Day Trips

Everglades Day Trip Adventure

Spend a day in the Everglades - the fascinating natural place, located about a 2 hour drive from your Cape Coral vacation home.  

Sometimes called the "River of Grass," the Florida Everglades is one of the most extensive, complex, and renowned wetland ecosystems in the world. Basically a long, shallow river, “the Glades” are nearly 50 miles wide and more than 100 miles long.

The Everglades' wet sawgrass prairies, dry tropical hardwood hammocks and pinelands, mangrove swamps and Florida Bay and Gulf Coast estuaries provide habitat for a wildlife spectacle like no other.

It is home to a multitude of plants, animals, and birds—both resident and migratory—that live in some habitats not found anywhere else on the North American continent. Plant and animal species from both the West Indies and North America are found in this subtropical region. Tropical plants and animals predominate in southern regions of the Everglades, whereas temperate species are common in the north.

The one and only Everglades has many adventures to offer

Our Everglades tips will help you to pick the adventure that suits you and your family.

The Anhinga Trail is a fantastic place to take a short walk through nature. On the trail there are many types of wildlife to be seen. It is a guarantee to see alligators on the trail. Also on the trail there are cormorants, anhinga, heron, ibis, egrets, black vultures, hawks, turtles and many more. There is also a gift shop to bring home Everglades souvenirs.

You can book a guided Everglades tour, or explore on your own. You will find plenty of airboat rental places and alligator viewing spots. Always remember -  you are in the Everglades, so make sure to bring bug spray and sun block and respect the wildlife you are viewing!



Take an airboat ride through the swamps of the Everglades or climb atop Shark Valley's 65-foot observation tower for a bird's eye view of the Glades. You can glide over Florida Bay by tour boat or kayak for a chance to glimpse an alligator, manatee, or dolphin. Watch as the sun sets over Flamingo, the southernmost point on mainland Florida.

Explore the pinelands by bike, paddle amongst the mangroves on Nine-Mile Pond, or tour the historic Nike Hercules missile base. Join a ranger on a slough slog deep into the heart of a cypress dome. Find solitude on your own on a week-long canoe trip, camping along the 99-mile Wilderness Waterway. Or visit the Miccosukee Indian Village and experience how the Miccosukee Indian Tribe existed and still exists in “The Heart of the Florida Everglades.”

Park Entrance Fees - Entrance Stations are in Homestead and Shark Valley

Private Vehicle:  $10.00 - Good for 7 consecutive days at all park entrances.
Pedestrian/ Cyclist: $5.00 - Good for 7 consecutive days at all park entrances.
Everglades National Park Annual Pass: $ 25.00

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