Everglades National Park. Florida.
Friday Jan 24th – Monday Jan 27th 2025
Friday: Travel Day
Philly, PA > Miami, FL
Click here to shop flights to Miami. I’m seeing fights as low as $85 from PHL > MIA in May 2026.
Our flight was supposed to be 6a-855a. However, we had a 4 hour delay. It was a total bummer looking at the clock, and knowing we were supposed to be on a guided tour of the Everglades, but we were still sitting in the Philly airport. However, we tried to keep our gratitude, as this was right around the time all those horrific plane crashes were happening. So, a delay is nothing in comparison. I was able to call and cancel/resched our reservation, without issue.
Once we landed, we picked up our Turo. Turo is a peer-to-peer car-sharing platform where people rent vehicles directly from local car owners instead of traditional rental companies. (Think Airbnb, but for cars). We like using it because it’s often cheaper than companies like Enterprise and it supports local individuals.
Next: 40 minute drive to our hotel. Tru for Hilton Florida City. Address: 217 N. Krome Avenue Florida City FL 33034, US.
Self-serve breakfast included. Free parking.
If you need more hotel recs for the area, check out my post Where to Stay to visit Everglades + Biscayne National Park
We grabbed tacos for dinner on the way to our hotel, at a total dive. El Tacazo. It was totally authentic and very good.
Saturday am: Everglades National Park (Shark Valley)
If you’re visiting Everglades National Park for the first time, it helps to know this right away: the park isn’t one single spot. It’s massive, and there are a few main access areas that are not close to each other.
From our hotel, it was about a one-hour drive to the Shark Valley Visitor Center.
Address: 36000 SW 8th Street Miami, Florida 33194
Visitor Center: 9:00AM – 5:00PM. Shark Valley Tram Tours: 8:30AM – 6:00PM. Parking Gate & Lot: 8:30AM – 6:00PM
We booked a 10:00 AM tram tour and were told to arrive by 9:30 AM, which gave us time to: Check in, potty, explore the visitor center, and grab my Everglades National Park decal sticker.
From the visitor center, there is a 7.5-mile paved loop road that leads through the heart of Shark Valley to a stunning observation tower. At the halfway point sits a 45-foot-high observation deck A gradual ramp makes it accessible and easy to climb.
The observation deck offers panoramic views of the Everglades, extending up to 20 miles in all directions.
You have three options to complete the 7.5-mile loop:
- Walk
- Technically doable, but I don’t recommend. It’s a lot of ground to cover. You’ll spend more time walking than sightseeing
- Bike
- Normally, this would be our go-to. You can move at your own pace. You’ll still see plenty of wildlife
- Tram Tour (What We Chose)
- The two-hour Everglades Tram Tour through Shark Valley is a fully guided eco-tour led by knowledgeable naturalists. The open-air tram makes it easy to spot wildlife on both sides of the road, and the narration adds so much context.
- We learned:
- Everglades history and preservation
- The ecosystem and water flow
- Wildlife behavior
- Hidden details we never would’ve learned on our own. Like. Did you know. There’s a “Florida Python Challenge.” The Florida Python Challenge is a conservation event aimed at reducing the population of invasive Burmese pythons in the Everglades. Participants are legally allowed to humanely hunt and remove pythons, which threaten native wildlife and disrupt the ecosystem. There are cash prizes and rewards based on the number and size of pythons removed.
Even though biking would’ve let us see the same areas, the education factor alone made the tram 100% worth it.
Tram Tour Pricing
- Adults (13–61): $33.00
- Seniors (62+): $25.00
- Children (3–12): $18.00
Book in advance if at all possible bc tours do sell out. Online ticket sales close 48 hours prior. Bc of our flight delay, and need to reschedule our tour after the 48 hour window, I had to call directly. They were super helpful and got us all taken care of.
We saw lotssss of alligators. Maybe 30? And a crocodile! They are literally right on the path next to you. I have seen them in zoos before, but being able to (please don’t) walk right up to one, without any barriers, is wild. Maybe people that live near gators lose this wow-factor after a while, but it was a surreal feeling for us northerners.
We saw lots of birds too, and turtles.
After completing the loop, there are a couple of short walks near the visitor center that are worth checking out if you’re not rushed.
Bobcat Boardwalk: Accessible boardwalk, 0.2 miles.
Ottercave Trail – Unpaved trail, 0.3 miles.
Saturday afternoon: Everglades National Park (Ernest F. Coe)
We drove from Shark Valley Visitors Center to Ernest F. Coe Visitors Center which was about a 1 hr 10 min drive. Got there around 130p.
Address: 40001 State Road 9336 Homestead, FL 33034
Hours: April – Mid December: 9a-5p; Mid December – March: 8a-5p
Start at the Ernest F. Coe Visitor Center and drive 38 miles (about 1 hour) to the Guy Bradley Visitor Center (formerly Flamingo Visitor Center). Along the way, there are multiple scenic and educational stops.
