South Florida

Competing with the state's cities and natural habitats for the title of “most diverse” are the people who call South Florida home. Sharing a place under the sun is a seemingly haphazard mix of retirees, jet setters and adventurers, of young and old, of “conch” fishermen, business tycoons and developers, and of tourists who came to visit but decided to stay.

Also extreme are the strange creatures that inhabit the water, land and air. Oafish manatees—thought to have given rise to the legend of the mermaid—ply the waters of coastal waterways and placid springs. Garish roseate spoonbills, whose showy pink plumes topped the chapeaus of many a society matron in the early 1900s, grace shorelines once dotted with flocks of flamingos. Dog-size Key deer skirt the brush on Big Pine Key.

About Florida

Extreme Florida

With the exception of the Florida Keys, most vacation spots in South Florida hug the East and West Coasts. On the East Coast, Fort Lauderdale, Miami and Palm Beach are the main draws.

For a screenshot of Miami life, cruise Ocean Avenue and watch bikini- and flip-flop-clad crowds promenade past gelato-colored Art Deco hotels and sidewalk cafés; cross the street and you'll find yourself on South Beach, steps away from the Atlantic Ocean. Fort Lauderdale, The Venice of America, was made for water lovers with its numerous canals and proximity to rivers, the Intracoastal Waterway and the Atlantic Ocean. Take a gondola ride or water taxi through its canals, rent a yacht or just chill on seven miles of golden-sand beach. In Palm Beach, shop Chanel and Gucci on chic Worth Avenue; attend a polo match; or drop into the opulent Flagler Museum, a 1902 Gilded Age mansion.

Cities on the West Coast (aka the Gulf Coast) of South Florida may be less well-known than East Coast cities, but they deserve more than a passing glance. Naples is the sophisticated lady of the bunch, with plenty of posh golf courses, swank shopping areas and its own orchestra. The city's 16 miles of beaches and its gulfside location make possible every activity under the sun.

The islands of Captiva and Sanibel also pack a lot of punch despite their diminutive size. Lush tropical greenery overflows, seashells by the score wash up on island shores, and the small-town ambience can't be beat.

They Came with a Dream

Juan Ponce de León, who came in search of the legendary Fountain of Youth, blazed a trail for the conquistadores who followed in his footsteps. A pair of Henrys—Flagler and Plant—laid the framework, or rather the railroad tracks, that enabled the state to become a major vacation destination.

Building on that framework, an entrepreneur named Walt Disney turned a central Florida cow pasture into the home of the mouse with arguably the state's most recognized face—if not surely its most recognized pair of ears.

The stylistic touches left behind by architects of many eras give Florida a rich sense of texture. A Spanish flair prevails in historic St. Augustine, where buildings are distinguished by walled patios, stately arches and roofs of burnt-orange clay tile. Ybor City's showier flourishes—wrought-iron balconies, sidewalk cafes and plazas—point to a profoundly Latin influence. Synthetic materials, pastel hues and rectilinear forms characterize the Art Deco hotels along Ocean Drive in Miami's trendy South Beach.

As diverse as the state's architecture are the people who call Florida home. Sharing a place under the sun is a seemingly haphazard mix of retirees, jet setters and adventurers, of young and old, of “conch” fishermen, business tycoons and developers, and of tourists who came to visit but decided to stay.

Recreation

To appreciate the beauty of Everglades National Park's narrow creeks and shallow bays, set out on a canoeing adventure. A tranquil weeklong escape awaits serious paddlers who tackle the 99-mile-long Wilderness Waterway. Although the Turner River and Mud Lake Loop trails are considerably shorter, the scenery is no less spectacular. Airboat rides, tram tours, hiking trails and sightseeing tours on pontoon-style boats also are popular ways to see the Everglades.

