722 Best Sights in Florida, USA

Like Main Beach to the north and Peters Point to the south, Seaside Park allows limited beach driving if you have a permit, but beware—vehicles here frequently get stuck and have to be towed. There are several pavilions with picnic tables and dune walkovers to the beach. It's a great place to fish or to ride bikes at low tide. Bikes and other beach equipment can be rented at The Beach Store and More, right across from the park. Also nearby, Sliders Seaside Grill is a venerable oceanfront restaurant where you can enjoy food and drinks inside or at the tiki bar overlooking the beach, often with live music. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards (seasonal); parking (no fee); showers; toilets. Best for: surfing; swimming; walking.

When pelicans and other birds become entangled in fishing lines, locals sometimes carry them to this nonprofit sanctuary dedicated to the rescue, repair, recuperation, and release of sick and injured birds. Formerly the Suncoast Seabird Sanctuary, this beachfront spot played a big role after the Gulf oil disaster in 2010. At times there are hundreds of land and sea birds in residence, including egrets, herons, gulls, terns, sandhill cranes, hawks, owls, and cormorants.

The oldest operating, biggest, and perhaps most controversial marine-mammal park in the country has been anchoring the Orlando Disney–alternative theme-park business since 1964. Much has been made of the company's handling of animals, and they've been in "rebuild and repair" mode for several years after attendance and stock prices plummeted.

SeaWorld still features dolphins and orcas, but thrill rides and literal spills are now the order of the day, with more swirling, looping, and splashing than just about anywhere. The Kraken Unleashed coaster soars to 150 feet while riders dangle their feet from the floorless track. The Manta and the Mako skim tantalizingly close to the water, with Mako reaching speeds of up to 73 mph. Other offerings include Infinity Falls River Rapids, with the world's tallest river-raft drop, and the 400-foot Sky Tower, with bird’s-eye views of the park. Ice Breaker, a launch coaster, features a 93-foot-tall spike with a 100-degree angle. Pipeline: The Surf Coaster is the first of its kind—you ride standing up going 110 feet in the air at speeds of up to 60 mph!

The Sesame Street area of the park includes meet and greets with neighborhood favorites and kid-friendly rides like Big Bird's Twirl N' Whirl and interactive play areas. Little ones will love dancing along to the Sesame Street Party Parade offered most days and during peak seasons held numerous times each day.

Animal attractions here now focus more on education than performance. Shark Encounter leads you through one of the world’s largest underwater viewing tunnels, and Stingray Lagoon offers encounters with both stingrays and mantas. You can visit the ice-filled home of Puck the penguin in Antarctica: Empire of the Penguin and observe sea lions, walruses, and otters at Pacific Point Preserve, which doubles as a sea-lion rehabilitation facility. Helping injured marine animals is also the focus of the Manatee Rehabilitation Area and the Pelican Preserve, which offer up-close views of rescue operations.

Established in 1559, Pensacola's first permanent Spanish settlement predates St. Augustine's by six years. The site's center is Seville Square, a live oak–shaded park bounded by Alcaniz, Adams, Zaragoza, and Government streets. Roam 14 brick streets past honeymoon cottages and homes amid a parklike setting. Many buildings have been converted into restaurants, bars, offices, and shops that overlook Pensacola Bay and coastal road U.S. 98, which provides access to the Gulf Coast and beaches.

At the halfway point of the Shark Valley loop or tram tour, you’ll see (and likely be persuaded to scale) the observation tower, which, at 50 feet, is the highest accessible point in Everglades National Park. From the summit you’ll be able to see roughly 20 miles in any direction; do the math and that's 1,600 square miles of Everglades goodness. As you take in the River of Grass in all its subtle glory, observe waterbirds as well as alligators and maybe even river otters crossing the road. The tower has a wheelchair-accessible ramp to the top. If you don't want to take the tram from the Shark Valley Visitor Center, you can either hike or bike in, but private cars are not allowed.

This entertainment complex, once just a quirky shopping destination and a survivor from Florida's roadside-attraction era, now offers eateries; an arcade; bumper boats; miniature golf; the Soaring Eagle zip line; and a mining sluice where kids can pan for shells, fossils, and gemstones. Strolling the grounds, which have abundant exhibits and displays, is free, but some activities cost extra. A separate admission is also required to enter the Nature Park, which has the feel of a small zoo and is home to llamas; a petting farm with sheep, pigs, and goats; a walk-through aviary; an EcoLab; a touch center; and a gator slough. The Shell Factory also hosts family-friendly events throughout the year, such as January's Gumbo Fest.

