722 Best Sights in Florida, USA

Most first-time visitors to the region are dismayed by the lack of beaches—but then they discover Bahia Honda Key. The 524-acre park sprawls across both sides of the highway, giving it 2½ miles of fabulous sandy coastline. Beaches include Sandspur and Loggerhead Beaches on the Atlantic side and Calusa Beach, which faces the Gulf of Mexico. The snorkeling isn't bad, either; there's underwater life (soft coral, queen conchs, random little fish) just a few hundred feet offshore. Seasonal ranger-led nature programs take place at or depart from the Sand and Sea Nature Center. There are rental cabins and a campground, snack bar, gift shop, and 19-slip marina, as well as facilities for renting kayaks and arranging snorkeling tours. Get a panoramic view of the island from what's left of the railroad—the Bahia Honda Rail Bridge.

Set in gold-rush days, this thrilling roller coaster simulates a runaway train. It's a bumpy ride with several good drops (pregnant women and guests wearing back, neck, or leg braces should avoid this one). There are moments when you feel like you're going to fly right off the tracks. Overall, it's more fun than scary, and you'll see kids as young as 7 lining up to ride, though there is a 40-inch height requirement. The train rushes and rattles past 20 Audio-Animatronics figures—mostly critters—as well as $300,000 worth of genuine antique mining equipment, tumbleweeds, a derelict mining town, hot springs, and a flash flood.

The 197-foot mountain landscape is based on the windswept scenery of Arizona's Monument Valley, and, thanks to 650 tons of steel, 4,675 tons of concrete, and 16,000 gallons of paint, it replicates the area's gorges, tunnels, caverns, and dry riverbeds. For people with disabilities: You must be able to step into the ride vehicle and walk short distances. Service animals aren't permitted. To avoid long lines, go first thing in the morning or during a parade. The ride is most exciting at night, when you can't anticipate the curves, and the track's rattling really sounds as if something's about to give.

Thanks to inviting beaches, sunsets, and a tranquil lighthouse, this park at Key Biscayne's southern tip is worth the drive. In fact, the 1-mile stretch of pure beachfront has been named several times in Dr. Beach's revered America's Top 10 Beaches list. It has 18 picnic pavilions available as daily rentals, two cafés that serve light lunches (including several Cuban specialties), and plenty of space to plant the umbrellas and chairs that you can rent. The walking and bicycle paths provide wonderful views of Miami's dramatic skyline. From the southern end of the park you can see a handful of houses rising over the bay on wooden stilts, the remnants of Stiltsville, built in the 1940s and now protected by the Stiltsville Trust. The nonprofit group was established in 2003 to preserve the structures, which showcase the park's rich history. Bill Baggs also has bicycle rentals, a playground, fishing piers, and guided tours of the Cape Florida Lighthouse, South Florida's oldest structure. The lighthouse was erected in 1845 to replace an earlier one damaged in an 1836 battle with the Seminole tribe. Free tours are offered at the restored cottage and lighthouse Thursday to Monday at 10 am and 1 pm. Be there a half hour beforehand. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards; parking (no fee); showers; toilets. Best for: solitude; sunset; walking.

Based on the wildly popular Toy Story, this ride gives you a toy's perspective as it pits you and Buzz Lightyear against the evil Emperor Zurg. You're seated in a fast-moving, two-passenger Star Cruiser vehicle with infrared laser guns and a centrally located lever for spinning your ship to get a good vantage point. Throughout the ride, you shoot at targets to help macho space toy, Buzz, defeat the emperor and save the universe. You have to hit the targets marked with a "Z" to score, and the rider with the most points wins. To infinity and beyond! For people with disabilities: To board you must transfer to a standard wheelchair. Equipped for audio-description and handheld-captioning devices. Go first thing in the morning or during a parade. If you're with kids, time the wait and—if it's only 15 or 20 minutes—ride twice so they can have a practice run.

