In the dry season, water levels in Everglades National Park are lower. This is part of the ecosystem’s natural cycle. [Photo courtesy Everglades National Park.]

A baby crocodile in Everglades National Park. [Photo courtesy National Park Service]

This photo from Everglades National Park show a wide view of a wetland prairie with some scattered cypress trees. [Photo by Federico Acevdeo/National Park Service]

This photo from Everglades National Park show a wide view of a wetland prairie with some scattered cypress trees. [Photo by Federico Acevdeo/National Park Service]

Birding is popular in Everglades National Park, which is home to a wide variety of birds and other wildlife. [Photo by Federico Acevdeo/National Park Service]

Everglades National Park [Photo courtesy National Park Service]

Previous Next

Everglades National Park is a vast wetland area filled with birds, alligators, manatees, dolphins, turtles, and more. The park covers 1,509,000 acres in Miami-Dade County, Monroe County, and Collier County.

Visitors to the park find a variety of ways to enjoy Florida's nature. You can take a short walk on the Anhinga Trail to spot abundant wildlife. Climb atop Shark Valley’s 65-foot observation tower for a bird’s eye view of the glades. Glide over Florida Bay by tour boat or kayak for a chance to glimpse a crocodile, manatee, or dolphin. Watch as the sun sets over Flamingo, the southernmost point in mainland Florida. Explore the pinelands by bike, paddle amongst the mangroves on Nine-Mile Pond, or tour the historic Nike Hercules missile base. Join a ranger on a slough slog deep into the heart of a cypress dome. Find solitude on your own on a week-long canoe trip, camping along the 99-mile Wilderness Waterway.

The park is so large, there are three different entrances.

Visitors to Everglades National Park need a car. The park entrances are not interconnected. There is no public transportation that travels within the park. Each of the three entrances and the interior Flamingo Visitor Center are at least a one-hour drive apart from one another.

The Homestead Entrance, 40001 State Road 9336, Homestead, is the main entrance to the park. The Ernest F. Coe Visitor Center is found at this entrance.

The Main Park Road from the Homestead entrance has narrow shoulders and pull offs, and individual parking areas at interpretive trails and waysides. The maximum speed limit is 45 to 55 mph in most areas. Allow plenty of travel time during your visit.

The Shark Valley Entrance, 36000 SW 8th Street, Miami, is the site of the Shark Valley Visitor Center.

On busy weekends in the winter, the Homestead and Shark Valley entrances can become extremely congested. Long lines can form at the entrance gates, and it can be difficult or impossible to find parking at the visitor centers of these entrances. It is recommended to visit these areas on weekdays, arrive early in the day (before 10 AM), and carpool to the park if possible. Purchasing digital entrance passes (online at www.recreation.gov/sitepass/74278) ahead of your visit can help reduce your wait time at the entrance gates.

The Gulf Coast Visitor Center entrance, 815 Oyster Bar Lane, Everglades Center, is the entrance closest to Naples and the site of the Gulf Coast Visitor Center.

The Flamingo Visitor Center, 1 Flamingo Lodge Highway, Flamingo, is the southernmost visitor center in Everglades National Park and is the only one of the four visitor centers that is not at an entrance. It is at the end of the Main Park Road and is accessible from the Main Park (Homestead) entrance.

For more information about Everglades National Park, go online to https://www.nps.gov/ever/index.htm.