With 882 islands in the Florida Keys, you'll have no trouble finding a place to put in your kayak or canoe. Try the Saddlebunch Keys, where you can quietly glide through sandy lagoons and islands of mangrove trees that appear to be pulling their roots out of the ground. Islamorada offers sport fishing nonpareil; hook trophy-size sailfish, swordfish and tarpon off the island understandably billed as the Sportfishing Capital of the World.

Off the Miami coast, as well as in the waters of Key Largo, shipwrecks and other sunken items, such as a Boeing 727 jet, function as artificial reefs. Rich coral growth makes scuba diving ventures here particularly attractive. Snorkeling is especially popular at John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park in Key Largo.

The nearly 600 varieties of fish that live off the coasts lure anglers to cast their lines into the brine. Many marinas provide saltwater fishing equipment, bait and guides for deep-sea or offshore charters. Record-size specimens also swim in the area's rivers and lakes, making freshwater fishing equally rewarding.

Don't neglect to pick up a license from the county tax collector. Saltwater or freshwater licenses, required for all anglers ages 16 to 64, cost nonresidents $17 for 3 days, $30 for 7 days or $47 for 1 year; a resident license costs $17 for 1 year. A tarpon tag, valid January 1 through December 31, is $51.50. Resident combination fresh- and saltwater licenses are available for $32.50. Subagents such as tackle shops, fish camps or hardware or sporting goods stores charge 50c extra for some licenses.

Public and semiprivate courses all over South Florida make golf wildly popular, especially in Naples, Fort Lauderdale, Miami and their surrounding towns.

Endless Days of Sunshine

For the most part Mother Nature smiles kindly, although she is prone to excess when angered. Hurricanes, tornadoes, floods and fires are among the punishments mercilessly inflicted when she unleashes sporadic fits of fury.

But Floridians take it all in stride. It's considerably easier in a state that simply refuses to take itself too seriously.

As much as Florida is rolling oceans, saw grass prairies and mangrove and cypress swamps, it is bicycle-riding birds, leaping alligators, and sea lions and walruses masquerading as actors.

As much as you can make a living here growing sugar cane, catching fish or manufacturing semiconductors, you can pull on a tail to perform as a mermaid, choose a sunny sidewalk spot from which to draw caricatures of passersby, or don a wizard's robe and sing along with croaking frogs.

What other state's identity ties so closely to the unabashedly seedy treasures that lurk behind signs of brash neon? Plastic yard flamingos, seashell figurines with glued-on rolling eyes, the simple word “Florida” set amid the chaos of unrestrained tie-dye on a 50/50 cotton blend T-shirt—like no other state, Florida has its kitsch in sync.

It's a place that brings forth smiles and laughter and lets us see things in a different light. A whimsical light. A humorous light.

In Motion in the Ocean

Off the Miami coast, shipwrecks and other sunken items—such as a Boeing 727 jet lowered to the ocean floor in 1993—function as artificial reefs. Rich coral growth makes scuba diving ventures here particularly attractive. Snorkeling, especially popular at John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park in Key Largo, allows for similar encounters with marine life at a more shallow depth.

The nearly 600 varieties of fish that live off the coast lure anglers to cast their lines into the brine. Many marinas provide saltwater fishing equipment, bait and guides for deep-sea or offshore charters. Record-size specimens also swim in the state's rivers and lakes, making freshwater fishing equally rewarding.

Don't neglect to pick up a license from the county tax collector. Saltwater or freshwater licenses, required for all anglers ages 16 to 64, cost nonresidents $17 for 3 days, $30 for 7 days or $47 for 1 year; a resident license costs $17 for 1 year. Snook permits cost an additional $10 each and lobster permits are $5; a tarpon tag is $51.50. Resident combination fresh- and saltwater licenses are available for $32.50 and are valid for 1 year. Subagents such as tackle shops, fish camps or hardware or sporting goods stores charge 50c extra for some licenses.