Get ready to defy gravity on Disney's multipassenger water coaster, which is designed to propel you uphill and down along flumes, caverns, and spillways. Keeping with park lore, Crush ’n’ Gusher flows through what appears to be a rusted-out tropical fruit factory, weaving in and out of the wreckage and debris that once transported fruit through the plant's wash facilities. Three "fruit chutes" are aptly named Banana Blaster, Coconut Crusher, and Pineapple Plunger—one of which is designed for solo riders. Guests shouldn't ride if they are pregnant or have heart, back, or neck problems. For people with disabilities: An elevator takes guests using wheelchairs to the loading area; there's a short distance between this area and the ride.

 Ride first thing in the morning before lines get too long. And don't forget to say cheese for the cameras!

If you're on your way to Snow Stormers or Toboggan Racers on the purple slopes, you might notice this cool-looking slide on the left. It's well worth the stop, as you're timed from blastoff to finish line! Competition can get heated as kids (48 inches or taller) vie for the glory of fastest speed slider, but even the least competitive will enjoy tearing down Mt. Gushmore in their racing tubes. Expectant mothers shouldn't ride, nor should guests with heart conditions or neck or back problems. For people with disabilities: Guests using wheelchairs must transfer to the tube-launch site. Ride early; this popular purple-slope attraction gets crowded after lunch.

Stroll the path through an artfully planted woodland and meadow to a rustic French cabin complete with waterwheel, where Belle's father, Maurice, tinkers with his inventions. The small homestead oozes Belle's provincial life, with a giant pot hanging in the fireplace and books stacked on a simple wooden chair. Inside her father's workshop, amid blueprints and tools, a giant gold-framed mirror hangs. A costumed cast member welcomes your group to the workshop (Bonjour!) and implores everyone to chant, "Take me back to the day Belle and Beast fell in love!" Voilà! The mirror becomes an animated screen straight from the Disney film Beauty and the Beast before transforming into a portal that leads to an elegant room of Beast's Castle.

Inside, an Audio-Animatronic Madame Armoire encourages you to grab props and play character roles from the "tale as old as time." Then it's on to the library, where a spot-on Audio-Animatronic Lumiere holds court from the mantle. Grab a cushy bench as a coiffed actress playing Belle joins you to perform a scene from the enchanted tale. You'll dance around the room to "Be Our Guest," and you might shed a tear as the interactive story unfolds. This live performance gets to the heart of Disney storytelling, and every participant poses for photos with Belle before a very happy ending. For people with disabilities: Wheelchair accessible; equipped for handheld captioning and assisted listening. This is a slow-moving line that is mostly outside, so visit here first thing in the morning.

A fierce yeti guards the route to Mt. Everest. Of course, you're willing to risk running across the big guy in your roller-coaster quest to reach the summit. So, you board an "aging," seemingly innocuous, 34-passenger, steam-engine train into the mountains. You roll past bamboo forests, waterfalls, and glacier fields as you climb higher through snowcapped peaks. Suddenly, the train becomes a runaway, barreling forward then backward around icy ledges and through dark snowy caverns. Nearly a mile of twists and turns cut through the dark mountain, and, at one point, your train plunges a harrowing 80 feet. Will you find the yeti?

Buildings along the queue look like Himalayan mountain dwellings and teem with things like prayer flags, totems, and other artifacts from Tibet, Nepal, and the entire region. Because of the backwards portion of the ride, those wanting a wilder experience should ride up front.

Pregnant women or guests with back, neck, or heart problems shouldn't ride. For people with disabilities: You must transfer from your wheelchair to a ride vehicle; ask a cast member about the Transfer Practice Vehicle. No service animals. If you don't head straight to Pandora come here first. Also, you can take little ones to nearby Finding Nemo: The Big Blue . . . and Beyond! while older kids do this ride.

If you think you've seen enough Lion King to last a lifetime, you're wrong—unless you've seen this show. Disney presents a delightful celebration of song, dance, and acrobatics that uses huge moving stages and floats. The show's singers are first-rate; lithe dancers wearing exotic animal-theme costumes portray creatures in the wild. Timon, Pumba, and other Lion King stars have key roles. The show is presented in the Harambe Theater in the park's Africa area. For people with disabilities: Wheelchair- and ECV-accessible; equipped for assisted-listening and handheld-captioning devices; sign-language interpretation is sometimes offered. If you aren't using Genie+, arrive 30–40 minutes before showtime. If you have a child who might want to go on stage, try to sit up front to increase his or her chance of being chosen.

