Tour the Everglades Through All 4 Everglades National Park Visitor Centers

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One of our first major trips of the year led us south away from the cold New York winter to visit Florida for a few days. We decided to go a bit spontaneously based on some good flight deals (what else is new) and wanted to try out the National Park pass I got Mike for Christmas. I have been to Florida several times before, but this is the first chance I really have to write about it. With multiple visitor centers around different areas of the park, here are some options for things to do at each Everglades National Park visitor center.

History of the Everglades

While we were visiting the park, all of our guides were very knowledgeable and we were able to learn a lot about the areas we were visiting. Here are some facts from our guides that was pretty interesting.

Everglades National Park is the third largest U.S. National Park in the lower 48 states, behind Death Valley and Yellowstone. However, the area currently protected by the park is only around 20% of what used to be the Everglades. Development has reduced much of the area’s ecosystem, making it urgent to national park supporters to protect the Everglades. In 1947, Harry Truman dedicated Everglades National Park as protected land.

Everglades National Park is one of the only parks created to protect biodiversity instead of a geologic wonder like the Grand Canyon. The park contains the largest diversity of wading birds in the United States, and the mangrove trees that make up such a large part of the park form the largest mangrove forest in the Western Hemisphere. These trees are key to the Everglades survival due to their ability to filter saltwater.

Getting to the Everglades

Since we flew into Fort Myers, we chose to visit the visitor centers in a clockwise order: Gulf Coast Visitor Center, Shark Valley, Ernest F. Coe, and then didn’t quite make it down to the fourth Visitor Center, Flamingo, in the Southern Glades. It would be all but impossible to make it to all four in one day, as it takes about an hour to drive between any of the entrances but each one offers unique activities to get a complete picture of the glades.

What to Pack for the Everglades

1. Bug Spray - Going into a swamp this should go without saying, but be sure to bring bug spray with you on your trip!
2. Lightweight, long-sleeved clothing
3. Sunscreen
4. Comfortable (Waterproof) Shoes
5. Camera with zoom lens to capture all of the beautiful wildlife

1. Gulf Coast Visitor Center (Everglades City, FL)

10,000 Islands Everglades National Park Boat Tour

Up first on our trip to the Everglades was a boat tour through the Ten Thousand Islands along the Gulf Coast of Florida. The southern part of the Ten Thousand Islands is considered part of Everglades National Park and trips start from the Gulf Coast Visitor Center. If you aren’t planning on taking a boat tour out, there isn’t anything worth seeing at the Gulf Coast center; Hurricane Irma damaged much of the area in 2017 and while there is a makeshift rangers’ office and trailer toilets, not much else is there. The tour was definitely a great start to our trip though, despite the lack of other things to do.

The Ten Thousand Islands Tour is not actually run by the National Park itself, but we were lucky enough to have a park ranger on the tour with us. Even without the ranger, however, our guides were very knowledgeable about the area and wildlife. In fact, it turns out there are far more than 10,000 islands. Our captain estimated there were closer to 16,000 because any individual mangrove tree or formation sticking out of the water counts as an individual “island”. Most of the islands don’t really have any land at all, but the roots of the mangroves form the basis of the islands.

Throughout the entire tour we saw a ton of wildlife, from a bunch of different species of birds to some dolphins that wanted to play in the waves caused by the motors of our boat. One of my favorite pictures of the entire trip was the brown pelican pictured below. He looks pretty large, but compared to his white pelican cousins he’s only about half the size. We were lucky to catch the white pelicans before they migrated north for the summer.

The stars of the tour though were the dolphins. We happened to find a small pod feeding and were lucky enough that they were feeling playful and wanted to follow in our wake for a bit. The dolphins and other sea mammals like manatees in this area are actually a bit darker than most. Their skin (and the water itself) are stained by tannins emitted by the mangrove trees. The water in the pictures looks more blue because of the reflection of the sky, but in reality the water is quite dark and murky.

Pro Tip: Try to find a tour during low tide. According to our guide, you’re more likely to see animals feeding during these times.

The tour itself lasts about two hours and was a great way to kickoff our day. There was a nearby lookout tower overlooking the water and a tiny gift shop across the street, but otherwise once the tour was finished we took off to our next destination: Shark Valley.

2. Shark Valley Visitor Center

Shark Valley Bike Rentals

One of the most popular options at Shark Valley Visitor Center is to rent a bike and ride around the 15 mile loop to the observation tower. As it would take half a day to walk it, it’s much more time efficient to grab a bike and takes on average a few hours, depending on how much time you spend at the observation deck and how often you stop along the trail. Bikes are rented by the hour and the path itself is relatively flat, but provides little cover from the sun. If you do decide to do the full loop, be prepared with extra water, especially in the summer months. We ended up riding a few miles, but I wasn’t quite in shape enough to think I’d make it the full loop in the heat of the afternoon. Maybe next time!

One word of caution when visiting any of these centers is to be on your guard. The mama gator below was protecting her babies right alongside the bike path. With the help of a nice zoom camera we were able to hop off our bikes to get a few quick shots, but there were many people standing dangerously close to the animals. For the animals’ safety as well as ours, it is recommended to stay around 15ft away from them at all times and to not attempt to feed or otherwise interact with the wildlife. There aren’t any fences separating you from the wildlife when in the park and alligators and other animals can hide well in the shallow waters and grassy swamps of the Everglades. Better to be safe than sorry.

