Need help planning FL vacation

[saraandnick]

My family (husband, 12 yr old daughter, my in laws & myself) are cruising on the Vista out of Miami April of 2018. I am in the early planning stages of the trip. We live in CA and are planning on flying into Orlando to do parts of WDW for 3-4 days. Then the plan is to drive to Miami via a scenic route and stay a couple of days along the way. We are also interested in checking out the Florida Keys. We have about 7 days pre-cruise to work with.

 

Questions: 1) what route south do you recommend? 2) where should we stay between Orlando & Miami? 3) what are must see areas? 4) any other tips or suggestions?

 

We like beaches and to explore. Just trying to get the Florida experience.

 

TIA,

Sara

 

 

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[JohninDC]

3-4 days at WDW leaves you with 3-4 days to explore. Orlando to Key West is one day drive itself and waking up in Key West and making a cruise out of Miami sounds like a long day and an early start. You might need more days if you want to spend much time in KW

 

Not much between Orlando and Miami/FLL area unless you head to the gulf coast and drive that way -- head to Tampa/Clearwater and drive south to Naples; much longer but more scenic and more places to stop and stay.

 

National, Alamo & Thrifty (and maybe enterprise) currently offer free shuttles from their MIA airport location to POM; who knows who will be offering free shuttles a year from now.

 

Good luck! :cool:

[Noxequifans]

Key West is very charming and a great place to visit. That said it is a long haul to get there and back up. I would suggest going down that way a bit and then stopping for the night perhaps at Islamarada. Leave your Key West visit for another day.

[pedirn]

If you are looking for something in between Orlando and Miami and scenic, I would suggest going to coast from Orlando and do part US1 and part A1A. I would do as mus has possible on A1A as it is more scenic than US1.

 

A great place to stay for a day or two is the Vero Beach Resort and Spa. The have accommodations from regular rooms to two BDR suites. Great Kimpton hotel right on beach. Once you park you can walk to typical beach shops and restaurants. If you go, try and take a meal at Ocean Grille. Great atmosphere and food.

[Debbers]

Just trying to get the Florida experience.

 

Good for you! There's much to see in Florida outside the theme parks. Some ideas:

 

Gatorland is very near Orlando. It's probably the tackiest place you will ever visit, and really fun and kitschy. Where else can you see people wrestle gators? Highly recommend, if you and yours have a great sense of humor. http://www.gatorland.com/

 

Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral are very popular. Here's more information: https://www.kennedyspacecenter.com/explore-attractions If you are nature lovers, spend time at the Canaveral National Seashore https://www.nps.gov/cana/index.htm. Also Google kayak tours, which are a great way to see birds, turtles, manatees, etc. Some companies do moonlight tours, which are magical.

 

McLarty Treasure Museum, in the Sebastian Inlet State Park. This is on the Atlantic coast, about 40 miles south of Cape Canaveral. You can see treasures from a sunken Spanish ship, and learn about the very early Spanish explorers. http://www.atocha1622.com/mclarty.htm

 

Sebastian Inlet is worth a visit, too, if you like to fish. April is too early in the year to see the nesting turtles on the beach, but you can learn about them at the small museum. It's also a very nice place to have a picnic or just watch the boats go by. https://www.floridastateparks.org/park/Sebastian-Inlet

 

There are loads of things to do between Cocoa and Miami. I hope these ideas have given you food for thought.

[Flymia]

Given the amount of days between 3-4 in Orlando and 3-4 in Miami honestly I would not worry much about doing a scenic drive down to Miami. If you want to visit the Space Center then head over there the morning you leave to Miami, and take the drive from there down. You could do part of it on A1A to make it more scenic, but also much longer. If you stick with the fastest route, you can have breakfast in Orlando and lunch in Miami taking the Florida Turnpike.

 

In Miami I suggest making sure to visit Everglades National Park, and if you enjoy the water (and have not done it before) a snorkeling trip in Biscayne National Park. It will be cheaper and just as good as any snorkeling excursion on the cruise. You could also look to do this from one of the Keys. Unfortunately, you don't have enough time to check out Key West.

 

Other things in Miami are are worth a look: Miami Science Museum will be opening next month. Zoo Miami is one of the larger and best zoos in the country. If you like Railroads are all the Gold Coast Railroad Museum is pretty good. Of course in Miami there is Ocean Drive, Lincoln Road, Little Havana, Wynwood if you enjoy art. Make sure to take a boat tour around Biscayne Bay as well. Head to Key Biscayne and take a tour of the Cape Florida Lighthouse.

 

 

As for anything to stop at between Orlando and Miami other than the Space Center (which is not exactly on the way), you could stop by West Palm Beach for lunch or dinner depending on when you are passing by. Head over the bridge into the extremely fancy/wealthy area. If you are passing by during the day a drive around the island and looking at all the estates is interesting.

