Mission San Luis

An incredible, authentic and enormous facility staffed by knowledgeable enthusiasts!

Beautiful living history museum! The council house, blacksmith shop, the friar and his church, etc. were all place and people to learn from. Characters in period costumes were delightful to talk to, so much to be learned. I look forward to returning here again!

I wish I could give more than 5 stars! I couldn’t be more impressed! We were going to be in Tallahassee for the weekend, and because we homeschool, decided to see if there were any educational events happening that we could include. I found the Mission listed on ‘events’ and decided we would check it out. I am so very glad we did.
We arrived at 2 in the afternoon and they close at 4. We were there past closing, but NO ONE tried pushing us off the grounds. The two ‘soldiers’ took the time to let our 9 year old girl hold some cannon balls and check out their armory.
The indoor museum and the short film were both impressive. Every member of the staff was inviting and made us feel welcome. The costumed actors were friendly, knowledgeable, and patient. At no time did we feel rushed through the area. We all learned a lot. We are currently studying Florida history before the Civil War and were able to learn a lot to bring back to our homeschool co-​op.
We all learned a great deal about the Appalachee and Spanish before the Civil War and enjoyed the relaxing time there.
The biggest advice I would give anyone, is allow more than 2 hours. If there is an event going on, you may want to add a LOT more time. It is certainly worth it.

Why don’t more people know about this fantastic place?! I had an afternoon to kill in Northern Florida, and drove to Tallahassee on a whim with no idea of what to do. It took some digging to find this place, even as this place screams «ME!!!» with its indigenous history, Spanish colonial past, etc.
We showed up at 3:40 and found out we’d have 20 minutes to check the place out. Not great, but this was my first and maybe last afternoon in Tallahassee so better to have a glimpse. And «glimpse» is an understatement — more like a «gawk» — when you see the massive council house. Without getting too much into it, this is an archaeologically correct reconstruction of the hall where the native Apalachee tribe held their functions, in a massive conical space with a big open-​center top. A costumed interpreter was there to provide brief info and answer questions, though we unfortunately kept our eye on the clock — I could’ve just soaked up the massiveness of the room twice as long as we stayed.
We skipped a few other exhibits due to prioritizing, missing the blacksmith shop among other things, to head back to the reconstructed Spanish fort. At 3:53 the gate inside the fort was still open, but the interpreter had already closed the doors to the actual structure was closed — which was okay, since we’ve seen Spanish forts before and at least had a notion of what they consist of.
On the way back we checked out the church, and as the friar and nun rang out the church bells they joined us inside. The lights in the church were out, giving off an interesting vibe in this very barn-​like Franciscan building, complete with a choir of bats singing in the darkness. A bit more clarity on the Spanish Catholic mission (so to speak) from them, which shows just how caring and great these people are. I mean, here we are barging in on a quiet day just before they’re closing, and still they’re enthusiastically doing their part. We talked with them right up until 4 and then had to make our way back to the entrance.
But when we got there, the lady who took our cash offered to screen the 13-​minute video for us as she was closing up — how thoughtful! So we got to watch it, and it was really put together well. It worked well as a recapitulation of everything we had just seen, and enhanced everything we had just seen on our brief excursion.
I’d think you really need about 90 minutes to 2 hours to really do justice here. We had little choice but to see what we could, and I’m glad we attempted it rather than move on — I learned a lot about the history of this area and the archaeologists who are preserving it for the benefits of us all.

For just $ 5, you can enjoy a wonderful, historical attraction in Tallahassee. It’s not large by any means, but still impressive nonetheless. The entire area was in good condition and curated quite well, with plans to continuously improve certain areas.
I was especially impressed by the indoor museum, located in the main building, and the reconstruction of an Apalachee Council House. We only ran into one person in period costume telling us stories, but I think it was because we were there towards the end of the day.
There was a wedding rehearsal while we were there, and I can imagine that this would be a great space for such an event.
There are lots of great photo ops, and I imagine also a perfect place for families with young children to explore together.

Beautiful spot for a venue. The grounds are very pretty.

