Orlando is a great starting and ending point for any southern Florida adventures. Southwest Airlines is our preferred airline for flights within the United States, especially since the two free checked bags per person allows us the extra room to pack camping supplies. This time, we decided against camping. However, I will mention a place that we considered later on that offers a truly unique camping experience. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Since this itinerary follows a clockwise road-trip-style route, a rental car is a must. We booked online to find the best rates<\/a>. Often when traveling, you might save a few bucks by renting a car from the nearest downtown agency and taking public transit from the airport to pick it up. In Orlando, however, going the extra mile doesn\u2019t make a difference, so you might as well save yourself the hassle and grab a rental right from the airport. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Also, what follows is our personal experience based on our route through Southern Florida. No doubt, Florida offers plenty of road trip options<\/a> that cover every part of the state. So you can hit up the beaches, the parks, and everything in between if you like.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After months of winter chill and gray, barren trees, it was\na technicolor shock to drive out of the airport. Thick, green grass and flowers\ngalore\u2014we were definitely not in Pennsylvania anymore. First on our list was to\nget our National Parks passports stamped at Canaveral National Seashore. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The Apollo Visitor Center<\/a> for the seashore is about an hour and 22 minutes northwest of Orlando. The best part of the seashore, however, is a six-mile scenic drive abundant with birds and wildlife. The entry point for this Black Point Wildlife Drive is less than an hour from Orlando International Airport. There are a few things to see up in the Apollo Visitor Center area; however, this scenic drive is the true gem of the seashore, and it may just be worth skipping the extra drive to the Visitor Center if you\u2019re short on time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n We actually spent much more time than we thought we would at the National Seashore. Though the scenic drive is only six miles, an hour or two flew on by as we marveled at the strange birds you don\u2019t often see in the northeastern U.S.\u2014White Egrets, Roseate Spoonbills, Wood Storks, and more! At the beginning of the drive there is a self-guided trail map, as well as a $10 fee per vehicle on the honor system. It is well worth it. All in all, we spent a good few hours at the seashore and even saw some of our first Florida gators!<\/p>\n\n\n\n And if you need a place to stay, check out all of the options on the Space Coast, including these Cocoa Beach airbnbs<\/a> or these Satellite Beach vacation rentals<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Since we did spend more than our allotted time at the National Seashore, that meant we had to cut things short at our next destination\u2014the Kennedy Space Center. Unfortunately, we only just missed the final tour of the day to the Cape Canaveral launch pad where you can see unique spacecraft like the Saturn V, which was the largest rocket ever flown, as well as other history, artifacts, and technologies important to lunar exploration. (You can get tickets and book tours here<\/a>.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n We were; however, able to spend a good amount of time exploring\nthe Space Shuttle Atlantis, one of the first space shuttles designed to make\nmultiple trips into space. All-in-all the Atlantis flew 33 missions until its\nlast flight in July 2011. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Other attractions of the Kennedy Space Center include the\nU.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame, Astronaut Encounter, Astronaut Training and Launch\nSimulators, IMAX theatre, gift shops, and more!<\/p>\n\n\n\n While the state is a whopping 65,755 square miles total, you are never more than 60 miles from the ocean. It\u2019s no surprise then that one of Florida\u2019s National Parks is actually 95% water. Biscayne National Park<\/a> encompasses coral reefs, islands, and shoreline mangrove forest in the northern Florida Keys just off of Florida\u2019s southeastern coast. <\/p>\n\n\n\n For the more experienced water-treaders, the park has several paddling trail guides for exploring the waters and wildlife of Biscayne, as well as fishing and boating opportunities. The park also offers several guided tours from shipwreck snorkeling to nearby key excursions, like the one we took to Boca Chita Key, which was once a regular destination for the Honeywell family and Florida\u2019s elite. And