Florida’s Other Attractions
Everyone knows about Florida’s main attractions (beaches, Orlando theme parks, etc.). But there is much more to see and do in Florida.
Coworker Brian Connor, who recently moved from Denver to south Florida, complained that there are fewer cultural activities here. So, David Fernandez and I teamed to prove him wrong…Some lesser known attractions (with a south Florida slant) include:
- ArtCenter/South Florida, Miami Beach
- ArtSouth, Homestead
- Ancient Spanish Monastery, Miami Beach
- Bill Bragg Lighthouse, Key Biscayne
- The Barnacle, Coconut Grove
- Boca Raton Museum of Art, Boca Raton
- Butterfly World, Fort Lauderdale
- Coral Castle, Homestead
- Deering Estate, Cutler Ridge
- Fairchild Tropical Garden, Coral Gables
- Gold Coast Railroad Museum, Miami
- HistoryMiami Museum, formerly known as the Historical Museum of Southern Florida, Miami
- John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park, Key Largo
- Jules Verne Undersea Lodge, Key Largo
- Lowe Art Museum, Coral Gables
- McKee Botanical Garden, Vero Beach
- Miami MetroZoo, Miami
- Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science, formerly known as Miami Museum of Science & Planetarium, Miami
- Miami Seaquarium, Miami
- Miccosukee Indian Village, Everglades
- Morikami Museum & Japanese Gardens, Delray Beach
- NSU Art Museum, Fort Lauderdale, formerly known as Museum of Art, Fort Lauderdale
- Museum of Science & Discovery, Fort Lauderdale
- Norton Museum of Art, West Palm Beach
- Jungle Island, formerly known as Parrot Jungle, Miami
- Venetian Pool, Coral Gables
- Viscaya Museum, Miami
Florida History & the Arts magazine (published by Florida Trend) recently highlighted the state’s National Historic Landmarks:
- Bethune (Mary McLeod) Home, Daytona Beach
- Historic Bok Sanctuary, Lake Wales
- British Fort, Sumatra
- Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Coca
- Cathedral of St. Augustine, St. Augustine
- Crystal River Site, Crystal River
- Dade Battlefield, Bushnell
- El Centro Espanol de Tampa, Tampa
- Fort Mose Site, St. Augustine
- Fort San Carlos de Barrancas, Pensacola
- Fort San Marcos de Apalache, St. Marks
- Fort Walton Mound, Fort Walton Beach
- Fort Zachary Taylor, Key West
- Freedom Tower, Miami
- Gonzales-Alvarez House, St. Augustine
- Governor Stone, Point Washinton
- Hemingway (Ernest) House, Key West
- Hurston (Zora Neale) House, Fort Pierce
- Llambias House, St. Augustine
- Maple Leaf, Mandarin
- Mar-A-Lago, Palm Beach
- Miami-Biltmore Hotel & Country Club, Coral Gables
- Newnan’s Lake, Gainesville
- Okeechobee Battlefield, Okeechobee
- Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge, Sebastian
- Pensacola Naval Air Station Historic District, Pensacola
- Plaza Ferdinand VII, Pensacola
- Ponce de Leon Inlet Light Station, Ponce Inlet
- Safety Harbor Site, Safety Harbor
- San Luis de Apalache, Tallahassee
- St. Augustine Town Plan Historic District, St. Augustine
- Tampa Bay Hotel, Tampa
- United States Car No. 1, Miami
- Vizcaya, Miami
- Whitehall, Palm Beach
- Windover Archaeological Site, Titusville
- Ybor City Historic District, Tampa
