The Sunshine State is blessed with 8,436 miles of shoreline along the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean, and sandy beaches account for about 825 miles of that expanse. While Florida’s beaches are rightfully beloved as some of the best in the nation, lounging in the sun isn’t the only way to enjoy the state, which is filled with other natural wonders, abundant wildlife, historic sites, and rich cultural institutions. Here, five ways to experience Florida that won’t require a bathing suit.
Take a Dip in One of the State’s 1,000 Natural Springs
Florida is home to one of the highest concentrations of natural freshwater springs in the world, and you can enjoy the crystal-clear, 72-degree waters by swimming, snorkeling, kayaking, or tubing. In Silver Springs and Wakulla Springs, you can ride a glass-bottom boat and keep your eyes peeled for manatees lumbering buoyantly beneath the surface, while the gorgeous Rainbow Springs has attracted visitors with the promise of healing properties for more than 10,000 years.
Tour an Unexpected Collection of Frank Lloyd Wright Buildings
Did you know that Florida Southern College, in Lakeland, boasts the largest single-site collection of Frank Lloyd Wright architecture in the world? Collectively known as Child of the Sun, the campus can be explored via a number of architecture and design tours, including a 2.5-hour in-depth walk through six stops including the T. Roux Library and the Annie Pfeiffer Chapel. If you’re pressed for time, you can take a condensed, half-hour tour of the Usonian Faculty House, which was designed in 1939 but only recently completed and was envisioned as the first unit in a planned faculty housing neighborhood.
See What’s New at Everglades National Park
Located at the southern end of mainland Florida, Everglades National Park may be coastal, but the experience here is less about the beach and more about the “river of grass,” a network of wetlands and forests teeming with wildlife like alligators (and crocodiles!), black bears, manatees, and even the critically endangered Florida panther. This year saw the reopening of the hurricane-destroyed Guy Bradley Visitor Center in Flamingo and the adjacent Flamingo Lodge & Restaurant, the park’s only hotel, which comprises a series of elevated shipping containers.
Go Museum-Hopping in St. Petersburg
Known for its newly revitalized pier and killer microbrewery scene, St. Petersburg has also emerged in recent years as a surprisingly robust museum town. The biggest attention-grabber is certainly the Salvador Dalí Museum, which occupies an appropriately surrealist building that combines severe concrete lines with a blob-like glass atrium. Nearby, the Museum of Fine Arts houses a collection that includes Monets, Gauguins, Renoirs, and Cézannes, while other institutions around town include the James Museum of Western & Wildlife Art, the Chihuly Collection, and the Museum of the American Arts & Crafts Movement.
Explore Street Art in Wynwood
Miami’s artsy Wynwood district, north of downtown, often shows up on lists of the most hipster-friendly neighborhoods in the world, thanks to its locally roasted coffee shops, microbreweries, galleries, and boutiques. One of the most frequented attractions is Wynwood Walls, an open-air street art museum comprising 35,000 square feet of murals by more than 100 artists.