Shark Valley Tram

Another option for visiting the lookout tower is to take the tram that runs back and forth to the tower. The prices seemed a little steep for our tastes but you can check out tram times here. Note that purchasing a tram tour ticket does not include the price of entrance into the national park. The tour takes about 2 hours and is led by very knowledgeable guides, but doesn’t necessarily allow you to stop along the trail to check out wildlife the way riding a bike at your own pace might. If you have smaller children that cannot bike to the tower, this would be a great way to spend the afternoon as a family.

3. Ernest F. Coe Visitor Center (Homestead, FL)

Ernest F. Coe is considered the “Father of the Everglades”. He was one of its strongest supporters in the early 1900s and years after his death in the 1990s the main visitor center near Homestead, FL was dedicated in his name. The visitor center itself is just before the actual park entrance and contains a variety of exhibits. We were able to stop in here for our stamp in our new book, Passport to Your National Parks Collector’s Edition. This was one of my favorite purchases of the trip and I can’t wait to add more stamps to it. We collected 3 stamps on our trip to Florida: Everglades National Park, Big Cypress National Preserve, and Biscayne National Park.

Anhinga Trail

When we first started on the Anhinga Trail, we watched in awe/terror as what appeared to be a snake swam through the wetlands with a fish in its mouth. Upon its’ arrival to the shoreline, however, we discovered that it was just an anhinga having a snack. It turns out the plentiful birds are also referred to as “snakebirds” for exactly this reason. They spear their prey with sharp beaks and then carry them above the water as they swim to shore to kill the fish faster. Because they hold the fish out of the water, only their necks can be seen above the waterline, making the anhingas look like a snake.

The trail is a great place to see wildlife including tons of bird species, alligators, and turtles. The trail itself is more of a paved pathway on the dry land that leads to boardwalks over the marshy areas. A similar boardwalk exists a bit farther down the road at the Pay-Hay-Okee trail. The Gumbo Limbo trail is a half mile loop right near the Ahinga Trail for a chance to look at some of the flora outside of the sawgrass marshes.

Bonus: The Miami Brewing Company is only a few miles from the entrance to the Ernest F. Coe Visitor Center. This place was absolutely amazing, one of the best brewery layouts we’ve ever been in. It had pool tables and a huge bar, a place for live music, couches and comfortable bar seating all within view of their tanks in a giant barn-like building. My only complaint was that it was a bit dark in there, but the beers were delicious! They have far more beers on the menu than are on their website, but some of our favorites were the Shark Bait Mango Wheat and the blonde ales, which were light but malty, something I found a bit unique as there were far fewer hops than many paler ales.

4. Flamingo Visitor Center

Flamingo was the only Everglades Visitor Center we didn’t make it to on our trip to the national park. The Flamingo area is around 40 miles beyond the Ernest F. Coe Visitor Center and since the road itself is contained within the park, there isn’t much in the way of amenities. Besides those camping, you are unlikely to get a ton of day trip visitors like ourselves, just because it’s so far out of the way from any major airport. The area between Flamingo and Coe is referred to as the Marjory Stoneman Douglas Wilderness. Douglas was a friend of Coe’s and a fellow supporter of the Everglades. She was a journalist and author, including a book called The Everglades: River of Grass which provides a lot of great detail on the ecology of the area if you are interested in learning more.

Kayaking/Canoeing

Kayaks and canoes are available for rent at the Flamingo Visitor Center and there are several one way water trails near the Flamingo Marina with a range of difficulty. You may also choose to go with a guide if you are not an experienced navigator as many of the mangrove islands look so similar it is easy to get lost.

Camping

Because this area is so remote, there are many options for camping at Flamingo Visitor Center. The sites have easy access to the many hiking areas around Flamingo. Some sites do have electricity, but it is recommended to reserve these well in advance of your trip. To reserve a campsite check out the National Park website. There are a couple hundred sites to camp here with limited amenities. There are also 45 back-country campsites, some of which can only be reached by boat and are set on wooden platforms called chickees above the water. I personally can’t imagine sleeping peacefully while tent camping in an alligator infested area, but I’m sure it’s an incredible way to get closer to nature. The National Park Service has a great map for many of the backcountry campsites that lie on the coast between the Gulf Coast and Flamingo Visitors’ Centers.

Hiking

There are over 20 miles of trails surrounding the Flamingo entrance ranging from short half-mile strolls to the 15 mile Coastal Prairie Trail. Some of the trails throughout the park are more like hiking trails, others are more like boardwalks built above the marsh below similar to the Anhinga Trail at the Palm Beach center near the Coe Visitor Center. There isn’t a ton of elevation gain throughout any areas of the park, but definitely bring lots of bug spray and waterproof shoes.

Why I Don’t Recommend an Everglades Airboat Tour

One of the most famous activities in the Everglades is an airboat tour. In the drive between the Gulf Coast Visitor Center and Shark Valley alone you’ll find tons of options for doing an Everglades airboat tour. On our trip we chose not to do a tour, but I think I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention such a popular Everglades attraction in my post. There are a few reasons why we decided against the airboats. The first is that some of the tours in the area are unethical. They may bait the gators in order to guarantee seeing the wildlife on each trip, or otherwise disturb natural habitats. Some even advertise things like “Gator wrestling” or have small “zoos” with animals in cages. The boats are also quite loud; think of a helicopter turned on its side and you have the general picture. This just didn’t seem like a ton of fun to me and I’d rather be able to listen to the guides and learn something about the area like we did on our other tour. You really don’t need an airboat in order to get up close and personal with the wildlife here.

If you are set on doing an airboat tour, look for the ones that are endorsed by the National Park. At the time of this writing there are three companies authorized to do airboat tours listed on the NPS website. Avoid any that offer these types of sideshow “zoos”; there are plenty of animals to see in their natural habitat.

Everglades National Park Map of All Entrances

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