A recent update to this show sped up the storytelling but kept the beautiful costumes and puppets and the infectious tunes—including the heart-warming "Big Blue World"—from the previous Finding Nemo musical. For people with disabilities: Wheelchair accessible. Equipped with reflective captioning and for audio-description and assisted-listening devices. Check with Guest Relations for sign-language schedule. Arrive 30 to 40 minutes before showtime. Bring little kids here while older tweens and teens ride nearby Expedition Everest over in Asia.

The special effects here are a howl. You're greeted at the creaking iron gates of this Gothic mansion by a lugubrious attendant, who has one of the few jobs at Disney for which smiling is frowned upon, and ushered into a spooky picture gallery. A disembodied voice echoes from the walls: "Welcome, foolish mortals, to the Haunted Mansion. I am your ghost host." An audio system with 30-plus surround-sound speakers ups the ghost-host fright factor. A scream shivers down, the room begins to "stretch," and you're off into one of Disney's classic attractions. Don't rush out of this room when other visitors depart; linger for some ghoulish bonus whispers. Note that as the Haunted Mansion is basically a slow-moving ride in a cocoonlike "doom buggy," it's really scary only for younger children, and that's mostly because of the darkness. If, however, the stretch room proves too scary, see a cast member to exit instead of riding.

Watch the ghostly ballroom dancers, Madame Leota's talking head in the crystal ball, and ghostly footprints that move along a staircase. In the "bride in the attic" scene, keep an eye on the portraits. Just when you think the Imagineers have exhausted their bag of ectoplasmic tricks, you discover that your doom buggy has gained an extra passenger. This is a high-capacity, fast-loading ride, and lines usually move steadily. For people with disabilities: Those in wheelchairs must transfer to the doom buggies and take one or more steps; however, if you can walk up to 200 feet, you'll enjoy the preshow as well as the ride's sensations and eerie sounds. Equipped for handheld-captioning and audio-description devices. When you reach a fork in the queue before entering the mansion, go left through the cemetery for interactive graveyard fun. The Musical Crypt and Secret Library help you forget you're in line. Nighttime adds an extra fright factor.

This state park is on everyone's list for easy access to the best diving and snorkeling in Florida. The underwater treasure encompasses 78 nautical square miles of coral reefs and sea-grass beds. It lies adjacent to the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, which contains 40 of the 52 species of coral in the Atlantic Reef System and nearly 600 varieties of fish, from the colorful parrotfish to the demure cocoa damselfish. Whatever you do, get in the water. Snorkeling and diving trips ($39 and $90, respectively; equipment extra) and glass-bottom-boat rides to the reef ($32) are available, weather permitting. One of the most popular snorkel trips is to see Christ of the Deep, the 2-ton underwater statue of Jesus. The park also has nature trails, two man-made beaches, picnic shelters, a snack bar, and a campground. Amenities: food and drink; parking (fee); showers; toilets; water sports. Best for: snorkeling; swimming.

When Key West was designated a U.S. port of entry in the early 1820s, a customhouse was established. Salvaged cargoes from ships wrecked on the reefs were brought here, setting the stage for Key West to become—for a time—the richest city in Florida. The imposing redbrick-and-terra-cotta Richardsonian Romanesque–style building became a museum and art gallery in 1999. Smaller galleries have long-term and changing exhibits about the history of Key West, including a Hemingway room and a permanent Henry Flagler exhibit that commemorates the arrival of Flagler's railroad in Key West in 1912.

