Florida’s National Parks
Are you looking to visit the National Parks in Florida, but don’t know where to start? You have come to the right place! Surprisingly, It’s actually not as hard or daunting as it seems because they are all relatively clumped together in south Florida.
If you did not already know, Florida has three beautiful National Parks:
- Everglades National Parks
- Biscaynes National Park
- Dry Tortugas National Park
They all reside in South Florida, which made it easier group and create an itinerary for visiting them.
Having never been to Florida myself, I decided to maximize my time there by visiting all the National Parks in one trip—it did not disappoint. I traveled solo to Fort Lauderdale, and ventured to each National Park alone, but it was such an incredible experience.
Finally, below you will find a brief itinerary of my trip, and how I visited all three parks in less than a week.
Day 1 – Travel Day
Now, if you’re traveling from the East Coast or nearby South Florida, you can maximize this day and do a lot more than I did. But I found that traveling from the West Coast, especially on a red eye flight from LAX, was surprisingly taxing with jet lag. Therefore, I took it easy and did not do anything extreme, and went to bed early. However, there are still some easy going things to do while jet lagged.
Where to fly in?
Miami Airport is closest to South Florida, however, I found the prices were more expensive. Therefore, Fort Lauderdale is where I chose to go and the airport was easy to navigate.
Transportation?
First, I definitely recommend getting a rental car. The easiest way is getting a rental car from the airport so you can just leave from there. Otherwise, I definitely recommend Turo as it supports local owners.
Additionally, you can always use Lyft or Uber, and those kinds of services, but they tend to be expensive. Moreover, driving to the various national parks requires extensive transportation, and in my opinion, it’s better to rent a car.
Car rental tip: if you didn’t know already, you can return rentals cars you get from airports, at other airports. Especially if you’re doing a roadtrip and are flying out from another city, you can return your car to that other airport and not the original.
Things to Do:
- Breakfast/Brunch – I went to Village Cafe and I thoroughly enjoyed myself. You can definitely tell by the orange juice, whether the place is quality, and their orange juice was delightful. Service was great, and it was not busy at all. Some other spots nearby the airport, with good ratings include: Loca Mocha, Tina, YES! Cafe, and Archibald’s Village Bakery.
- Visit Fort Lauderdale Beach – It is very close to the breakfast spot I ate at, and it’s beautiful in the morning. No crowds present at all.
- Anywhere along Collins Ave in Miami Beach. It is littered with eats and night life, very entertaining.
Where to stay?
I decided to stay in South Beach Miami based off recommendation. It is in the middle of the hustle and bustle, but the beach is also very accessible and there are plenty of places to see or eat at, plus it’s clean!
The airbnb I stayed at is here.
I ended up staying for free at this airbnb that was literally beachside by using the point from THIS credit card that I specifically use for travel—HIGHLY recommended.
I otherwise, just relaxed and tried to get some rest and adjust to Eastern Standard Time.
Day 2 – Everglades National Park
Everglades National Park, specifically, the Shark Valley Visitor, lies about 45 miles from South Beach Miami. This was about 1 hr and 20 minutes for me, and why I recommend getting rental car. Would I have stayed at an airbnb closer? No, I really liked South Beach as my home base. But that’s just my preference.
Why Shark Valley Visitor Center?
Be advised, that there several other entrances along the park. Florida Bay and Ernest F. Coe Visitor Centers are also available to visit, with an additional one being completed in fall 2025. These entrances do not connect, so make sure that you research which fit your travel needs most! More info here.
However, I decided to visit the north side of the park because I also wanted to book an airboat ride tour in the everglades. At the time, I did not see very many airboat tours that were accessible or close by the entrances I was researching. And I wanted to specifically ride an airboat!
But If I were to return, I would visit Flamingo Bay visitor Center and go on one of their boat tours, or book a campsite or accommodation there.
What is there to do?
This visitor center hosts group tours. Personally, I prefer going with groups of people rather than go on own due to safety.
These tours can be booked in advance or in person, based off of availability. They take shuttles through the Shark Valley Tram Trail with a quick stop at the Shark Valley Observation Tower. Both are open 24/7 all year.
On tram ride, we saw many a gator, birds, scenery, and also were taken to see Shark Valley Observation Tower. Additionally. you could also rent bicycles or walk if you preferred a different mode of transport. However, the road is 15 miles roundtrip and very exposed, so go prepared.
What else is there to do?
Twenty minutes outside of the park, these three locations offered airboat rides INSIDE Everglades National Park:
Personally, I stopped by Everglades Safari Park. I just made the decision to stop at one of these parks, and made a last minute decision on the road. Fortunately, they had walk-up appointments and it cost $40.
I went on an airboat ride (which I LOVED), I tried some fried gator, and finally, watched a little show they put on with various gators they have in their care.
