Charles Hosmer Morse Museum of American Art

Tiffany's chapel won medals at the 1893 Chicago fair. The museum describes a Byzantine-inspired interior of 1,082 square feet with 16 mosaic columns, a marble and white glass mosaic altar and a 1,000-pound, 10-by-8-foot electrified chandelier in the shape of a cross. After the fair it was installed at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York, then moved to Tiffany's Long Island estate, Laurelton Hall. It reopened to the public at the Morse in April 1999, after a two-year restoration: the first time it had been open since 1893. It is the reason to come.

The museum's audio tour has 27 stops. It begins in the Laurelton Hall introductory gallery and ends in the Tiffany Chapel, which is the order to follow. The museum also screens two short orientation films, of 13 and 11 minutes. Watch one before the chapel if you want the story behind it.

A wing of the museum is given to Laurelton Hall, Tiffany's Long Island country estate, which fire devastated in 1957. The museum holds art and architectural objects from the house, and the audio tour starts in its introductory gallery. It is a rare chance to see Tiffany's design for his own home rather than individual lamps.

The Tiffany holdings run from jewelry and pottery to paintings, art glass, leaded-glass windows and lamps, alongside other late 19th- and early 20th-century American art. New for the 2026 to 2027 season:

• Revolt in the Parlor: Escaping Victorian Taste, opening Tuesday, October 13, 2026.
• Party in the Garden, opening March 2, 2027.

The Morse has an unusually generous free schedule. For the 2026 to 2027 season, the museum lists:

• Free Friday evenings, 4 to 8 p.m. Holiday Fridays run November 27 to December 18, 2026. Spring Fridays run March 5 to April 30, 2027.
• Christmas in the Park: Thursday, December 3, 2026, 6:15 to 8:30 p.m., in Central Park across the street. The museum and the City of Winter Park display century-old Tiffany windows outdoors. This is the 48th year of the event.
• Easter weekend open house: free admission Friday, March 26, 2027 (9:30 a.m.–8 p.m., with music 5–8 p.m.), Saturday, March 27 (9:30 a.m.–4 p.m.) and Sunday, March 28 (1–4 p.m.).

The general visit page states the Friday policy as November to April, while the season announcement lists specific windows. January and February Fridays are not in either window for 2026 to 2027, so check the museum's calendar before planning a free January visit. Children under 12 are free every day.

The museum's own parking advice, checked September 22, 2026:

• A limited lot directly behind the museum, entered from Cole Avenue.
• Free parking on the first, fourth and fifth floors of the Park Place garage on Canton Avenue, across from the museum.
• Street parking along Park Avenue and on nearby side streets.

Winter Park's city map also marks free public parking in the lot beside the SunRail station on New York Avenue. The Winter Park SunRail station, on the west side of Central Park, is about a third of a mile (7 minutes) on foot from the museum.

By car it is about 5 miles from downtown Orlando, 15 miles from Universal and 24 miles from Disney Springs. Routing estimates put those at roughly 15, 30 and 40 minutes without traffic; I-4 at rush hour adds a lot.

The Morse sits at the north end of Park Avenue's shops and restaurants. Walk south through Central Park, take the hour-long Scenic Boat Tour ($20 adults) from the end of Morse Boulevard, and finish at Rollins College, where the Rollins Museum of Art is free. Our Winter Park and Park Avenue walk links these into a 2.5-mile route.

On Saturday mornings, the city's farmers market runs 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Central Park West Meadow. If you want a hotel in walking distance, The Alfond Inn is on New England Avenue, a few minutes' walk east of Park Avenue. For a museum pair on the same day, Leu Gardens is about 4 miles south, roughly 10 minutes by car.