A weekend in the Florida Everglades (Nov 2023)

Day 1:

The Everglades are just a 3.5 hour drive from Tampa, or less than 1.5 hours from Miami. From Tampa, there are many places en route to grab snacks and take toilet breaks. The drive is scenic along part of the route, particularly the St Pete Skyway bridge on the i275, the Bradenton and Sarasota area on the i75. The blue waters are gorgeous!

Our first stop was the United States' smallest operating Post Office. The post office was built in 1953 and is essentially a 61.3 square foot shed. It only takes a couple of minutes to stop for photos and stretch your legs here, and is a great starting point as you enter the Everglades.

Roughly 15 minutes further down the road was our second attraction, the 24-mile Loop Road scenic drive. The Loop Road is located in the Big Cypress National Wildlife Reserve. It's clearly marked on the highway and turns quickly from a tarmacked road into a very long dirt track! Allow a good 1.5 to 2 hours to drive. It has to be driven slowly to see the wildlife on either side of the track. There are many alligators along this route! They like to hang out by the culverts and bridges. It's a really enjoyable experience and totally free, so it was a winner for us! (sidenote, make sure you have enough gas to get you through the route because it's a long way from civilization).

As we exited the Loop Road, we were only 5 minutes from our third attraction, the Shark Valley National Park. We had booked a 2pm tram tour here and were excited to climb the observation tower. We found ourselves stuck in a long queue to enter the park and quickly learned that November until March is the busiest time of year and to expect long waits throughout the season. There is a small visitors center to check out while you wait for your tram tour, but no cafe or fresh food options, so it's advisable to take some coffee and snacks to tide you over during your time here.

On the 2 hour tram ride, we rode to the Shark Valley Observation Tower and were allotted 15 minutes to climb the tower and take in the panoramic views. The view spans around 20 miles and is stunning. It's very picturesque. On the tram, we saw a couple of alligators in the water beside the road and plenty of birds, and the tram slowed for us to take some pictures. The journey back was dark so we weren't able to see any wildlife, but the tour guide told us some interesting facts and tales along the route. We enjoyed the tour, and for roughly $26 per person, it was worth the money. I would choose the earlier tram if we return, though, to maximize the opportunity to see wildlife in the daylight.

Day 2:

We checked in to Captain Mitch’s at 0900 for our airboat tour. I don't think any trip to the Everglades is complete without a boat tour, and we were excited to see some more wildlife. On arrival, we could see a couple of big gators hanging around the boats in the water, and we stumbled across one really big one hiding in the water by the ticket center. Our 1-hour tour glided us through some mangrove tunnels and into the heart of the swamps. It was so scenic and peaceful. We also glided into a local alligator’s territory - named Daisy - and she swam right up to the boat to greet us. That was the highlight for us! Our experience here was excellent. I highly recommend it to anyone seeking an honest depiction of the Everglades and an eco-friendly tour of nature.

Being a national park, the Everglades don't have many food options close by, although Everglades City is probably your best bet for local restaurants. It houses some local seafood food spots and some cafes to grab breakfast in. None of the menus excited us as a vegetarian/vegan family. There were some options, but very overpriced for basic meals. With that in mind, we packed our own food for this trip. It was a fun picnic-style culinary experience!