Shuttles to this pristine paradise run out of Pass-a-Grille and Dolphin Landings, and you can catch them in the morning and early afternoon most days. If you do, expect some amazing snorkeling, shelling, and bird-watching. (You can also kayak or canoe here from a launch near Ft. De Soto.) Rustic overnight camping is allowed here in the part of the island not designated as a bird sanctuary. Watch for rip currents when swimming, as they can be pretty strong. Amenities: none. Best for: solitude; swimming; walking.

Open each summer, this 15-acre water park has 3 million gallons' worth of splashing-good fun for all ages—from speedy slides and tubes to a giant wave pool to the slow-moving Lazy River. Oddly enough, admission is based on height (whether you are over or under 50 inches), with those under 35 inches entering for free. Wear water shoes or flip-flops to protect your feet on the hot pavement.

The River District has become a haven for independent galleries, including this space for edgy, up-and-coming visual artists, musical acts, films, and theater. Once an abandoned post office circa 1933, it was transformed by Florida Arts, Inc., a nonprofit organization, in the early 2000s. Even if your taste runs more to classical works than contemporary, a visit is worthwhile for the neoclassical revival facade: eight towering coral-rock Ionic columns give way to swaths of intricately detailed window screens. The friendly staff is happy to answer questions about the building's history.

This 8-acre nature preserve on the edge of Miami's busiest urban neighborhood is one of the last remnants of Brickell's natural tropical hardwood hammock. It conserves 162 plant species, most of which are native to the area, such as the strangler fig and gumbo-limbo tree. The park features lovely bike and walking trails, as well as a recreation center and plenty of intriguing historical plaques along the way.

Preteens might want to spend most of their time on the T-bar drop, Cool Runners slides, and Snow Falls downhill body slide. In addition, there's a chance to take on the Thin Ice Training Course, a wide-open area where kids can jump from one slippery mogul to the next. The moguls really look more like bobbing baby icebergs, and kids don't mind when they miss a berg and plop into the pool. For people with disabilities: Guests using water-appropriate wheelchairs can enjoy wading areas here. The optimum time to come is early in the day or after a thunderstorm, when crowds thin out. That said, lines are often short at the zipline drop and the iceberg obstacle course.

As you wind along a path into the heart of a towering mountain, the mood grows more ominous. Navigating darkened corridors that are inhabited by "scare actors" (hence the warning that kids might find the preshow too intense), you pass a proliferation of skulls and then meet an old crone, who hints that something unsettling lies ahead—and you'll find that out when you and your fellow travelers enter a primeval world where things get very scary, very quickly.

To the eerie chants of "Kong! Kong! Kong!" your guided tram drives through a towering set of doors where the skeletal remains of a great ape greet you. Put on your 3-D glasses, and soon other amazing sights will appear—namely Peg, a steely nerved scientist whose exploits are the centerpiece of the attraction. Swarms of bats are followed by swarms of pteranodons that lift her up and away, and now it's up to you to come to her rescue. Although Peg works to save herself, she lands in the middle of swamp infested with scorpions and slimy snakelike creatures. As she blasts them with a machine gun, you feel the splash of their guts before the tram speeds to the next scene, where velociraptors try taking a bite out of your tram. Those agile, snapping dinosaurs are soon overshadowed by a Tyrannosaurus rex, who is soon overshadowed by your hero: King Kong.

With the action taking place on both sides of the tram, you're in the middle of a high-energy, over-the-top battle that's thrilling from start to finish. Hint: after riding it once, go back again and wait for a seat on the opposite side to catch scenes you may have missed (they're just as exciting). This ride might be too intense for preteens. Pregnant women and guests with heart, back, neck, or motion-sickness problems should also skip this one. For people with disabilities: Guests using wheelchairs must transfer to a ride vehicle. The preshow is part of the fun, so go even if the line is long.

Housed in the St. Lucie County Aquarium and run by the Smithsonian Institute, whose research facility next door is where scientists study local ecosystems (once-monthly tours are organized), this facility has a 3,000-gallon coral-reef tank, originally located in the National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C. The parklike setting, where children love to play, makes it an ideal picnic destination. Admission is free on the first Tuesday of every month.

In this park, on a barrier island at the northernmost tip of New Smyrna Beach peninsula, 1½ miles of boardwalks leading to beaches and a fishing jetty crisscross sand dunes and delicate vegetation. Botanical signs identify the flora, and there are picnic tables and an information center. It's also one of the few county parks where pets are allowed (on leashes, that is).

Founded by international photographer Patrick Kahn, SNAP! is the leading repository of contemporary images in Orlando. The gallery in Colonialtown has shown cutting-edge photos from artists such as Shawn Theodore, Roger Ballen, and musician Moby, along with world premiere exhibitions, emerging graffiti artists, and even jewelry makers.

