1 day, 2 coasts, 8 stops: The ultimate cross-Florida road trip
The ultimate summer road trip through Florida starts and ends with spectacular displays of sea and sky.
Can’t decide which Florida coast is more beautiful? Catch jaw-dropping displays of sky and surf on each coast by embarking on a one-day, cross-state road trip from the Atlantic to the Gulf.
Your adventure begins at sunrise with the crystal-blue waters of Miami’s Mid-Beach, and it’ll take you west along the century-old Tamiami Trail through the swamps, pinelands, and tropical hardwood hammocks of the Everglades and Big Cypress National Preserve. You’ll experience uniquely Floridian places like Ochopee, eventually ending your journey with the powdery white sands of Tigertail Beach on Marco Island.
Here are some suggestions for where and how to embark upon and end an epic, 113-mile, coast-to-coast road trip, with some memorable pit stops along the way.
Stop 1: Hotel Croydon
Any adventurous road trip should begin by getting a comfortable night’s rest. You’ll sleep peacefully knowing you didn’t break the bank on your stay at Hotel Croydon, a luxury, boutique hotel with modern upgrades and summertime room rates frequently hovering around $200 or less.
Located on Collins Avenue in Miami’s Mid-Beach neighborhood, Hotel Croydon offers a plethora of entertaining experiences from burgers and tropical drinks served at The Tavern, the hotel’s own full-service restaurant and bar, to rejuvenating solo and couples’ massages offered at Etuni Spa. Of course, no visit to Hotel Croydon is complete without resting a spell underneath an umbrella on the rooftop sun deck.
Stop 2: Mid-Beach
Upon waking up refreshed, your next move is to witness the sun rise over the horizon, turning the Atlantic Ocean into a patchwork of glittering diamonds. Luckily, the shores of Mid-Beach lie only a few paces away from Hotel Croydon, and each beach opens at sunrise, so bring a blanket and set up camp wherever looks best. After the sunrise, stick around to enjoy a dip in the ocean during the only time of day when South Florida’s warm Atlantic waters may feel cool and invigorating.
Stop 3: Ol’Days Farm to Table
Fuel up for the trek ahead with a bountiful breakfast at Ol’Days Farm to Table, open at 8 a.m. each day. Located on the mainland just across the Julia Tuttle Causeway from Mid-Beach in Miami’s Midtown, Ol’Days serves breakfast and brunch staples all day, so no matter if you’re craving buttermilk pancakes or a wagyu burger, this café and restaurant with sister locations in New York City and Buenos Aires has you covered. Don’t miss out on Ol’Days’ extensive cold-pressed juice offerings – the Sunshine juice with carrot, orange, ginger, apple, and lemon will kick-start your day on the right foot.
Stop 4: Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science
Before heading west along U.S. Highway 41 to reach Florida’s other coast, one more Miami adventure awaits you at the Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science, located just a 10-minute drive south of Ol’Days.
This museum, planetarium, and aquarium complex gives visitors behind-the-scenes access to Florida’s diverse wildlife and ecosystems with its 500,000-gallon Gulf Stream Aquarium housing devil rays, hammerhead sharks, coral reefs, and mangroves. Take in a show at the 250-seat Frost Planetarium, which utilizes six 3D projectors and surround sound to transport visitors to the far reaches of our galaxy.
Stop 5: Big Cypress National Preserve
From Frost Science, it’s a straight shot west across U.S. 41, also known as the Tamiami Trail, to the Sunshine State’s Gulf Coast. If your legs are aching for a stretch as you drive across the scenic swamps of The Everglades, stop for a quick hike at Big Cypress National Preserve’s Kirby Storter Roadside Park, which offers a quick, 0.8-mile round-trip walk from sawgrass prairie into cypress swamp. Here, you’re likely to spot birds, alligators, and turtles, especially at the alligator-constructed “gator hole” located at the end of the boardwalk.
Stop 6: Joanie’s Blue Crab Café
Lunchtime hunger got you feeling crabby as you trek along the Tamiami Trail? Joanie’s Blue Crab Café in Ochopee serves up down-home specialties like fried green tomatoes, chicken wings, frog legs, and of course, blue crab legs.
No matter how hangry you may feel, when you’re at Joanie’s, don’t ask for your lunch to be a rush job. A hand-written sign posted behind the cash register reminds customers that in this rural corner of the Sunshine State, things move a bit more slowly. “If you want fast food, keep traveling 42 miles west or 66 miles east,” the sign reads. “Happy trails, y’all.”
Stop 7: Skunk Ape Research Headquarters
With satiated stomachs, trek just 1 mile back east along the Tamiami Trail until you reach the Skunk Ape Research Headquarters, a gift shop, animal exhibit, and campsite that’s sure to stoke your curiosity about the Skunk Ape, the legendary, ape-like creature who’s said to roam the forests and swamps of the southeast. After buying an official Skunk Ape Headquarters bumper sticker (or perhaps a crop top covered in alligators), pump the employees for stories of their latest sightings of Florida’s Sasquatch.
Stop 8: Tigertail Beach
When the early evening light starts to paint everything you see with gold, head west on the trail for another 35 miles until you reach Tigertail Beach. One final, Floridian adventure awaits on these Marco Island shores: a sunset over the gentle Gulf of Mexico.
In lieu of sitting in a third restaurant for dinner, order something scrumptious to bring with you to Tigertail from Stonewalls, a quick-service, quality-ingredient restaurant specializing in homemade pizzas, inventive flatbreads, and comfort food classics like meatloaf and chicken parmesan. Then, all that’s left to do is sit back and enjoy the show. When the last drop of color disappears from the sky, retire for the night at the nearby Olde Marco Island Inn and Suites, a historic landmark for lodgers visiting this area since 1883.
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