A giant Imagineered baobab tree is the starting point for exploring this animal sanctuary. Although re-creating an African safari in the United States isn't a new idea, with this one, great pains were taken to create an authentic environment, allowing you to observe rhinos, hippos, antelopes, wildebeests, giraffes, zebras, cheetahs, elephants, lions, and the like as if you were seeing them in the wild. Illustrated game-spotting guides are available above the seats in the open-air safari vehicles that lurch and bump over some 110 acres of savanna, forest, rivers, and rocky hills. You'll see most of the Harambe Reserve's 34 species of animals—sometimes so close you feel that you could reach out and touch them. It's easy to suspend disbelief here because the landscape and habitats are so effectively modeled and replenished by Disney horticulturists.

Keep an eye out for animal babies here and on the post-safari Pangani Forest Exploration Trail; the park's breeding programs have been extremely successful, with new additions including elephants, rhinos, okapi, giraffes, and several gorillas. It's a completely different experience at night, and the animals are often much more lively and interesting, so this experience definitely deserves a revisit. If you have to choose, the nighttime experience is probably superior.

Parents should hang on tightly to their small tykes. The ride is very bumpy and should be avoided by expectant guests or those with heart, back, or neck problems. For people with disabilities: Wheelchair accessible, but ECV users must transfer to standard wheelchairs. Equipped for assisted-listening and video-captioning devices. Guests with service animals should check with a host for boarding information.

During the hottest months, come first thing in the morning when animals are most active. Otherwise come at day's end when it cools down a bit or at night. For the best photo ops, ask to be seated in the very last row of seats (you might have to wait for the next vehicle) where you can pivot for an unobstructed view of the animals you just passed.

The museum (constructed in 1941 by steel magnate Ralph H. Norton and his wife, Elizabeth) has grown to become one of the most impressive in South Florida, with an extensive collection of 19th- and 20th-century American and European paintings—including works by Picasso, Monet, Matisse, Pollock, Cassatt, and O'Keeffe—plus Chinese art, earlier European art, and photography. To accommodate the growing collection, the museum expanded to include 12,000 additional square feet of gallery space in a new west wing, event spaces, a garden, and a great hall.

The popular Art After Dark, Thursday from 5 to 10 pm, is a gathering spot for art lovers, with wine and music in the galleries.

This popular beach has fine, powdery quartz sand that squeaks under your feet, very much like the sand along the state's northwestern coast. You'll also find 40 acres of nature trails and tons of amenities. Don't forget to bring a volleyball—or a tennis racket. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards; toilets. Best for: partiers; sunset; swimming; walking.

If you've ever wondered what it's like to fly, or at least hang glide, this attraction is your chance to enjoy the sensation without actually taking the plunge. It uses motion-based technology to literally lift you in your seat 40 feet into the air within a giant projection-screen dome. As you soar above the wonders of the world—from the sharp peaks of the Alps and the Great Wall of China to Sydney Harbor in Australia and the spires of Neuschwanstein Castle in Bavaria—you feel the wind and dodge the spray of leaping whales.

The flight is so mild (and the view so thrilling) that even very timid children love it. For people with disabilities: Those with mobility impairments must transfer from their wheelchairs to the ride system. Equipped for video-captioning devices. Service animals aren't permitted on the ride. Long lines mean this should be one of your first stops upon entering the park, or you can wait until just before fireworks to try for a shorter line.

Each of these three body slides is about 300 feet long and snakes in and out of rock formations, through caves and tunnels, and under waterfalls, but each has a slightly different view and offers a twist. The one in the middle has the longest tunnel; the others feature secrets you'll have to discover for yourself. Brace for splashdown on all three slides! Maximum speed is about 20 mph, and the trip takes about 30 seconds. These slides are not appropriate for guests who are pregnant or who have heart, back, or neck problems.

Try each of the three slides for different twists.

Starting on the "ski jump" tower atop the green slopes of Mt. Gushmore, you slide straight down—some 12 stories at about 55 mph—and then into a tunnel before a white-water splash landing at the end of the 360-foot-long run. It looks almost like a straight vertical drop, and you can't help but feel like a movie stunt double as you take the plunge. If you're watching from the beach below, you can't hear the yells of the participants, but you can bet many of them are screaming their heads off. If you have heart, neck, or back problems or are pregnant, avoid this attraction—one of the most intense in all of Disney. For people with disabilities: This attraction requires walking up two flights of stairs and is not suited to those with mobility issues. Make this your first stop early in the day. Summer afternoon waits can be up to two hours.

