The Great Florida Family Road Trip
Sunshine, sand, smiles and the open road are a recipe for an unforgettable family adventure. If you’re looking for summer road trip ideas, Florida should be top of the list. The weather is beautiful, there are miles of incredible beaches, hidden gems, iconic landmarks, small towns, big cities and of course some of best theme parks in the world.
We took a mini road trip a couple of years ago, it gave us a small taste of what Florida has to offer and we would love to go back one day.
The kids didn’t want to spend masses of time in thr car, so we didn’t travel huge distances but saw a lot of different places and had some incredible experiences together. I was keen to give the kids a ‘real Florida’ experience as well as theme parks.
Mini Florida Road Trip
Orlando
We flew into Orlando, and headed straight to Disney World. As a bigger family, we find it easier to stay on site as we then don’t need a car for a few days.
I’d prebooked Mears Connect to transport us stright to our resort, which was smooth and easy after a long flight. We had a fantastic week in Disney before heading off to see more of Florida.
Indian Shores
Our first stop was Indian Shores on the Gulf Coast, just 90 minutes from Orlando. The beaches are beautiful with fine white sand and warm, crystal clear water. The town is more residential than tourist, but with plenty of restaurants, supermarkets and shopping available. It’s a great location for exploring nearby Clearwater, Tampa and St. Petersburg.
Places to visit near Indian Shores
Fort De Soto Park is made up of 5 interconnecting keys with over 100 acres of unspolit beaches. We enjoyed a clear bottomed kayak trip which was one the best experiences we’ve ever had on a holiday. Kayaking to an unihabited island and searching for shells felt very special. I booked with Get Up and Go Kayaking and they were amazing!
Seaside Seabird Sanctuary
Explore the local area on a trolley trip.
Hiring a boat for a few hours is another fun way to explore the area.
Indian Shores to Naples was a 3 hour drive, so we stopped for a few hours at Myakka River State Park, which was a little bit out of our way, but I wanted to see more of Florida’s wildlife and it seemed like too good an opportunity to pass up as we were so close.
Myakka River State Park is one of Florida’s largest and oldest state parks renowned for its wildlife. We saw alligators sunning themselves in the river ( thankfully we were high on on a bridge looking down ) and so many birds. It was very quiet and felt a world away from bustling Orlando.
Naples
Naples is a beautiful city in Southwest Florida, about 3 hours drive from the Tampa Bay area. The beaches are pristine with beautiful white sand and the area is famous for high-end shopping and great restaurants. We enjoyed walking around admiring the fancy houses, shops and art galleries.
We only stayed a few days, but loved the atmosphere and location. If we’d had longer we’d have headed to the Everglades from Naples, but for this trip we had to head back to Orlando after just a couple of nights.
Places to visit near Naples
Naples Zoo
Clam Pass Park
Delnor-Wiggins Pass State Park
After Naples we headed back to Orlando for a day tirip over to to Kennedy Space Centre and Cocoa Beach before heading home.
