There are dozens of must see places on a Florida road trip in the US. Unfortunately, most travelers have a set number of days they can dedicate to exploring, so this itinerary focuses primarily on South Florida for two weeks and has a few more options thrown in farther north if you want to head up the coast (which I recommend!). There are only 12 days with definite plans to allow a day or so on each end for travel and recuperation time.
I do want to mention, if you follow this itinerary to a T, there might be some back-and-forth driving. However, it is how I chose to do this trip, and I enjoyed “clumping” the outdoorsy activities and the more urban choices.
Everglades National Park (Days 1-3)
Start off your South Florida road trip with the incredible UNESCO World Heritage-listed wetlands. The Everglades make up 1.5 million acres across southern Florida, but the National Park area is by far my favorite. Hiking, kayaking, airboat tours, and more are prevalent and available to see crocodiles, manatees, and the elusive Florida panther (hopefully!).
Day 1-2: Flamingo and Long Key Pine Districts in the Everglades National Park
Start off camping the night before in the district farthest from “civilization.” Flamingo Campground is an incredible place to star watch as the Everglades National Park is an International Dark Sky Park, which means it has an exceptionally starry night (light pollution is low enough to see many stars). You can enjoy the skies on subsequent nights as well, of course!
The exact activities you undertake depends entirely on you, but I have several guides to the Everglades to give you some ideas: How to Have an Amazing Adventure in Everglades National Park, A Guide to Visiting Everglades National Park, and Trails in the Everglades: Ranked from Best to Worst.
Hiking is an extremely popular activity, as are airboat tours and getting on the water (whether it’s kayaking, canoeing, or boating). My guides give even more options if you want some more unique things to do on your South Florida road trip!
You may want to move to a campsite closer to the entrance (like Long Key Pine) for night two because you will head to a different area of the park tomorrow, but I stayed in Flamingo the whole time and enjoyed it.
Day 3: Ten Thousand Islands Boat Tour and Shark Valley
Everglades National Park is unique in that it has three distinct areas with different visitor’s centers and names (see my guide to Everglades National Park for details). On days one and two, you explored the “main section,” and on day three of your South Florida road trip itinerary, you will get to explore the other two! I recommend staying in a campground in Big Cypress National Preserve tonight.
The Gulf Coast Visitor is “home” to the Ten Thousand Islands boat tour where you are most likely to see dolphins, dozens of birds, and the elusive manatee. You can also go out on your own, but you are less likely to see the wildlife, and unless you know the background of the area, you may not get much out of the experience. There are several tours throughout the day, but this South Florida road trip itinerary suggests you start as early as possible so you can enjoy the Shark Valley area of the Everglades.
Shark Valley Visitor Center is the base for the tram tour many people embark on. There are also several airboat tours in the area just outside this area of the park. If neither of these options appeal to you in this area of the park, you can bike or hike the paved 15-mile Shark Valley Loop Road. Make sure to venture at least to the observation deck at mile 7 if you do not take the tram or go around the whole road.
Day 4: Big Cypress National Preserve/drive toward Biscayne National Park
There will be some back and forth driving depending on the activities you choose to do in Big Cypress National Preserve and where you stay (I camped at Midway Campground). Nathaniel P. Reed Visitor Center is a great stop to *potentially* see more manatees if you did not get any clear views at Gulf Coast. However, manatees are not always in the water behind the center, so you may only do some reading or picture-viewing here.
Another popular activity in Big Cypress National Preserve is Loop Road Scenic Drive. It is an activity you can do on the way from Nathaniel P. Reed Visitor Center to Oasis Visitor Center. Oasis Visitor Center is a must-stop to see the alligators in the river – again, they aren’t always there, but they usually are. Loop Road, on the other hand, is not a must stop for me. It took several hours, and there are quite a few stops to see alligators, but it is not worth the time. Not going to lie, it was boring for me, but I included it because many people do it and enjoy it.
For more detail on visiting Big Cypress on your South Florida road trip itinerary, read my article on One Day in Big Cypress National Preserve.
Make your way toward Biscayne National Park to stay the night. I stayed in Florida City in a hostel for price, but there are a few options in the area (you can always camp again if you don’t mind more driving!).