Love the dog park here. Wish it was a little cleaner though. it can get muddy after it rains (and everyone knows it rains a lot in tally)

This really is a fun place for children and adults alike, particularly when there is a «living history» event going on, such as the «Muster» event that I attended.
The Mission San Luis is reconstruction of a 17^th Century Spanish mission that was occupied for about 50 years and was a place of meeting for the Spanish and Apalachee people. There are a number of buildings to tour on the property, and the surrounding trees and tranquility make it easy to forget you are in the middle of Tallahassee.
First you enter the visitor’s center, which includes a number of multi-​use rooms for rent (events, weddings, etc.), a gift shop, the ticket counter ($ 5 for adults with discounts for military, seniors, children, but not college students), and a large room that features the static exhibits — pretty standard museum fare, large displays about various bits of the site’s history, with the text in both English and Spanish, as well as some original and replica items recovered during archaeological digs.
Our visit was on a Saturday with a special living history event, so when we left the visitor’s center there were several canopy tents set up selling lunch, ice cream, etc. Then came a large traditional Apalachee dwelling (I’m talking REALLY big) that was not accessible but we were told they were repairing the structure and it will be a part of the self-​guided tour again at some point in the near future.
There were many volunteers in period dress, all very nice and informative, demonstrating various techniques used at the Mission. Some of these included: a demonstration of a native drink, a cookfire, a demonstration of the use of spears with atlatl, an opportunity to try out the use of a bow at a little range (including the kiddies) and demonstration of musketry at the fort at the rear of the compound. During our visit, the big finale of the day’s demonstration was the firing of a cannon. I’ve seen a good number of cannon demonstrations in my day, but it’s still always a fun experience.
Other buildings include the Friary, the church (which appeared to have a rat/​bat problem near the Confessional, but was still a cool spot), and a period kitchen complete with oven.
In short, this a really fun place. One of the most fun history-​oriented experiences to be had in Tallahassee, right up there with the Museum of Florida History downtown — a must see for locals and history-​buff visitors.

This is a hidden gem amid the hustle and bustle of Tennessee Street. The renactors do a wonderful job of engaging visitors and explaining what life was like for those that lived there more than 300 hundred years ago. The welcome center’s exhibits contained fascinating artifacts from the site. it’s also just a beautiful place to walk around and enjoy the atmosphere. This is a must-​see for out-​of-​town visitors.

Good for adults interested in history and for children the costumed docents provide a good living history. Nice place! Terrific historical site. Costumed docents were very enthusiastic and knowledgable. I am also surprised that more reviews have not been posted for this hidden gem. Florida needs to promote their historical sites more. Some of us are interested in more than golf, beaches and Disney. The previous reviewers have done a great job of characterizing the mission and its offerings.

Reconstruction of a Spanish mission that was first built on this site in 1643, a place where the Spaniards interacted with the local Appalachee Indians. (via missionary activities and trade.) A fascinating attraction for anyone at all interested in history, archaeology, or Native American life (this was a mission for local Appalacheee Indians). The original structures were all burned down by the Spanish in 1704 to avoid capture by the British, but the reconstructions seem quite good. A quite detailed exhibit in the welcome center at the front explains all the archaeological work that went into them, and there is also a film shown there which explains the history of the site in great detail. Museum exhibits are bilingual (English and Spanish). The exhibits do a good job of conveying what daily life was like for the Apalachee Indian and Spanish inhabitants of the area. There is a quite nice but short nature trail here, which leads through a mixed hardwood and pine hammock down into a ravine with some natural springs (which were used by the Spanish and Apalachee Indians who were the users of this mission complex.) It involves some relatively «steep» climbing (by Florida standards, not at all by the standards of New Mexico, where I lived before here!) Look for the red Yaupon Holly berries along the trail, the Apalachee used this to make a tea, as it contains caffeine. Even if you don’t care that much about the historical aspects, this is a very nice, tranquil place to walk around on a sunny day. Admission is $ 5 a person, which seems like a bargain given that there is quite a bit to see here.

I can’t believe no one has reviewed this place yet.
The Mission is PHENOMENAL. The place is really done well. The accuracy is amazing. The rebuilt area is dead on and wonderfully done. The welcome center seems pretty new and has great display areas. They also have an archaeology lab that opens once and a while for a tour.
On the grounds, they have period tour guides showing you what went on in that location. They also gave historical information about the Apalachee and Spanish.
We got there at park open, 10:00, and waited for our group tour to begin. It started with a 12 minute film, then we wen outside for the walking tour.
I will update more later, but this place is great!