Things to do in Southwest Florida | Florida Rambler

Southwest Florida

Southwest Broward is known for some of the best beaches in Florida, wildlife and birds, interesting historical spots and as a launching point to see the Everglades and the Ten Thousand Islands.

Here are some of our favorite places to begin your exploration of the area. Each of these stories contains links to places to kayak, hike, bicycle and fascinating historic sites.

Everglades City, a historic fishing village known for its stone crabs
Marco Island, a beach resort close to the Everglades and Ten Thousand Islands
Naples, a good basecamp for exploration of nature-rich region
Fort Myers Beach, an Old Florida beach town
Sanibel, an unspoiled island where seashells litter the beach.
Punta Gorda, natural beauty and historic charm
Venice, Mediterranean-influenced city with old world charm

We recommend:

Hiking: Myakka River State Park near Sarasota and Bird Rookery Swamp near Naples.

Biking: The Legacy Trail in Venice and the many bikes trails on Sanibel Island.

Kayaking: The little known Shell Creek near Punta Gorda and the joys of paddling with manatees in winter on the Orange River in Fort Myers.

Camping: There’s tent camping on the beautiful wild island of Cayo Costa State Park. One of our favorite campgrounds for both tents and RVs is Camp Venice on the Myakka River.

Interesting Old Florida spots: Historic Smallwood Store near Everglades City and Koreshan Historic State Park near Naples.

The following are recent stories about Southwest Florida.

Beaches, Southwest Florida

Naples beach: Discover hidden Clam Pass Park, where you ride the tide

by Bonnie Gross

In honor of the upcoming beach season, Florida Rambler is highlighting a Beach of the Week throughout summer. This week, it’s Clam Pass Park, a hidden beach in Naples with a shallow, safe pass that lets you ride the tide in and out of a tropical lagoon.

Beaches, Kayak & Canoe, Southwest Florida

Caladesi Island: Kayak to a wild beach

by Bonnie Gross

Caladesi Island State Park, off the coast of Clearwater and Dunedin, has been called the best beach in America. What’s even better? Kayaking to Caladesi and seeing wonderful wildlife along the way.

Tigertail Beach in Marco Island is unspoiled and uncrowded

Beaches, Southwest Florida

Tigertail Beach, a Marco Island adventure, where you wade to wild beach

by Bonnie Gross

Tigertail Beach is for adventurers who love unspoiled beaches where you can walk for miles. You reach this beach by wading across a shallow lagoon. It’s full of seashells, wildlife and it’s a birding hot-spot.

Sand castle version of Don CeSar Hotel on Pass A Grille beach.

Beaches, Southwest Florida

Pass-a-Grille, one of Florida’s best beaches in a charming historic town

by Bonnie Gross

The beach is spectacular here — wide white sand, clear blue-green water. But the Old Florida charm of Pass-a-Grille, a community within St. Pete Beach, is what makes it stand out.

Southwest Florida, Unique eats

Tampa Buddhist temple: Sunday market for brunch in lovely outdoor setting

by Bonnie Gross

An open-air Thai brunch and market draws throngs every Sunday morning to this beautiful waterfront temple in Tampa. The food is very good and moderately priced. The exotic gold-trimmed temple is worth visiting just because it’s beautiful, set among shady live oak trees decorated with orchids.