Day 5: Biscayne National Park
Biscayne National Park has dozens of tours offered through The Biscayne National Park Institute. It is an incredible watery wonderland, so it is a must-stop on your South Florida road trip itinerary. Several of their tours were unavailable when I visited (e.g., the island tours, Stiltsville, etc.), and many of the others were booked, so I only had the option to scuba dive. I loved it, but if you want to do more than that, you may need to plan more than a day here. You can also kayak, canoe, or boat on your own – but like with the Ten Thousand Islands tour, I enjoy getting more information from the guides.
If you get an early enough tour, you should be able to head to Key West. There are lots of places to stop on the way to Key West, or you can stop on one of the earlier Keys if any of these things to do in the Florida Keys stick out to you. Feel free to add or subtract days here if you’d rather dedicate more time to anything on that list – I was able to do everything I wanted in less than a day (albeit, some things were closed, like the National Key Deer Refuge).
Day 6-9: Key West
I know what you are thinking. Key West on a budget? Yes, it’s possible! It will probably be the most expensive part of your trip, but Key West can absolutely fit in a budget road trip in South Florida. Read my post about it for more detail.
Three days in Key West is a great amount of time to spend there to experience a ton of the area while staying true to your South Florida road trip itinerary. It will be quite expensive, but it is a unique once-in-a-lifetime town. Something happens when you step (or bike – please bike instead of drive) into Old Town that only people who have been there understand. There is a calmness with an undercurrent of bright energy that pervades the Key and everyone living there.
My suggested itinerary is linked above, but the highlights you should hit include The Ernest Hemingway Museum, sunset at Mallory Square and/or Zachary Taylor State Park, the Key West Garden Club, and a boat tour if that’s viable. Be sure to stop by The Cafe for vegan key lime pie (it’s technically cheesecake, but still good)!
If you have extra time, consider visiting Dry Tortugas National Park and Fort Jefferson. I wanted to, but was not able to make the dates they had available work with what I wanted to do (camping). It also seems best to go with at least one other person because of the way campsites are set up, if camping is on your agenda.
Day 10-11: Miami
Miami is famous for its beaches and parties, neither of which are things I am interested in. Therefore, I did not stay in Miami for long – I did stop by South Beach and drive around to see the architecture. Mostly, though, I stayed in the city part of Miami, not the beach. It was by far my preference.
In the morning, I walked through the city to visit Vizcaya Museum and Gardens, which is a beautiful former villa of a well-off businessman. Really, it is noteworthy because it adapted traditional European aesthetics to the climate and needs of South Florida. After spending the morning exploring (between 2-3 hours), head to Wynwood, Miami for the rest of the afternoon. Wynwood is famous for street art and murals – the Wynwood Walls, one of the biggest draws, used to be free to visit, but that has changed. In addition to the walls, there is also a Museum of Graffiti, restaurants, and free art to see.
Day 12: Fort Lauderdale
Fort Lauderdale has a lot of the same things decent sized big cities have (meaning not as big as NYC, London, or LA, but still big cities) like museums, restaurants, and shopping areas. However, it’s worth a stop for several reasons. The two biggest draws for me are the Riverwalk and access to sunset views over the Everglades (I highly recommend Sawgrass Trailhead). I spent one day in Fort Lauderdale and felt like I experienced what I wanted to. Other things in the area include Flamingo Gardens, Bonnet House Museum & Gardens (which I did not visit), and Hugh Taylor Birch State Park.
Day 13 and on: Your Choice
I spent some time in Orlando with my family, then headed up to St. Augustine for a day. I also headed up to Charleston, South Carolina for a couple of days and had a fantastic time. However, once you leave Fort Lauderdale, you have left South Florida. So, if you have more than 12 days on your South Florida road trip (including travel time), consider adding other places in Florida or further up the east coast, or add more time in one of the previous locations. (I actually went back to the Everglades one day when I had some free time!) You can even venture farther west – there are some cool waterfalls in places like Falling Waters State Park and Devil’s Millhopper Geological State Park, plus manatees and springs in Crystal River. There are no wrong choices on your South Florida road trip as long as you have fun.
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