After being slammed with finals and starting my part-time summer job, I was looking for something fun to do in my area. While trying to find an item in a store in the area, my mom discovered The Floral Escape exhibit at the Westfield Garden State Plaza mall- a bit of a drive, but definitely not too far out of the way. After looking into the photography-based experience, we decided it was a must-do and bought our tickets for a Thursday morning so it wouldn’t be too crowded.
When we got there, the mall was practically empty. Most of the stores had either just opened or were opening, and there were only two other parties with the same ticket time. My mom and I only had to wait a few minutes for the staff to finish cleaning and prepping everything before our tickets were scanned. The setup itself was quite practical- there were 5 scenes to take pictures in. The first family started at scene 1 and received 5-6 minutes for images before moving on to the next, and we were able to start as soon as they moved on. Once in the exhibit, you were also able to remove your mask for pictures. It didn’t feel too crowded or rushed, and there were even ring lights available for iPhone pictures (since I brought my DSLR, it didn’t find them too helpful).
All of the setups were so gorgeous. My personal favorites were the purple, peach, and blue areas since they made for the most incredible pictures. While the pink one was also pretty, the mall skylight located directly above it did cause a few lighting inconsistencies I wasn’t thrilled about. If you do plan on visiting, your outfit color is definitely something to keep in mind. I chose to wear a light blue dress which ended up working perfectly, but you don’t want to blend into any of the backgrounds!
Overall, though, I was so happy to visit The Floral Escape at Westfield Garden State Plaza! It was certainly worth the ticket price and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a fun outing that doesn’t take all day. The Floral Escape has another pop-up located outdoors in New York, and after seeing the setup in New Jersey, I’m sure it’s amazing for getting stunning images.
Have a terrific day,