No water park would be complete without a meandering waterslide, and Blizzard Beach has this one. Here three flumes, each 350 feet long, descend from the top of Mt. Gushmore along a switchback course of ski-type slalom gates on the purple slopes. Snow Stormers offers an exciting change of pace from the straight-down slides of the green slopes, and riders are in for a grand total of eight hairpin turns before finally splashing into the pool at the bottom. This ride isn't appropriate for guests who are pregnant or who have heart, neck, or back problems. For people with disabilities: Guests using wheelchairs must transfer to a toboggan-style slide mat with handles. Hold on tight during this belly-down ride!

Despite widespread misconceptions of its members-only exclusivity, this privately endowed institution—founded in 1936 to encourage appreciation of art, music, drama, and literature—is funded for public enjoyment. The Esther B. O'Keeffe gallery building artfully melds an exhibition hall that houses traveling exhibits with a 700-seat theater. A library designed by prominent Mizner-peer Maurice Fatio, a children's library, a botanical garden, and the Philip Hulitar Sculpture Garden round out the facilities and are open daily. 

For a visit to the wild and weird side, particularly fun for children, head to this "castle" about 45 minutes east of Bradenton through orange groves and cattle farms. Artist and Renaissance man Howard Solomon began building the 12,000-square-foot always-in-progress work out of thousands of aluminum offset printing plates. Inside, you'll find tons of intrigues—everything from a knight assembled with Volkswagen parts to a chair fashioned out of 86 beer cans to an elephant made from seven oil drums. A restaurant serves sit-down lunches in a full-scale model of a Spanish galleon.

Perched high up on a dune, a large open-air pavilion at the east end of Palmetto Park Road offers a panoramic view of what's in store below on the sand that stretches up the coast. Serious beachgoers need to pull into the main lot a quarter mile north on the east side of A1A, but if a short-but-sweet visit is what you're after, the 15 or so one-hour spots with meters in the circle driveway will do (and not cost you the normal $15 parking fee). During the day, pretty young things blanket the shore and windsurfers practice tricks in the waves. Quiet quarters are farther north. Amenities: lifeguards; parking (fee); showers; toilets. Best for: sunset; swimming; walking; windsurfing.

The land for this 100-acre park, situated at the southern tip of the island, was originally purchased by John Ringling in 1920 as part of an ambitious plan to develop properties; alas, his scheme collapsed with the Florida land bust of 1926. The park sits amid four significant bodies of water: the Gulf of Mexico, Big Pass, Sarasota Bay, and Brushy Bayou.

Although it has one of the region's best beaches, swimming isn't recommended owing to the swift rip current, and there are no lifeguards. Still, the stretch of sugary sand has plenty of early-morning sand dollars to find, and there are nature trails to hike and canoe and kayak trails to paddle. The park is also a popular place to fish, enjoy a picnic, or watch as the sun sets amid the Australian pines and into the water. Amenities: showers; toilets. Best for: solitude; sunset; walking.

Possibly the most photographed site in Key West (even though the actual geographic southernmost point in the continental United States lies across the bay on a naval base, where you see a satellite dish), this is a must-see. Have your picture taken next to the big striped buoy that's been marking the southernmost point in the continental United States since 1983. A plaque next to it honors Cubans who lost their lives trying to escape to America, and other signs tell Key West history.

Inside the giant geosphere you are transported past tableaux that explore human progress and the continuing search for better forms of communication. The journey begins in the darkest tunnels of time, proceeds through history, and ends poised on the edge of the future. Revered author Ray Bradbury helped design the iconic ball and wrote the original story. Ten-time Emmy winner Bruce Broughton composed the musical score.

Audio-Animatronics figures present Cro-Magnon man daubing mystic paintings on cave walls, Egyptian scribes scratching hieroglyphics on papyrus, Roman centurions building roads, Islamic scholars mapping the heavens, and 11th- and 12th-century Benedictine monks hand-copying manuscripts. As you move into the Renaissance, there's Michelangelo and Gutenberg, and, in rapid succession, the telegraph, radio, television, and computer come into being. A family views the moon landing on TV, and soon the personal computer is born.

This ride has been updated multiple times over the years, always trying to incorporate the newest ideas for the future. The current Spaceship Earth emphasizes storytelling as what connects humanity, culminating in guests exiting at Dreamers Point, which honors Walt Disney who had his own gift for storytelling. For people with disabilities: You must be able to transfer to a standard wheelchair, then walk four steps to the ride vehicle. Guests with service animals should check with an attraction host for boarding information. The ride is equipped for handheld-captioning and audio-description devices available at Guest Relations.  Lines are longest in the morning and shortest just before closing.

