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Homestead Florida
has enough attractions to keep you busy for days on end. To start, there’s the Alligator Farm in Homestead, which is the oldest such farm in south Florida, and is home to 3,000 ‘gators of all sizes. See daily alligator and snake shows, view crocodile ponds and wildlife shows. For something truly unique, visit Homestead’s Coral Castle. This intriguing piece of architecture was built over a period of twenty years using over 1,100 tons of sculpted coral. It is said that it’s builder, Edward Leedskalnin, labored over the castle as a memorial to his fiancée, who broke off their engagement on the eve of their wedding. This is just the beginning of your sightseeing in the Homestead area. Just minutes away is the Everglades National Park, the Florida Keys and and Biscayne National Park. Each of these three, well known, magnificent attractions is described in more detail below.
The Everglades National Park is an ecological wonder. Located just a short drive from the town of Homestead is the largest subtropical wilderness area in the continental U.S., and the only ecosystem of its kind in the world. There are no other Everglades – this is it. There are five different visitor centers in the park and each area of the park has its own attractions and features a different set of plant and animal life. The Everglades is a quiet place where mere inches of elevation produce distinct changes in vegetation. It is almost exclusively a biological park where a great number of birds and other wildlife find refuge. The park is open year round and the highest visitation is from December through April. There are walking and canoe trails, boat tours and tram tours available for viewing the wildlife, alligators, tropical and temperate birds.
Key Largo is the northernmost of the Florida Keys and the dive capital of the world. Islamorada is known as the sport fishing capital of the world, and Marathon is the center of the Keys, where the view from the Old Seven-Mile Bridge is stunning. A walk or bike ride over the Bridge is a must for anyone visiting Marathon. Big Pine and the Lower Keys are laid back and uncrowded. You can snorkel or dive over the Looe Key coral reef, bike ride through the countryside or go fishing in the backcountry. Key West is the southernmost city in the continental United States and perhaps the best known of the Keys. Here you can visit a city where buildings date back to the Kings of Spain and coexist with gingerbread mansions and tin-roofed houses. Visit Ernest Hemingway’s home and stroll palm-lined streets where you can discover fine art treasures and antiques. Everyone who visits Key Largo must see Mallory Dock at dusk when everyone gathers to celebrate the sunset.
Biscayne National Park has crystal clear waters, emerald isles, and living coral reefs that attract nearly 500,000 visitors a year. You can fish, cruise, go picnicking and camping on the islands, and snorkel and dive among some of the world’s most exciting living coral reefs. Glass bottom boat tours are available, and a picturesque boardwalk takes you along the shoreline out to the rock jetty near the boat channel that heads out into the bay.
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