here is a list of even more things to do in Biscayne National Park<\/a> if you plan to spend more time there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Dante Fascell Visitor Center also has some educational\ndisplays and a film about the National Park. You can book tours from the small\nshop next door, which also sells some of the essentials for a day on the water,\nas well as souvenirs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n *Note: one way to get\nto the visitor center hub is to drive through miles of coconut farm. Keep your\neyes peeled for a roadside stand where a local farmer will machete a coconut open\nfor you to drink right out of! While you\u2019re there you can also pick up some\nnice juicy mangoes and other tropical fruits. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n After Biscayne, our plan was to make our way down to Key West. I know, what about Miami? While I can appreciate the culture of a city like Miami, we decided to pass through on this particular trip. If you decide to spend some time in the city, check out our guide and travel costs here<\/a> or places to stay in Miami Beach here<\/a>. Another neat attraction we only just drove past on our way out of Biscayne was the Homestead-Miami Speedway, so if you\u2019re a race car enthusiast, I\u2019m sure that\u2019s another great stop to check out. <\/p>\n\n\n\n But, onwards to Key West! <\/p>\n\n\n\n It takes about three hours to drive from Biscayne down to Key West without any stops. On the way down you\u2019ll see some fun tourist traps, especially through Islamorada, like Wahoo\u2019s Bar & Grill<\/a>, and other eye-catchers like a giant conch or oversized shrimp to draw you into one place or another. Past this tourist stretch are some residential areas, where manatee and dolphin mailboxes seem to be the latest fad. <\/p>\n\n\n\n One interesting bit of history you might see as you pass through the lower keys is the abandoned Bahia Honda Rail Bridge (part of the Bahia Honda State Park<\/a>). Originally part of the Overseas Railway, the bridge was eventually converted for automobile traffic, and later replaced by a four-lane bridge a few hundred yards north of the old bridge. Today, parts of the bridge are open to pedestrians, though a large part stands in disrepair. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Eventually, you\u2019ll find yourself entering Key West. As a major tourist destination, Key West is a place that needs to be booked far in advance to make the best of your budget. (You can book the cheapest places here<\/a>.) We booked a bit later, but found a reasonable deal at the Conch House Heritage Inn<\/a> in their Casa Cabana\u2014a ham radio shack, turned pool house, turned private cabana. And even more cute and affordable places to stay for couples in Key West can be found here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Key West itself is very much a Margaritaville, and was, in\nfact, a part of the inspiration for the song. Beyond wasting the day away in\nthe bubble of bars and live and music, there are some interesting attractions\npeppered throughout the bustle. You can visit Harry S. Truman\u2019s Little White\nHouse where the U.S. President spent his winters, or stand at the iconic buoy\nmarking the southernmost point of the continental U.S., 90 miles to Cuba. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Even the cemetery is a neat place to explore with a unique variety of tombstones and mausoleums, funny last words, historical figures, and wild lizards. If you\u2019re lucky you might even see an iguana lurking about. Also keep your eyes peeled for \u201cI told you I was sick\u201d and \u201cI\u2019m just resting my eyes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n See activities for Key West here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n *Note: Key West is not\nknown for its beaches. Some of the best Florida beaches are on its west coast.\nWe\u2019ll get to that later.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n *Also note: Another of Florida\u2019s National Parks is accessible from Key West: Dry Tortugas National Park. Located about 70 miles west of Key West, the only way to reach this park is <\/em>by ferry from Key West<\/a>. Highlights include a historic fort, remote natural beauty, wildlife, beaches, coral reefs, campgrounds, and a variety of activities both in and out of the water. Since we only had one week set aside for this trip, the Dry Tortugas were another stop we decided to set aside for next time. