Friendship Fountain Visitor Guide, Jacksonville, Florida

Friendship Fountain in St. Johns River Park flows from 8:00 a.m. to 10 p.m. every day, with light and water shows at 7:00, 8:00 and 9:00 p.m. nightly (City of Jacksonville JaxParks).

The fountain running today is a rebuild. The City of Jacksonville reopened the new Friendship Fountain in February 2024 with a waterfall wall and nightly choreographed light shows (City of Jacksonville I Dig Jax).

Friendship Fountain is at 1015 Museum Circle, Jacksonville, FL 32207, inside St. Johns River Park on the south bank of the St. Johns River just west of Main Street (JaxParks).

On foot, the park provides access to the Southbank Riverwalk, which opened in 1985 (JaxParks). The city lists the Riverwalk at 1001 Museum Circle, open 24/7, and describes it as a 1 1/4 mile concrete boardwalk bordering the St. Johns River (JaxParks Southbank Riverwalk).

Walkers crossing from the Northbank face a detour. Beginning August 24, 2026, the Riverfront Plaza Main Street Bridge Nub Removal project closes the pedestrian walkway along the southbound side of the bridge and narrows southbound traffic toward Riverplace Boulevard to one lane, with completion anticipated January 30, 2027 (City of Jacksonville). The city tells pedestrians to follow the posted sidewalk detour signs, and northbound traffic stays open with two lanes throughout the project.

The JTA Skyway is free and stops on the Southbank at San Marco Station, at Mary St. and San Marco Blvd., and at Riverplace and Kings Avenue stations (Jacksonville Transportation Authority). Two limits matter for a fountain trip: the Skyway runs Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., with weekends only for special events, so regular service ends at 7 p.m., the time of the first nightly show, and JTA has posted that Skyway operations will pause on November 2, 2026.

JTA describes the Skyway as a 2.5 mile elevated monorail, with trains every 4 minutes in peak hours, 7 to 9 a.m. and 4 to 7 p.m., and every 8 minutes off peak. It allows extended hours for special events downtown, such as July 4th or New Year's Eve, and posts those hours on its website and social media (JTA).

The City of Jacksonville lists car parking among the amenities at St. Johns River Park, the Friendship Fountain grounds on Museum Circle (JaxParks).

JTA says the Skyway station at Kings Avenue, at Kings Ave. and Nira St., offers inexpensive Park-n-Ride facilities for commuters and visitors, with monthly passes and metered parking handled by Elite Parking (JTA).

Among the city-owned downtown garages, the Water Street Garage at 541 Water St., between Broad and Pearl streets, is open 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, with event parking at $10 to $20 as needed (City of Jacksonville Office of Public Parking). Those weekday hours end at 7 p.m., when the first nightly fountain show begins.

St. Johns River Park, also known as Friendship Park, has a playground that opened in April 2025, picnic tables, benches, a scenic overlook and access to the Southbank Riverwalk (JaxParks).

More is coming to the Friendship Fountain grounds. The city's project page says the rest of St. Johns River Park is themed around exploring the St. Johns River, with a history themed play park, restrooms, a wedding venue, picnic areas and interpretive gardens (City of Jacksonville).

Neighbors on the old park land include the Museum of Science and History and a restaurant with its own marina, and the Jacksonville Maritime Museum is on the Riverwalk, adjacent to the northeast corner of the park (JaxParks). The Southbank Riverwalk lists restrooms and a nonmotorized launch; its adaptive kayak launch, finished in March 2020, is recommended only for experienced, strong paddlers because of the downtown current (JaxParks).

The JaxParks listing for St. Johns River Park also names a drinking fountain, security lighting, trash barrels and wheelchair access among its amenities. The Southbank Riverwalk, which the city places directly opposite the area where the Jacksonville Landing was, lists a boat dock, a hiking trail, picnic tables, a restaurant and accessible amenities (JaxParks Southbank Riverwalk).

Friendship Fountain dates to 1965: when St. Johns River Park opened that year, the fountain was the world's largest and tallest, capable of spraying 17,000 gallons of water a minute to a height of 120 feet (JaxParks).

It was named at the suggestion of a Rotary Club member, because friendship is one of the club's cardinal principles, and colored lights at night soon made the Southbank fountain a tourist stop (JaxParks).

The fountain running today is the city's rebuild. The City of Jacksonville opened the new Friendship Fountain in February 2024 with a waterfall wall and nightly choreographed light shows, and its I Dig Jax page lists the rest of St. Johns River Park as still under construction (City of Jacksonville I Dig Jax).

Three changes affect a Friendship Fountain visit in late 2026: the Main Street Bridge walkway closure and the still unfinished park buildings, both listed by the City of Jacksonville, and the Skyway pause posted by the Jacksonville Transportation Authority.

The city's own status line is out of date. As checked on October 15, 2026, the I Dig Jax page still lists St. Johns River Park as under construction and says the playground is complete, restrooms and pavilions are in progress, and completion is expected in spring 2026, a date that has passed (City of Jacksonville).

The Museum of Science and History, which occupies part of the original park property, has a relocation underway. The city's Riverwalk timeline lists a Relocated MOSH Site on the Northbank, where Riverwalk improvements are expected around the museum's revised opening date of January 30, 2029 (City of Jacksonville).

Last verified: October 15, 2026, on the City of Jacksonville and Jacksonville Transportation Authority websites.