Florida State Parks offer exceptional recreational opportunities to more than 17 million visitors a year. Many visitors return to the same park each year, celebrating special traditions with family and friends, or just relaxing in the most pristine natural areas in Florida.
Many traditions are decades old, with new traditions created each year. Do you gather with family for Thanksgiving at Caladesi Island State Park or celebrate the 4th of July at Grayton Beach State Park? Does your family visit the Keys each year to stay and play at Bahia Honda? Do you stay in a beautiful park cabin or do you prefer your plush RV or maybe camping in a tiny tent is more your style. Or, does your Real Florida tradition include a relaxing afternoon floating down the cool Ichetucknee River?
This page is dedicated to your traditions in Florida State Parks – voted the Nation’s best.
Traditions of visitors to Florida State Parks:
- Over 10 Years at the Florida Folk Festival
My wife and I have been going to the Florida Folk Festival for over a decade. We usually stay at Suwannee River S.P. We love that part of Florida because protection of the environment seems to be a priority.
-Ron from Ocala, FL - Thanksgivings in Coastal Cabins
My girlfriend and I have started a new tradition to spend our Thanksgivings at various coastal State Parks in Florida. So far, it has been two wonderful years. The first was at Topsail Hill, and the other was at Grayton Beach. The cabins at both parks were wonderful, and the staff was very helpful and courteous!
-Michael from Atlanta, GA - Family fun at the annual Pops in the Garden celebr
My family looks forward to the annual Pops in the Garden celebration at Maclay Gardens in Tallahassee. The setting is gorgeous and the music is fantastic, topped off with beautiful fireworks over Lake Hall. This tradition has become a family favorite for all.
-Maureen from Maclay Gardens - Spring Breaks in Florida State Parks
My family spends our Spring Break each year visiting various Florida State Parks in different regions of the state. Last year we camped at Falling Waters, Ochlockonee River and Suwannee River State Parks. We visited others in the area while we were camping. This year we will be camping at John Pennecamp, Curry Hammock and Bahia Honda State Parks and visiting others in the Florida Keys
-Alan from Orlando, FL - Thanksgivings at Silver River
Our family started gathering at Silver River State Park for Thanksgiving in 2002. It is an ideal solution for out-of-town relatives who camp, and for day-trip relatives from Ocala...who may have to work during that weekend. Cooking is a breeze as the cabin affords a stove and oven...as well as a microwave. We feel like we are miles away from our everyday life, even though we are only a few minutes' drive from home, should the need arise to return. The cabins are well designed and cozy, while not cramped. Hiking trails and the museum afford plenty of things to do when you have to "walk off the turkey". I sort of hate to publicize this, because I have lost the last year's reservation, due to the popularity of this park...but what is good for the park is good for my family...let's hope they will build more campsites and cabins, or expand the park area if possible!
-Nelle from Ocala - 11 Years at Manatee Springs
We have camped at Manatee Springs for the last 11 years. Our family thiks of the rangers and volunteer staff as part of our family. All of the staff there are very friendly, helpful and knowledgable. We have reccommended the park to many of our friends and family. We look forward to returning to the park for many more years to come.
-Dan from Berlin, MD - New Years In State Parks
For the past several years we have spent New Year's eve and New Year's day camping, hiking and canoeing in various Florida State Parks - enjoying the real Florida. With all the natural beauty around us, we reflect on the past year while sitting around the campfire at night. It's a wonderful way to usher in a brand new year!
-Sherrie from Melbourne Beach, FL - 30 Years in Florida State Parks
Our family has enjoyed Florida Parks for over thirty years, but our favorite place has always been Gamble Rogers. Our five children literally grew up there and now enjoy RVing and visiting with their families whenever they can. We have watched the Park and the area grow and prosper while maintaining the native charm that it has always had. We have made many lifelong friendships with other visitors and the staff. By the way, that picture on top, that's us.
-Bob from Warner Robins Georgia - Florida State Parks on Horseback
My tradition is trailriding on horseback to visit the natural habitat and wildlife so plentiful in Florida. Each spring I meet a friend from TN and we ride our Tennessee Walking Horses all over northern FLorida, stopping to camp and ride at state parks such as Florida Caverns, Alfred B. Maclay Gardens, O'Leno State Park, and San Felasco Hammock Preserve State Park. The parks have well developed facilities to accomodate horses and campers. One of the parks I visit regularly is closer to home, Myakka River State Park. A favorite park that my saddle club goes to every year is Alafia State Park. We especially need these wonderful riding wonderlands as a buffer from the fast paced and expansive development that is taking place all over the state. The peace and quiet of a safe campground, being close to nature, looking for wildlife while riding horseback, watching the stars, having campfires, listening to the horses munch hay in the darkness, are pleasures I love. Thank you, Florida, for being the Nation's Best!
-Lynda from Bonita Springs, FLorida - 'Rolling Santa' Tradition
I learned to Roller Blade at the ripe old age of 48, and do 5 miles 5 times a week at Birch. For the past 3 years, every Christmas Day, I don a Santa Claus outfit and rollerblade the loop. People that I see every day, visiting children, even folks from across the intercoastal shout greetings. This year, a number of folks made special trips to the park, for their "Rolling Santa Sighting". I guess this is a tradition I'll have to keep, to avoid disappointing the "Santa Fans"!