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Unfortunately, if you\u2019re driving, the only way out of Key West is back the way you came. So three hours we went, back through the Florida Keys all the way to Homestead near Miami. Starting bright and early the next day, we made our way towards the Ernest F. Coe Visitors Center\u2014the gateway to the southern portion of Everglades National Park<\/a>. From here we grabbed a park map, stamped our passports, and got some tips from a park ranger on what to fit in a day of exploring the Everglades. After all, visiting this iconic and unique Florida destination full of alligators, gorgeous birds, and fascinating landscapes is definitely one of the best things to do in Florida, and we couldn’t miss the opportunity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The first must-do of the Everglades is the Anhinga Trail,\njust a few minutes from the Ernest F. Coe Visitor Center. Beginning at the Royal Palm Visitor Center, the\ntrail is a paved walkway and a boardwalk over Taylor Slough, a freshwater\nsawgrass marsh. While the trail is less than a mile round-trip, it is teeming\nwith wildlife\u2014alligators, turtles, anhingas, herons, egrets, and many other\nbirds, especially in the winter. Also nearby is the Gumbo Limbo Trail, which is\nhalf as long as the Anhinga Trail, but offers a nice shady alternative with\nsome interesting signage on the local plant life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For the history buffs, you can even visit an old Nike\nmissile base and the last Nike Hercules Missile to defend the Continental U.S.\nThe complex is down a side road near the Royal Palm area. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Once you\u2019ve explored all there is to see in the Royal Palm\ngeneral area, head on down along Florida State Road 9336. There will be plenty\nof stops along the way to learn about the unique wildlife and habitats of the\nEverglades, eventually ending at the Flamingo Visitor Center. Since we had only\nset aside one day for the Everglades, we traveled as far as the Mahogany\nHammock, which is about halfway to Flamingo. This trail was another unique\nboardwalk through a grouping of mahogany trees surrounded by wetlands, a\nhabitat known as a \u201chammock.\u201d We also stopped at the Pa-Hay-Okee Lookout Tower,\nwhere you can view sawgrass wetlands for miles. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Each trail has signage with educational information, so you\ncan learn as you explore, and, if you need a break from the sun, most of the\nVisitor Centers also have indoor exhibits. There really is plenty to see, do,\nand learn for people of all ages and walks of life. One could easily spend a\nweek or more within the park, let alone one day! <\/p>\n\n\n\n A visit to the Everglades is just not complete without a\nride on an airboat. Our final mission of the day was to have that experience.\nWe had thought about booking a tour in advance, but were glad we waited since\nwe found out that the National Park Service runs three tours amidst the many\ncommercial options flooding the internet: the Coopertown Original Airboat Tour,\nEverglades Safari Park, and Gator Park. We opted for the original Coopertown\ntour and could not have been happier. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Most of the airboat tours are located in the northern part of the park, so back past Ernest Coe we went, back through Homestead, and up towards the park\u2019s northern entrance. You\u2019ll find the Coopertown Airboat about five miles down the road on the left once you turn left onto SW 8th<\/sup> Street (US-41)\u2014a big grass hut underneath a giant American flag, and a sign you cannot miss. Adult tickets are $26 each, but you often save by booking online ahead of time<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Hopping into the boat and stuffing our ears with cotton\nballs, we knew we were in for a ride. With their flat bottoms and\nindustrial-sized fans, some airboats can reach speeds up to 130 mph. Coopertown\ndoesn\u2019t go quite that fast, but you still get some crazy airboat hair. The\nweird feeling of gliding over grass and water is also worth the\nexperience\u2014nothing like a sharp turn in an airboat to get a splash of thrill\nfor the day. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The ride itself was like nothing else, but we did see some\ngators and a variety of birds on the tour as well. Highlight of my day: holding\na baby alligator! After the 30-minute\nairboat ride, Coopertown offered us a close-up encounter with the little\ncritter. I\u2019d call that a successful Everglades airboat adventure. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Following the airboat tour, our final destination of the day was Everglades City where we would be staying for the night. Heading west on US-41 we could arrive in about an hour easy, so we decided to take a scenic detour on Loop Road of Big Cypress Preserve, which veers off to the south. After a busy day of exploring the Everglades, we had entered Big Cypress<\/a> at the golden hour of the setting sun. Kicking up a dust cloud as we moseyed off the beaten path, we couldn\u2019t help but stop to admire the reflections of tall cypress trees in mirrored waters. A mean-looking, one-eyed gator even popped up to give us a wink. <\/p>\n\n\n\n After a pleasant evening drive, we made it to Everglades City and settled into our place of stay at the Rod & Gun Club<\/a>\u2014a remnant of \u201cOld Florida.