Everglades With Kids: Our 2-Day Amazing Florida Adventure
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After spending our first night in Florida in what would easily become the worst hotel of our entire trip, day two was where the real adventure finally started.
First mission: pick up our rental car.
We were a family of four travelling around Florida, so naturally we chose the most sensible family car possible.
A Ford Mustang convertible. 😅
There was only one small problem.
Our luggage didn’t fit.
We somehow managed to squeeze most of it into the trunk, but one of our big suitcases ended up on the back seat between the kids.
Comfortable? Not really.
Cool way to start a Florida road trip? Absolutely.
With the roof down, luggage more or less secured and two kids squeezed into the back, we left Miami and headed south towards our first real destination: Everglades National Park.
Visiting the Everglades with kids was our first real Florida adventure, and it ended up being completely different from what we’d expected.
Our First Day in Everglades National Park
After a short stop along the way, we reached the entrance to Everglades National Park, paid the entrance fee and started driving deeper into the park.
One thing surprised us almost immediately: how peaceful it was.
Before visiting, I imagined the Everglades would be packed with tourists looking for alligators. Instead, there were stretches where it felt like we had the place almost completely to ourselves.
We took our time driving through the park, stopping at different viewpoints and short trails along the way.
And then we saw our first alligator. Just lying there beside the road.
Obviously, that required an immediate stop. 😂
Seeing an alligator in a zoo is one thing. Seeing one lying completely wild only a few metres away from you is something very different.
Suddenly everyone was paying considerably more attention to where they were walking.
Anhinga Trail – Alligators in the Wild
One of our stops was Anhinga Trail, and if you’re visiting the Everglades with kids, this is definitely one I’d recommend.
It’s an easy walk with boardwalks and viewpoints over the wetlands, so you can actually enjoy the scenery without dragging the kids through kilometres of difficult hiking.
We spotted more alligators here and plenty of wildlife along the way.
What I remember most, though, is simply how calm everything was.
No theme park music. No queues. No crowds rushing around.
Just water, birds, wildlife and us walking through the Everglades.
Considering what was coming later in our Florida trip – Disney World, Miami, a cruise and Orlando – it was probably one of the quietest days of the entire holiday.
All the Way to Flamingo
We continued driving south until we reached the Flamingo area, almost at the very end of the road through the park. And this turned into one of those unexpected travel moments that we still remember.
The kids became Junior Rangers.
The Junior Ranger program lets children complete activities while learning about the national park and its wildlife. At the end, they can earn their Junior Ranger badge.
It’s such a simple idea, but for kids it makes exploring the park feel like they’re actually on a mission rather than just following their parents around another attraction.
And then Flamingo gave us another first.
Manatees!
We had never seen manatees in the wild before, and suddenly there they were, right in front of us. Alligators, Junior Ranger badges AND manatees in one day.
Not bad for our first proper day in Florida.
Would You Like Some Alligator With That?
After reaching Flamingo, we had to drive the whole way back towards Homestead.
By this point we’d spent the day admiring alligators in their natural habitat. So naturally our next logical decision was…
to eat one.
We stopped at Gator Grill because when you’re in Florida and someone offers you the chance to try alligator meat, apparently you have to do it at least once. And honestly? It wasn’t bad.
I’m not going to pretend it suddenly became my favourite food, but trying gator in Florida felt like one of those experiences we couldn’t really skip.
Wild alligator in the Everglades during the day.
Alligator on a plate in the evening.
Sorry, guys.
Our Very American Night in Homestead
We spent the night in Homestead and used the evening for two other essential American experiences: an outlet mall and Walmart.
If you’re European and travelling in the US, you know. We stayed in one of those traditional American roadside motels that we’d seen hundreds of times in movies.
Ours was Fairway Inn Florida City, and after our experience the previous night, our expectations weren’t particularly high. But it was absolutely fine.
The next morning came another little dose of America: motel breakfast. Pancakes. Sweet things. More sweet things. And basically none of the eggs, cheese, cold cuts and other things we’re used to seeing at breakfast back home in Europe.