Taking to the Terrain

If you prefer your exertion on the easy to moderate end of the spectrum, catch a breeze while bicycling on the relatively flat Florida terrain. Although you won't experience many downhill thrills, you won't grunt through many uphill struggles either. The town of White Springs is near 15 trails, including the looping Gar Pond Trail and the Big Shoals Trail, which passes one of the state's scant white-water stretches on the Suwannee River.

Public and semiprivate courses all over the state make golf immensely popular. And there's a good chance you'll work up a sweat just watching a spectator sport. Major and minor league baseball and professional football, basketball and hockey teams play statewide, while dog racing, horse racing, jai alai and polo draw their own crowds.

Recreational Activities

Fast Facts

About the State

Population

Area

Capital

Highest Point

Lowest Point

Time Zone(s)

Gambling

Minimum Age For Gambling

Regulations

Teen Driving Laws

Seat Belt/Child Restraint

Cellphone Restrictions

Helmets for Motorcyclists

Radar Detectors

Move Over Law

Firearms Laws

Special Regulations

Permanently disabled persons with “handicapped” license plates from any state receive special parking privileges in Florida.

Holidays

New Year's Day, Jan. 1; Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Jan. (3rd Mon.); Memorial Day, May (4th Mon.); Independence Day, July 4; Labor Day, Sept. (1st Mon.); Veterans Day, Nov. 11; Thanksgiving, Nov. (4th Thurs.), and following Fri.; Christmas, Dec. 25.

Money

Taxes

Visitor Information

Information Centers

Special Note

Further Info for Visitors

National Forest Info

Fishing and Hunting

Recreation Information

Insider Info

Manatees

If you see a manatee while in Florida, both you and the manatee are lucky. You would be lucky to see one of Florida's most endangered animals, and the manatee will be lucky simply to exist. Despite protection efforts, the large gray mammals that inspired the legend of mermaids are threatened by human activity, and their future is uncertain.

Also called sea cows, manatees once ranged from North Carolina to Texas but now live almost exclusively in Florida. In winter they gather in the Crystal and Homosassa rivers, near Sanibel Island and Fort Myers, throughout the tip of the peninsula and along the St. Johns River. Blue Spring State Park in Orange City is a manatee refuge, and the animals are protected by state and federal law.

Manatees can be 8 to 10 feet long and weigh almost 2,000 pounds. They have round bodies, two front appendages, a large round tail and a square, whiskery snout. Since each eats 50 to 100 pounds of vegetation a day, they act as underwater lawnmowers, helping keep waterways open.

Although they have no natural predators, pollution and development can destroy their habitats. Manatees must be near the surface to breathe, but they have poor eyesight and move too slowly to avoid motorboats, the greatest cause of injury and death. Motorboat propellers kill up to 50 manatees per year.

Females take 2 to 3 years to bear and raise a calf, and the population grows slowly. Manatees are bred in captivity at the Miami Seaquarium in the hope that those calves can be released into the wild to benefit future generations of manatees and humans.

Beach Safety

Florida's expansive coastline provides numerous opportunities for fun in the sun, but it also requires an extra degree of caution when taking a dip: A large number of Florida beaches are unguarded. Swimming at an unguarded beach presents a risk to swimmers not only through injury or drowning, but also through the dangers of rip currents, dangerous or poisonous marine animals and other hidden hazards.

However, many Florida beaches are guarded by trained, certified ocean lifeguards. To ensure your safety and that of your family, be sure to swim only when ocean lifeguards are present. A list of guarded beaches is available from the United States Lifesaving Association and the Florida Beach Patrol Chiefs Association, 340 S. Ocean Blvd., Delray Beach, FL 33483; phone (561) 243-7352.

Points of Interest

Did You Know

There are 882 islands in the Florida Keys.

Except for their cream-colored bellies, alligators are black, not green.

Amelia Earhart departed from Hialeah in her attempt to fly around the world.

The oldest place name in North America is Florida.

Of the 50 states, only Alaska has more islands than Florida.

Mastodons, giant armadillos and camels once roamed in what is now Florida.