\u201d Being from the northeastern United States, the best way I could describe this place was in comparison to some of the old resorts of the Borscht Belt in Upstate New York. A monument to a Gilded Age, the place was more like a museum, complete with a fine restaurant, great room, Victorian sitting rooms, a foyer with walls of newspaper clippings depicting significant events in the small Florida town, and a collection of native taxidermy species. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The upstairs of the original building is closed to the\npublic, however, a complex of cottages now house visitors along the Barron\nRiver, each with individual screened porches and rooms for guests. Though we\nonly had one night here, it was definitely one of those unexpected gems where\nwe could have spent days. The place and the surrounding area just had an air of\nlegend, lore, and history. <\/p>\n\n\n\n *Note: If you like\nhistorical fiction, there\u2019s actually a popular book series based on the history\nand legend of this general area, called <\/em>The Shadow Country Trilogy by Peter Matthiessen. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n The next day\u2019s escapade was set aside for Captain Steve\u2019s\nSwamp Buggy Adventure\u2014another off-the-beaten-path tour that we came across on a\nblog by National Geographic. Run by Captain Steve himself, a gladesman through\nand through, the unique venture takes guests into the wilderness of Big Cypress\nPreserve like only a native could. Our buggy was led by Captain Bobby and it\nwas really neat to learn that we were one of only two buggies per day allowed\nwithin the 720,000-acre preserve. While we kept our eyes open for the elusive\nFlorida panther, I think one of the highlights had to be python tracks\nslithering through the mud\u2014an eerie remnant of a snake you wouldn\u2019t want to\nmeet in the wild. <\/p>\n\n\n\n After traversing the wilds of Big Cypress with the trained\neye of a native gladesman, we stopped by the Big Cypress Swamp Welcome Center\nto get our National Park Passport Stamps, and had the bonus of seeing some\nmanatees wading in the water from the boardwalk behind the center. We didn\u2019t\nhave the time to stop, but Big Cypress also has an Oasis Visitor Center that we\nwere told has some viewing opportunities for alligators\u2014if you haven\u2019t seen\nenough by the time you get there! <\/p>\n\n\n\n *Note: If you\u2019re\nsticking around the area and want to do some camping, a unique experience is to\nstay in a Chickee Cottage\u2014a kind of open treehouse on stilts with a grass roof,\nsometimes netted. You\u2019ll find plenty of them on the western outskirts of the\npark. The one we nearly stayed at was actually right on US-41, just behind a\ntourist stop called the Official Skunk Ape Headquarters, which boasts one of\nthe largest snakes in captivity in the world\u2014Goldie, the 350lb+ reticulated\npython. You\u2019ll also find some fun local merchandise related to the Skunk Ape\n(basically Florida\u2019s Bigfoot), alligator products, and native crafts. We\ndecided not to brave Florida\u2019s mosquitos during this trip, but staying in a\nChickee Cottage is certainly on the bucket list. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Following our swampland safari adventures in the Everglade and Big Cypress, we were finally headed to see some of Florida\u2019s Gulf Coast<\/strong> beaches. From the western reaches of the National Park territory, the drive was just under two hours to our first west coast destination\u2014Sanibel Island. <\/p>\n\n\n\n We had only set aside a half-day for Sanibel, but like most\nplaces we visited, you could definitely spend a week. The only danger in\nstaying longer is a growing seashell collection that might not fit in your\nluggage! Sanibel is a barrier island uniquely oriented in an east-west\ndirection, allowing it to catch a vast array of shells that roll in with the tides\nfrom a north-south direction. Year-round, the island draws shell collectors and\nthe supply never runs out!