Recreational Activities and Adventures
Southwest Florida is known as the Golf Capital of the World. More than 200 challenging courses pepper the area for players casual and competitive. As the snowbirds head north in the spring, course rates drop significantly and tee times are much easier to come by. If you're lucky, you can find one of the many private courses open to the public from May through October.
The area is brimming for environmental enthusiasts. On the water recreational activities are without limit. Boating, kayaking, canoeing, skiing, sailing, fishing. You name the water sport, Paradise has it.
Land lovers might prefer shelling, sun bathing or bird watching. Nearby Everglades National Park is the only subtropical park on the continent. The park is known for its rich bird life, but it's also the only place in the world where alligators and crocodiles exist side by side. Airboat tours depart throughout the day from quirky Everglades City.
Collier and Lee counties take pride in their Parks and Recreation departments. Collier alone has more than a dozen family-friendly parks perfect for picnicking and fun.
Don't miss the popular Teddy Bear Museum of Naples that houses more than 3,000 cuddly bears.
Boston Red Sox
Call (239) 334-4700 View Map
Fort Myers in Lee County has been the spring-training home of the Boston Red Sox since 1993, when the team moved from Winter Haven (now the spring-training home of the Cleveland Indians). The Red Sox train at City of Palms Park, while the minor-league facility, featuring five full fields, is a short distance away.
Caribbean Garden Zoo
Call (239) 262-5409 View Map
Discover a world of wildlife from alligators to zebras in the heart of Naples. Get close to the rarest tigers in America and all four of Africa's top predators including Cape hunting dogs amid the tropical foliage of a 52-acre botanical garden founded in 1919. Explore the new Panther Glade, a cooperative exhibit with the National Wildlife Federation. Exciting presentations and activities all day including Primate Expedition Cruise in this nationally accredited zoo.
Explore 13 acres of nature trails and mangrove waterways. Canoe and kayak rentals, aviaries, aquariums, serpentarium, interactive exhibits, wildlife rehab facility and nature store.
Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary
Call (239) 348-9151 - View Map
This 11,000 acre National Audubon Society sanctuary features a two-mile boardwalk through an ancient forest of giant bald cypress trees, home to 200 species of birds and other rare wildlife.
Everglades Day Safari is an all-inclusive, nine hour ecotour of the Everglades featuring birdwatching and wildlife photography of the plants, birds, alligators and other animals of the Big Cypress Preserve and the Everglades outback. A highly trained guide accompanies you through a full day of nature by riverboat into the Ten Thousand Island estuaries, hiking into a natural cypress strand or swamp, airboating in the sawgrass prairies and a wildlife drive into the savannah outback by safari van. A full lunch is included which features swamp cuisine appetizers and other southern delicacies. We provide binoculars, ponchos and other comfort items.
The Everglades Wonder Gardens, located in Bonita Springs, first opened in 1936 with the purpose of caring for injured animals. It is now the home to alligators, panthers, bears, deer and all sorts of exotic birds. The site also features lush botanical gardens with plants and trees from around the world. You can learn about the area’s Calusa Indian history at the museum. Guided tours are also available.
Golden Gate Community Park and Aquatic Center
Call (239) 252-6128 - View Map
Large exercise pool, kid's activity pool and water slide. Lighted tennis, racquetball, basketball, volleyball and shuffleboard areas. Playground and restrooms.
The J.N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge is located on the subtropical barrier island of Sanibel in the Gulf of Mexico. The refuge is part of the largest undeveloped mangrove ecosystem in the United States. It is world famous for its spectacular wading bird populations.
Koreshan State Historical Site
Call (239) 992-0311 - View Map
Preserved on the banks of the Estero River, an unusual pioneer settlement reflects the freedom of religion that is one of our most basic rights. In 1894, a visionary named Cyrus Reed Teed formed a colony he foretold would become a “New Jerusalem.” He and his followers practiced the religion of Koreshanity, which was conceived by Reed in his laboratory in upstate New York during what he termed as “Illumination.” Among his beliefs was that God had a male-female aspect (Koreshan prayers were to the Mother-Father) and the belief that the earth was a hollow sphere with all life, planets, moon and stars within it. Upon Teed’s death in 1908, membership began to decline until the four remaining members deeded the land to the state in 1961.
Supervised trail rides and riding lessons for ages 4 and up.
The Lee County Complex is home to the Twins and their six minor league affiliates. It features five full and two half-fields, the centerpiece of which is the 7,500-seat Hammond Stadium in which the major league Twins play their exhibition games.
Lively narrative accompanies a tour of more than 100 points of interest. Passengers can disembark and reembark at will.
If you're in the mood to 'shop til you drop,' you've certainly come to the right place! Not only is our collection of common and rare shells, sponges, coral, fossils and sea life specimens the largest in the world, but we also sell sea and nautical-inspired lamps and night lights, shell and gold jewelry (or you can pick your own pearl & have it mounted in one of many styles of bands), inlaid shell toilet seats, accent pieces such as wood and ceramic sculptures, folk art birds, drift wood, hand-painted tables, wall hangings and a wide variety of mirrors, decorations for every holiday imaginable, palm tree wine glasses, books and maps, cards and stationery, nautical-motif gifts and accent pieces, furnace-blown glass, candles, magnets and keychains, and citrus and palm trees that can be grown indoors.
Located on east side of Six Mile Cypress Parkway in South Ft. Myers, just north of Daniels Parkway, this 2200 acre preserve is teeming with beautiful, native plantings and wildlife. The Boardwalk is a little over one mile in length.
Enjoy 14-acres of water slides, pools and fun at Southwest Florida’s largest waterpark. Relax on our gently drifting Main Stream River Tube Ride. Thrill at the high-speed excitement of such scream-worthy slides as the Cape Fear, Fun-L-Tunnel, Zoom Flume and 457-foot Electric Slide & Power Surge. Free fall 5 1/2 stories down three distinctly different speed slides – the Thunder Bump, Terror Tube, and X-celerator. Let the little ones frolic at our Tot Spot, grab a summertime snack at the Calypso Café or simply soak up the sun in a lounge chair poolside—there’s fun for everyone!
No matter what kind of water activities you enjoy, Sun Splash Family Waterpark is the perfect place to splash all summer-long.
Veterans Community Park
Call (239) 566-2367 - View Map
Veterans Community Park is one of the busiest in Collier County, Florida. Located in North Naples, this park keeps busy with dozens of children's activities as well as exercise classes including Bone Builders. It is also an attraction for dog owners with its very own dog run area