When we arrived at Ernest F. Coe, we grabbed a printed stop guide from the visitor center. Highly recommend doing this, as it outlines all the pull-offs and trails along the drive and makes planning super easy.
Along the way, there are multiple scenic and educational stops.
Stop 1: Anhinga Trail
- Distance: 0.8 miles
- Type: Paved boardwalk through wetlands
- Facilities: Bathrooms available
This is one of the best bang-for-your-buck stops in the park. The boardwalk loops through sawgrass and water, making wildlife incredibly easy to spot.
We saw:
- Turtles
- 3 alligators
- Tons of birds, including anhingas (the trail is named for them)
It’s flat, accessible, and a must-stop.
We also did the quick little loop of the Gumbo Limbo Trail
Stop 2: Pa-hay-okee Lookout Tower
- Drive: 13 miles from Anhinga Trail
- Distance: 0.16 miles round trip
- Style: Elevated boardwalk loop
This short stop offers an aerial view of Shark River Slough, a wide, shallow river that plays a major role in the Everglades’ water flow.
It’s a quick loop but gives you a great sense of just how vast and flat the Everglades really are.
Stop 3: Mahogany Hammock
- Drive: 10 miles; right-hand turn onto Mahogany Hammock Road (dead end)
- Distance: 0.5-mile boardwalk loop
This trail winds through a shaded hammock filled with some of the oldest and largest mahogany trees in the United States.
⚠️ Important warning: This area is known for aggressive biting flies. Other travelers have reported flies swarming faces, hair, and even biting through clothing, with itchy welts lasting days. Bug spray reportedly does nothing against them.
We debated skipping the loop and just stopping briefly, but since we were visiting in January, we decided to try it, and had zero flies. We enjoyed a peaceful walk, stayed comfortable, and even spotted a red-shouldered hawk.
Stop 4: Paurotis Pond
A designated bird nesting site, especially active during nesting season. This is a quick pull-off but worth it if you enjoy birdwatching.
Last Stop: Guy Bradley Visitor Center (Flamingo)
Our final stop was the Guy Bradley Visitor Center, previously known as the Flamingo Visitor Center. We made it here around 445p.
Address: 1 Flamingo Lodge Hwy Homestead, Florida 33034
Would you imagine, THIS is where the mosquitos were the worst? In the parking lot hahah
Inside, we walked around to check out the well-done educational exhibits, and use the restroom.
Then we checked out the small convenience store/souvenir shop (I think it’s technically a gas station lol) for snacks and drinks, at the Flamingo Marina.
My favorite moment of the entire Flamingo visit? Watching two manatees floating around the marina. I had never seen one in real life before, and we ended up sitting there for a long time just watching them surface and drift by.
Flamingo offers a surprising number of free and guided programs, many of which are seasonal.
Curious About Critters? An informal roaming program where rangers discuss manatees, crocodiles, osprey, and any wildlife that appears.
Ranger’s Choice! Each day features a different ranger-selected topic.
Mangrove March: Ranger-Guided Plant Walk. A guided walk focused on mangrove and tree species. Sun and insect protection encouraged.
Yes — free kayaking and canoeing is available with reservations.
Paddling in Paradise: Ranger-Guided Kayaking on Florida Bay. A strenuous kayak trip through Florida Bay led by a ranger. All equipment provided; prior paddling experience required.
Journey Through Nine Mile Pond: Ranger-Guided Canoe Trip. A moderately strenuous canoe trip through mangrove tunnels and open water. We weren’t able to participate because the wind chill was 41°F with gusts up to 20 mph, but this would have been an amazing (and free!) experience in better conditions.
Guided boat tours are also available daily for a fee.
Trips explore either Whitewater Bay or Florida Bay, sometimes led by park rangers, and offer a deeper look into the Marjory Stoneman Douglas Wilderness.
After grabbing a snack, we headed back out of the park, planning to stop at anything we missed, but we’d already hit all the stops we wanted on the way in. By now it was 6p, and we were hungry.
Saturday pm: Dinner
On our way through Homestead, we stopped at Havana Spice Restaurant, and it was such a fun surprise. The place is filled with wild, colorful decorations that immediately catch your eye and give it a lively, almost kitschy charm. They have ice cream right next door too! It felt like a great local stop to break up the drive and soak in some Cuban-inspired flavor before heading back to our hotel.
Address: 30530 S Dixie Hwy, Homestead, FL 33033 from here we had a 10 minute drive back to our Tru by Hilton Florida City.
That wraps up our 1 day in the Everglades!
One major area we didn’t visit was the Gulf Coast / Everglades City side of the park. This section is best known for boat tours through mangroves and the Ten Thousand Islands and is a great option if you have extra time or want a more water-focused experience. Since it’s quite a drive from the other areas, many visitors (including us) choose to save it for a future trip.
However. Our trip wasn’t over yet! While we were in the area, we wanted to check off another NP.
Biscayne National Park, here we come!
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