I got back to my airbnb with plenty of time to clean up and go grab a bite to eat.
Day 3 – Biscaynes National Park
Biscaynes National Park was also over an hour drive away from South Beach.
Things to do?
With 95% of Biscayne National Park being underwater, the majority of activities to join are water related adventures.
Dante Fascell Visitor Center houses Biscayne National Park Institute where the majority of the activities are managed.
Kayaking, paddling, cruises, snorkeling groups, and more are all possibilities to choose from. Eventually, I chose to snorkel on one of their boat tours that I booked through the Institute website, here.
Highly recommend. Friendly and helpful crew. Beautiful views, and wonderful snorkel sites.
I will say, there was not much else to do at Biscaynes NP aside from these boat rides. There were various places to have a picnic, you can walk on the trails next to the Institute, or even go fishing. However, it lacked a variety of options if you decided to stay on land.
Day 4 – Travel to Florida Keys
This day was also a travel day from South Beach, Miami to Islamorada where my hotel was.
Be advised, driving through the Florida Keys actually takes longer than expected. It’s a two-lane highway and susceptible to traffic.
Things to do?
Here are some options en route to Islamorada:
- Rowell’s Waterfront Park (info)
- Wild Bird Sanctuary – Florida Keys Wild Bird Center (info)
- John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park (info)
- Windley Key Fossil Reef Geological State Park (info)
- Dolphins Plus Bayside (info)
- Sundance Water Sports (info)
What did I do?
I chose to book a snorkeling trip through Sundance Water Sports, recommended by an YouTube influencer. This snorkeling trip was on a catamaran and absolutely beautiful.
Surprisingly, the boat crew were SO friendly and charismatic. They were also so informative and really took time to make the experience a positive one. In addition, they were also super social media friendly and encouraged photos or places for me to take my insta360.
Where to eat?
On my way back to my hotel, I decided to eat at Lorelei Restaurant and Cabana Bar, which I also found on the YouTube. Here, I found friendly staff, waterfront dining, and beautiful views. Additionally, the food was also delicious, and I would definitely eat here again.
Where to stay?
Lastly, I stayed at the Sunset Inn in Islamorada. I will be honest, the curbside appeal definitely gave me “motel vibes”, but the inside was just darling and I loved it. It was very very clean, my room had a back door to be able to access their pool if I would like, and the staff was very friendly and helpful.
However, my only gripe about staying here is that it took me almost 2 hours to drive to Key West the next day. Sure, the map makes everything look much closer than it already does, but with just the one two-lane highway, it actually took much longer to drive through the keys.
Finally, I had to be at port the next day by 7am and so, I had to an early bedtime.
Day 5 – Dry Tortugas
This was a long anticipated trip! I had to wake up dark and early and get to the very tip of the Florida Keys, Key West.
Book your reservations, here.
Tip: reservations need to be done EARLY. Specifically, months early. I learned that sometimes there are tour groups that will book out tons of tickets, so you need to do that early.
Ticket costs now:
- $235 for the roundtrip ferry ride
- $42 for parking for me in 2023. I’m sure it’s more now.
Schedule:
- Left port promptly at 8am
- Arrived at Fort Jefferson by 1045am
- Left Fort Jefferson by 230pm
- Arrived back in my car by 530pm.
This includes a boxed lunch, and tour by one of the crew members if you want to join in.
I will be writing a website post regarding my experience to Dry Tortugas National Park, which was INCREDIBLE.
With that being said, go book it now. It was my Pirates of the Caribbean DREAM.
Day 6 – Travel Day to Airport
After all was said and done, I got back to my hotel after dark the night before. So I left the Florida Keys on this morning.
Personally, I left for Disney World, but this would also make for a good travel day not only to the airport, but back home.
Other places I would make time for if I had more time:
- Turtle Hospital (info)
- Bahia Honda State Park (info)
- Honest Eco Tours (info)
- The Hemingway Home and Museum (info)
- Key West Tropical Forest & Botanical Garden (info)
- Sky Dive Key West (info)
In Conclusion…
There is literally so much to do in South Florida, and within the National Parks here. Four days is definitely not enough. But would I go back? In a heartbeat.
Specifically, Everglades National Park has three other visitor center that all offer a unique experience. In addition, Biscayne National Park has an incredibly diverse ecosystem, and I feel like one snorkel tour was not enough. And finally, Dry Tortugas National Park was small enough to explore in the time allotted, however, it still proved to be too short. I would LOVE to go camping there, even it is completely isolated.
In short, you can see every National Park in Florida in a short trip! Honestly, It’s pretty easy if you love to roadtrip and love ocean-based national parks. I hope that you find this article helpful, and please share this with someone else who would love to visit these places as well!
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