 

As for the Keys, the Keys are not far from Miami, but they are a long set of islands. You can easily do some of the Northern Keys in a day. The drive is nice, there are some places to stop by and see on the way as well.

[Debbers]

On your drive south, you could stop at a turtle sanctuary. I haven't visited, but would if I were in the neighborhood. https://www.marinelife.org/programs-events/visitor-experiences/

 

Oh yes, the Everglades! Very well worth the visit for nature lovers. Bring binoculars so you can see the birds, and sunscreen and bug spray. https://www.nps.gov/ever/index.htm

 

Please don't believe there's nothing to see between Orlando and Miami. You can find the old Florida if you look for it, and it's worth the effort.

[broberts]

Just under an hour drive due west of Miami is Shark Valley. Part of Everglades National Park. The drive out is an interesting introduction to the Everglades. One will usually see alligators and lots of different bird species. Sometimes one will spot deer. http://www.sharkvalleytramtours.com/ offer a great tour through that section of the park. Call ahead and reserve the tram tour as it is often booked up.

 

Fairchild Botanical Gardens has a great collection of tropical botanicals. There is a tram tour that wends its way through the park. There are also a number of pavilions with special collections. If you like exotic flowers and other flora, this is a great place to spend some time.

[Flymia]

 

Please don't believe there's nothing to see between Orlando and Miami. You can find the old Florida if you look for it, and it's worth the effort.

 

I guess the OP could take US-27 down and drive thru the small cities and towns, make a stop by Lake Okeechobee. But when I think old Florida I think more about towns Orlando and north. St. Augustine, Fernandina Beach, Mt. Dora, Lake City, with the exception of Key West.

 

The issue with OP plan is not much time with 3-4 days in Orlando. It would best to get down to Miami area earlier than later to explore all it has to offer.

[Debbers]

The issue with OP plan is not much time with 3-4 days in Orlando. It would best to get down to Miami area earlier than later to explore all it has to offer.

 

He/she said the plan was to spend 3-4 days in Orlando, then start down toward Miami, spending a couple of days along the way. Miami certainly has much to offer, but so do other places on the way south.

[brunello22]

A fun way to spend the day is exploring the Homestead/Redlands area. We typically do this either on the way to or from the Keys.

 

http://www.redlandriot.com/

 

It is a self-guided drive through many unique places in the area. Some of our favorite stops are:

 

Robert is Here (a unique fruit stand and a great place for milkshakes)

 

RF Orchid (orchid farm)

 

Fruit & Spice Park (thousands of unique fruit and spice trees from around the world - take the tram tour)

 

Knaus Berry Farm (fresh baked goods, only open certain times throughout the year).

 

... and lastly, a stop at Schnebly's Winery & Brewery (wine is made from tropical fruit)

[capriccio]

A fun way to spend the day is exploring the Homestead/Redlands area. We typically do this either on the way to or from the Keys.

 

http://www.redlandriot.com/

 

It is a self-guided drive through many unique places in the area. Some of our favorite stops are:

 

Robert is Here (a unique fruit stand and a great place for milkshakes)

 

RF Orchid (orchid farm)

 

Fruit & Spice Park (thousands of unique fruit and spice trees from around the world - take the tram tour)

 

Knaus Berry Farm (fresh baked goods, only open certain times throughout the year).

 

... and lastly, a stop at Schnebly's Winery & Brewery (wine is made from tropical fruit)

 

And when you are in this area you are only minutes away from the southern entrance to Everglades National Park. Stop at the Ernest Coe Visitor Center and then drive 5 minutes further to visit Royal Palm. It has a mile long path and boardwalk with great wildlife viewings during the dry season (December to April). Just watch out because the alligators come right up to (and ocassionally on) the path. You will be surprised at how many visitors think they are still at a theme park and the alligators are animatronics.

 

I will second the recommendation for Robert Is Here - I'm just glad that it isn't closer to my home or I would be stopping every day :D.

[saraandnick]

Thank you everybody for the suggestions! I can't wait to incorporate them into our plans.

 

 

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[brunello22]

Just to add ...

 

A very scenic drive is from Jupiter south to Delray Beach.

 

Head east to Jupiter, have lunch at Guanabanas. Then head south and go west on Blue Heron Blvd, then south again to Manatee Lagoon (free exhibit, but best to experience between November - March). Head back east towards downtown West Palm Beach and take A1A south to Delray Beach ... a beautiful stretch of beach views, mansions, and Intracoastal. South of Delray becomes high rise after high rise.

[Bkchero]

You just got a boatload (no pun intended) of suggestions. All are good, you will need to sort through them and find which ones interest you. If you have specific questions about any of them feel free to ask. You might end up having to add a day or 2 to your trip . . .

 

The only thing I would add is if you make it to the Keys stop at Robbie's in Islamorada for lunch and feed the tarpon.