At 76 acres and including extensive nature trails, this is by far one of the largest ocean parks in the southern half of Palm Beach County and a great pick for people who want more space and fewer crowds. Big groups, including family reunions, favor it because of the number of covered picnic areas for rent, but anyone can snag a free table (there are plenty) under the thick canopy of banyan trees. Even though the vast majority of the park is separated from the surf, you never actually have to cross A1A to reach the beach because tunnels run under it at several locations. Amenities: lifeguards; parking (fee); showers; toilets. Best for: solitude; swimming; walking.

Paralleled by a busy boulevard lined with sponge shops and Greek restaurants, this several-blocks-long waterfront showcases Tarpon Spring's Greek roots as well as the industry that first made the town thrive over a century ago. Stroll along the docks, and tons of small boutiques, bakeries specializing in baklava and the like, and several boat tours of the surrounding waters. Pop into the Sponge Docks Museum to see a film about the much-sought-after creatures from the phylum porifera and how they helped the town prosper in the early 1900s. You'll come away converted to (and loaded up with) natural sponges.

Founded in 1893, the Alligator Farm is one of Florida's oldest (and, at times, smelliest) zoological attractions and is credited with popularizing the alligator in the national consciousness and helping to fashion an image for the state. In addition to oddities like Maximo, a 15-foot, 1,250-pound saltwater crocodile, and a collection of rare albino alligators, the park is also home to Land of Crocodiles, the only place in the world to see 24 species of living crocodilians.

Traversing the treetops in Crocodile Crossing is an inventive, ambitious, and expensive course with more than 50 rope and other challenges and 17 zip lines. In many places, a thin cable is all that keeps you from becoming croc cuisine. The shorter Sepik River course (nine zip lines) is cheaper. Reptiles are the main attraction, but there's also a wading-bird rookery, an exotic-birds and mammals exhibit, a python cave, and nature trails. Educational presentations are held throughout the day, and kids love the wild-animal shows.

Just south of Anastasia State Park, this beach has a livelier setting, thanks to the restaurants, bars, and shops along Beachfront Avenue and the 4-acre St. Johns County Ocean Pier Park. The park offers a playground, small splash park, sand volleyball courts, a covered pavilion, and a Wednesday-morning farmers' market. From May to September, Music by the Sea concerts are offered for free. Speaking of free, the beach doesn't charge a fee, but the popular fishing pier does ($6 fishing pass, $2 pier pass for spectators). In addition, there are some areas designated for driving on the beach. Amenities: lifeguards (seasonal); parking (no fee); showers; toilets. Best for: swimming.

The first commercial block ice in Florida was made in this building over 100 years ago. Today, the structure has been transformed into a craft distillery that makes small batches of bourbon, rum, gin, and vodka using locally sourced ingredients. A self-guided tour takes you through the distilling process and provides insight on the operation's partnerships with small area farms. Samples during the tour include cocktails such as the Florida Mule and New World Gin and Tonic. A gift shop sells bottles of spirits, as well as bar gadgets and accessories.

It's unusual to find a lighthouse tucked into a residential neighborhood. This 1874 version replaced an earlier one built when the city was founded in 1565. Although its beacon no longer guides ships, it does draw thousands of visitors each year, in part because it has a reputation for being haunted.

The visitor center has a museum featuring an exhibit called Wrecked, which displays artifacts from an 1872 British loyalist shipwreck discovered off the shores of St. Augustine. You can also see exhibits on the U.S. Coast Guard, historic boatbuilding, maritime archaeology, and the life of a lighthouse keeper—whose work involved far more than light housekeeping.

You have to climb 219 steps to reach the top, 140 feet up, but the wonderful view and fresh ocean breeze are well worth it. Children must be at least 44 inches tall to make the ascent. The museum also conducts evening Dark of the Moon Paranormal tours ($25) and one-hour Lighthouse Keeper's tours ($19.95) for a history lesson and behind-the-scenes look at the keeper's role.

Inside this small museum established by entrepreneur and motivational speaker Pat Croce is a collection of more than 800 pirate artifacts, including one of only two Jolly Rogers (skull-and-crossbone flags) known to have actually flown above a ship. Exhibits include a mock-up of a tavern, a captain's quarters, and a ship's deck.

You'll learn about the lives of everyday and famous pirates, their navigation techniques, their weaponry, and the concoctions they drank (including something called Kill Devil, which is rum mixed with gunpowder). You'll get to touch an actual treasure chest; see piles of gold, jade, emeralds, and pearls; and leave knowing full well that there were pirates before Captain Jack Sparrow.