Great toys like Mr. Potato Head, Woody, and Buzz Lightyear from Disney's hit film franchise Toy Story never lose their relevance. The action here involves these beloved characters and takes place inside the toy box of Andy, the boy whose toys come to life when he's not around. Step right up and grab a pair of 3-D glasses before boarding your jazzed-up carnival tram. Soon you're whirling onto the midway where you can use your spring-action shooter to launch darts at balloons, toss rings at aliens, and splatter eggs at barnyard targets.

You'll rack up points for targets hit and see your tally at ride's end. Try using a rat-a-tat shooting approach to increase your score. Don't let Rex's fear of failure slow you down—shoot for the stars, and earn a salute from the Green Army Men. For people with disabilities: Guests using ECVs must transfer to a standard wheelchair. Equipped for video-captioning and audio-description devices. Check with a host about boarding with a service animal. It's so addictive that you might want to ride first thing and then return later in the day.

After you enter the dimly lit lobby of the deserted Hollywood Tower Hotel and then the dust-covered library, a lightning bolt zaps a TV to life. Rod Serling recounts the story of the hotel's demise and invites you to enter the Twilight Zone. On to the boiler room, where you board a giant elevator ride. The fifth dimension awaits, where you travel forward past scenes from the popular TV series. Suddenly, the creaking vehicle plunges into a terrifying, 130-foot free fall and then, before you can catch your breath, shoots quickly up, down, up, and down all over again. No use trying to guess how many stomach-churning ups and downs are in store—Disney's ride engineers have programmed random drop variations into the attraction for a different thrill every time.

Those who are pregnant or have heart, back, or neck problems shouldn't ride. For people with disabilities: You must have full upper-body strength and be able to transfer to a ride seat. Equipped for video captioning. Service animals can't ride. Come early or wait until evening, when crowds thin, and it's spookier.

The heart of the park is this 2½-acre swimming area with almost 3 million gallons of clear, chlorinated water. It's scalloped by coves, bays, and inlets, all edged with beaches of white sand—that's spread over a base of white concrete, as bodysurfers discover when they try to slide onto the shore. Ouch! The waves are the draw. Twelve huge water-collection chambers hidden in Mount Mayday dump their load into trapdoors with a resounding whoosh to create 6-foot waves large enough for Typhoon Lagoon to host amateur and professional surfing championships.

A piercing double hoot from Miss Tilly (the boat that legend says was deposited on Mount Mayday's highest peak during a storm) signals the start and finish of the wave action. Ninety-minute periods generating bigger waves every 90 seconds are punctuated by 30-minute sessions of placid bobbing waves. Even during the big-wave periods, however, the waters in Blustery Bay and Whitecap Cove are protected.

On certain days, skilled surfers and novices alike can enter the park before it opens for private sessions ( 407/939–7529 for reservations). Instruction and a soft-sided surfboard are included in the $199 cost, and the experience (ages 8 and older) lasts 2½–3 hours. For people with disabilities: Accessible for people using water-appropriate wheelchairs.

See the chalkboard at beach's edge for the day's wave schedule.

From January to April (and especially in March), the grounds at this 1,200-acre estate, one of Florida's most stunning ornamental gardens, are abloom with azaleas, dogwood, magnolias, spring bulbs of tulips and irises, banana shrubs, honeysuckle, silverbell trees, pansies, and camellias. Wander along the brick path lined with oaks draped in moss to a reflecting pool and a tiny walled garden and around the lakes and woodlands. See if you can find the secret garden. Once the winter home of Alfred Maclay, a banker and financier from New York, the Maclay residence (open January through April) is furnished as it was in the 1920s. Picnic areas and a playground, as well as swimming, kayaking, and boating facilities on Lake Hall are open to the public. Outer portions of the park include 11 miles of trails used for walking, running, bicycling, and horseback riding.

