for the Arts also offers its Musical Theatre Intensive Camp, which involves a partnership with the Broadway Palm Dinner Theatre. It is open to six-graders through 12th-graders.
For more information, visit: www.artinlee.org or contact (239) 939-2787.