The kids certainly weren’t complaining about pancakes for breakfast.
Everglades Alligator Farm & Airboat Ride
After breakfast, we packed everything back into our extremely practical Mustang arrangement and checked out. Our Everglades adventure wasn’t finished yet.
Next stop: Everglades Alligator Farm.
If the previous day was about seeing the peaceful, natural side of the Everglades with kids, this was the loud and slightly crazy version.
We started with an airboat ride. And this was brilliant. We flew across the water, saw plenty of alligators and had a driver who clearly enjoyed his job a little too much. He threw the airboat into spins, everyone got wet and somehow my Jordans ended up taking most of the damage.
Note to self: Maybe don’t wear Jordans on an airboat ride.
Still worth it.
After the ride, we spent a few more hours exploring the farm. We watched an alligator show, saw them being fed and even got the chance to hold a small alligator. For the kids, this was obviously a huge hit.
Altogether, I think we spent around three to four hours there, which felt about right. There was enough to do without it turning into an exhausting full-day attraction.
One Last Stop: Robert Is Here
Before leaving the Everglades area and heading towards the Florida Keys, we made one more stop. Robert Is Here Fruit Stand.
Calling it a fruit stand doesn’t really do it justice. There are piles of unusual tropical fruits, famous fruit shakes and even a small animal area at the back. Some of the fruits we’d never seen before in our lives.
After alligators, airboats and manatees, wandering around looking at crazy tropical fruit was a surprisingly nice way to finish our time around Homestead.
Then it was back into the Mustang.
Next destination: the Florida Keys.
Are the Everglades With Kids worth it?
For us, 100% yes.
What I particularly liked was that our two days were completely different.
The first day was slow and peaceful: driving through Everglades National Park, stopping at viewpoints, walking Anhinga Trail, seeing wild alligators and manatees and letting the kids become Junior Rangers.
The second was pure Florida entertainment: airboat spins, alligator shows, holding a baby gator and getting my shoes soaked.
If I had to choose only one?
I’d still visit Everglades National Park because seeing the animals in the wild was something special.
But with kids, combining the national park with an airboat ride and Alligator Farm made the experience much more fun.
And if you’re doing a Florida road trip similar to ours, Homestead is perfectly positioned for what comes next. Because from here, the road starts heading south.
And our next stop was one we’d been looking forward to from the beginning: the Florida Keys and Key West.
Want to see how the Everglades with kids fitted into our whole trip? Read our complete Florida road trip with kids itinerary, covering Miami, the Everglades, Florida Keys, Bahamas cruise, Disney World, Kennedy Space Center and more.
FAQ: Visiting the Everglades With Kids
Is Everglades National Park good for kids?
Yes. We found it surprisingly easy to explore with children. There are plenty of short stops and boardwalks rather than needing to do long hikes, and spotting wild alligators makes walking considerably more interesting for kids.
How much time should you spend in the Everglades with kids?
We spent most of one day driving through Everglades National Park to Flamingo and back, then another three to four hours at Everglades Alligator Farm the following morning. For us, one night in the Homestead area worked really well.
Can you see alligators in the wild?
Yes, although wildlife sightings are never guaranteed. We saw our first one beside the road and then several more around Anhinga Trail. Seeing them completely wild was one of the highlights of our visit.
Is an airboat ride worth doing with kids?
For us, definitely. It’s loud, fast and you might get wet, but that was part of the fun. Our kids loved it and we saw plenty of alligators along the way.
Can kids become Junior Rangers in Everglades National Park?
Yes, and ours did it at Flamingo. It was a great way to get them more involved in exploring the park and gave them a souvenir that actually meant something.
Where should you stay when visiting the Everglades?
We stayed around Homestead/Florida City, which worked really well for our route. It gave us easy access to the Everglades and put us in a perfect position to continue towards the Florida Keys the following day.
What should you wear on an airboat ride?
Something comfortable that you don’t mind getting a little wet.
And, based on personal experience, probably not your Jordans.
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