-wendy from Birch Park - Fort Lauderdale - Thanksgiving Made Easy
Two years ago we started a new family tradition. It was going to be just our immediate family of four for Thanksgiving and we did not want to do the "whole works" for the holiday. We got lucky and found a great site at the last minute and "boycotted" Thanksgiving. Well, not completely... we did eat turkey sandwhiches and Stove Top Stuffing for dinner! We immediately decided that future Thanksgivings would be celebrated the same way... just our immediate family, camping near a beach, taking it easy.
-Amy from Fort Rucker, AL - Visiting Florida's Protected Areas
I grew up at Little Talbot Island State Park fishing, shark teeth hunting, shell collecting, swimming, sun bathing, cooking out, meeting new friends, and having fun in the sun. I grew up knowing the value of Fl. State Parks and have visited many different ones that vary in specialized activities. Little and Big Talbot island contain some of the most spectacular beach shores on the eastern seaboard. Anastasia State Park in St. Augustine and southern St. Augustine have some of the prettiest beaches in Florida. Do not forget the Florida keys which has a lot of great state parks. like Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park in Key Largo and Bahia Honda near Big Pine Key just to mention a couple. I am a native Floridian and I will continue to visit Florida State Parks for years to come and respect them so future generations can also enjoy the natural and real Florida. So get real in Florida but only leave your foot prints!
-DANNY from JACKSONVILLE FLORIDA - Family's Passport to Florida
Our family of four moved to Florida from the Wash. DC area in 2002 and enjoy the state's natural beauty. We are trying to visit all the state parks and track our progress in "The Real Florida" passport. During school vacations, we camp or take day trips to parks near and far. Thank you for the great memories!
-Andrea from Ponte Vedra Beach - Welcome to the Real Florida!
My fiance and I were visiting family in Miami Beach and it was very crowded so we decided to look for a hotel to stay in. The rates were outrageous! We remembered that when we went mountain biking before, there were cabins set on the water at Oleta State Park. We called, they had some available very inexpensively priced and so we went over right away. They referred to the cabins as "primitive" so we were a little leary, but we checked in and were so pleasantly surprised to discover a porch swing, screen door, electricity, beds for up to four people and air conditioning! We will always stay in a cabin when we go to South Florida now. It was so beautiful and peaceful - what a vacation!
-Kelly and Jason from Seminole, FL - Family History with State Parks
Florida State Parks have been a huge part of my life. My father was a ranger when I was born and then moved up to manage state parks all over Florida. We lived in a lot of parks through the years and I have so many great memories I can't name just one. I just hope that my children will be able to experience the joy of Florida State Parks that I did while I was a kid. I still visit any park I can and will continue to do so and I will help out with any way that I can to make sure we preserve the beautiful place that Florida is.
-Jala from Live Oak, Florida - The World Of Camping
I started taking my son camping when he was 7. He is 25 now and a very experienced camper. We started close and have gone to Avon Bombing range, Oscar Scherer, and Myakka river state parks. After he was aclimated to camping , we would go to Ga. and North Carolina. But after all the years, we always had the the best time in "our Florida State Parks". I was raised in Panama as a child and went camping a lot in the jungles. I Had a great time down there for the 16 yrs. I lived there but nothing can compare to the camping, whether it is any park in Florida. He has learned so much about the animals and how to protect them and respect what we have here. The Rangers everywhere never "judged" some things he was learning, but went out of their way to explain and teach. We have been fishing and even if we didn't catch anything, we learned from the other campers. As I said, I was raised in the Canal Zone and had the priveledge of meeting a lot of people from all over the world. So with all the people we have met in all the camp sites from over the world, I am glad my son has had the opportunity to experience other cultures and how this is really "one" world. To all the Fathers and Mothers with small children, please take them camping and meet your neighbors from othe parts of the USA and the world. Thank you, Rangers, for all you do.
-Mike(father) and Jeff(son)Braswell from Port Charlotte (Hurricane capitol) Florida - Annual trip to Hontoon Island
I was president of Environmental Club when I was in high school, and I started the annual camping trip for the club over winter break. We went to Hontoon Island every year in December and made chili over the campfire, and went kayaking and hiking. It was always so much fun. I was invited back this year even though I go to FSU now, and I am looking forward to the new memories at Hontoon Island.
-Allison from Tallahassee, FL - Family tradition at St. Joseph
My husband and I, began camping at St Joseph Peninsula State Park about a dozen years ago. Many summers my brother and his wife would meet us there and we would spend a few days or week. They took their son to camping there when he was 2 weeks old. July 1, 2006, our daughter and son-in-law and their one month old joined us at St. Joseph Peninsula SP for a week of camping. We are thankful that we have such a wonderful, unspoiled, coastal park to introduce our next generation to camping.
-Dawn from Bristol, FL - Weekly Wednesday Visits
This year my children and I started a new tradition. We decided to visit a different state park every Wednesday. This allowed us to look forward to every week, and extended our summer vacation. We saw beautiful springs (Rainbow), lunched by a mirror lake (Lake Louisa), dived in a cave opening (Wekeiwa), walked along the tree tops (Myakka), and learned about a past era (Gamble Rogers). What a summer! Stephanie, Ariel, Shelby, Mike, and Papa from Wesley Chapel
-Stephanie from Wesley Chapel