<\/p>\n\n\n\n You can also visit the Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum\non Sanibel, which has its own impressive collection of shells from around the\nworld, from record-breakers to local oddities found on Sanibel. You\u2019ll learn\nwhat gives a shell its color, and there\u2019s even a series of films about the critters\nthat live inside the shells before you find them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Overall the island is very laid-back with plenty of options for vacation rentals<\/a> and resort accommodations and loaded with beach shops. If you plan to stay, we suggest this great place<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Bowman\u2019s beach is the most popular with beachcombers, and\nthere\u2019s plenty of coast to go around. Other nearby attractions you might want\nto check out include the Sanibel Lighthouse, Captiva Island, and the J.N.\n“Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge known for its vast diversity\nof birds. We had already booked a night at the Sleep Inn<\/em> in Sarasota, so we did not have time for these additional\nattractions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n *Note: Surprisingly, the <\/em>Sleep Inn<\/a> was one of our favorite places of stay during this trip. Not only was it reasonably priced for the night, but it was the most comfortable, clean, and convenient place of stay we experienced in Florida. The hotel staff were extremely helpful, and the place had a 24-hour kitchen with access to complimentary water, juice, coffee, tea, and assorted fruits. Can\u2019t beat that! <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Our reason for choosing the Island Inn<\/em> was to be closer to our next Gulf Coast destination\u2014Siesta Key Beach. Rated the number one beach in the United States, Siesta Key is unique for its fine powder quartz sand, which is always soft and cool on the feet. <\/p>\n\n\n\n You are welcome to bring your own chair, umbrella, towels,\nand food, but there are also plenty of nearby amenities along the shore for\nbeachgoers to rent or buy. If you\u2019re looking for a nice long day of sunshine,\nswimming, and relaxation, then Siesta Key has you covered. The nearby hub of\ntown has plenty of beach shops, places to eat, and, of course, resort hotels if\nyou prefer to have accommodations just steps from the beach. <\/p>\n\n\n\n *Note: Again, we did\nnot have the time to squeeze it all in, but if you travel a few more hours\nnorth of Siesta Key there are some great eco-tourism opportunities at Crystal\nRiver\u2014namely: swimming with manatees. It\u2019s definitely on the docket for the\nnext Florida trip! <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n *Also notable, if you\nplan on collecting your National Park stamps, is De Soto National Memorial\nPark, which commemorates the 1539 landing of Hernando de Soto and the first\nextensive organized exploration by Europeans of what is now the southern United\nStates.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n *And finally, if\nyou\u2019re visiting in February and love baseball, you may want to visit some of\nthe training hubs for major league teams and have a chance to meet your\nfavorite players. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n After a nice mellow day at Siesta Key Beach, we were all rested up to take on the happy chaos of Disney<\/a> in Orlando<\/a>. There\u2019s really no great way to get a discount for a day or two at the parks. The discounts only begin to apply when you book three days or more, and usually when you stay at one of Disney\u2019s resort hotels. <\/p>\n\n\n\nCanaveral National\nSeashore<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Kennedy Space Center<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Biscayne National\nPark<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.budgetyourtrip.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Boca-Chita-Key-BiscayneNP-2-850x638.jpg\")
Miami<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Key West<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Everglades National\nPark<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Trails<\/em><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
Driving<\/em><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
Airboat<\/em><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.budgetyourtrip.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Coopertown-Airboat-850x638.jpg\")
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<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nBig Cypress National\nPreserve<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"Everglades](\"https:\/\/www.budgetyourtrip.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Everglades-City-Rod-and-Gun-Club-850x638.jpg\")
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Sanibel Island<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Siesta Key<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Disney World<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"Butterbeer](\"https:\/\/www.budgetyourtrip.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Butterbeer-Pub-food-at-Boars-Head-in-Hogsmeade-Islands-of-Adventure-850x638.jpg\")