One of Universal's most popular attractions, the experience combines moving vehicles, 3-D film with the highest-definition resolution available, simulator technology, and special effects. What does that mean? It means that after donning 3-D glasses, you drive through the streets of New York in a special car that will pitch and roll as you get swept into a weird, all-encompassing cartoon battle. How weird? When Spider-Man lands on your car, you experience the bump; when Electro runs overhead, you hear his steps. You feel the sizzle of electricity, the frigid spray of water from Hydro Man, and the heat from a flaming pumpkin tossed by the Hobgoblin. No matter how many times you visit, you cringe when Doc Ock breaks through a brick wall, raises your car to the top of a skyscraper, and then releases it for a 400-foot free fall. The bizarre angles and perspectives really do make you feel as if you're swinging from a web. Do not miss this one.

Youngsters accustomed to action TV shows should be fine, but timid kids won't. Also skip this ride if you're pregnant or have heart, back, or neck problems. For people with disabilities: Equipped for assisted-listening devices. Guests using wheelchairs must transfer to a ride vehicle. Come early or at dusk or use Express Pass to save on your wait time. Be sure to check out the wanted posters of Spider-Man villains on the walls.

The Art and Culture Center, which is southeast of Young Circle, has a great reputation for presenting ubercool contemporary art exhibitions and providing the community with educational programming for adults and children. Check online for the latest exhibition schedule.

This stunning thrill ride puts you atop a dragonlike mountain banshee for the ride of your life. After a trek deep into the jungles of Pandora, you enter a room where scientists pair banshees with visitors. On instruction, you board a vehicle resembling a motorcycle that faces a blank wall. After hopping on, you don special 3-D goggles, the action begins, and you are one with your banshee. You feel it come to life beneath you, as Pandora comes to life before your eyes. The banshee's wing muscles pump as you hurtle down cliff faces and soar above the floating islands familiar from the film. The visuals are breathtaking, with dense jungles, seascapes, vast waterfalls, and alien plant life passing rapidly before your eyes. Even more astonishing, however, are the subtle smells and temperature changes that accompany different landscapes, immersing you totally in the experience. For guests with disabilities: Guests must transfer to a standard wheelchair and then on to ride vehicle. Individual Lightning Lane pass is highly recommended here, especially during summer and holiday times.

This cool, contemporary museum at Artis–Naples displays provocative, innovative pieces, including renowned miniatures, antique walking sticks, works by modern and contemporary American and Mexican masters, and traveling exhibits. Dazzling pieces by glass artist Dale Chihuly include a fiery, cascading chandelier and an illuminated ceiling layered with many-hued glass bubbles, glass corkscrews, and other shapes that suggest the sea. This installation alone warrants a visit, but with three floors and 15 galleries, your cultural curiosity is sure to pique elsewhere, perhaps in the glass-domed conservatory. Reward your visual arts adventure with lunch at the on-site café.

Special exhibitions join a diverse collection of international contemporary art at this museum whose original 1930s art deco building was designed by Russell Pancoast and constructed entirely of Florida keystone (material with a coral base). A years-long, $12 million expansion by noted architects Arata Isozaki and David Gauld, completed in 2017, increased internal space nearly 50% and added four new galleries. Most of the exhibitions are temporary, but works on permanent display include Chess Tables, a sculpture by Jim Drain, and Miami Mountain, a sculpture by Ugo Rondinone. Visit for free the third Thursday and last Sunday of every month.

Clyde Butcher's Big Cypress Gallery is a wonderful spot for finding a postcard, a calendar, or a more serious piece of art. Butcher, a big guy with an even bigger beard, is known for his stunning photography of landscapes and his knowledge of the 'glades; his famed black-and-white images from deep within the Everglades and Big Cypress have been compared to Ansel Adams's portraits of the American West. Out back, Butcher also rents a bungalow ($295 per night, October–April) and a cottage ($350 per night, year-round).  Look into Butcher's private eco and photo swamp tours. After all, "to know the swamp, you have to get into the swamp," he says.