One of many Finest Methods to Expertise Florida’s Everglades Nationwide Park Is by Boat

Spanning greater than 800 sq. miles of wetlands, Everglades Nationwide Park is the biggest subtropical wilderness in the US—a spot the place land and water blur into one. Whilst you can drive into the park and discover on foot, not like most nationwide parks, the Florida Everglades are greatest skilled from the water.

In truth, almost one-third of the park is made up of navigable waterways. Slender channels wind by means of dense mangrove forests, and numerous small islands fringe the Florida coast. “The boating expertise right here is not like another. An unlimited maze of waterways consists of slow-moving rivers, marshes and mangrove forests,” stated Boatmart in a weblog submit. “The extra distant elements are solely accessible by airboat, kayak, or canoe.”

So how do you get on the water when you’re not an skilled paddler or boater? What ought to you realize earlier than heading out, and what sorts of excursions can be found for first-time guests? This is every thing it is advisable know.

The place to Hire a Boat

To hire your personal boat, head to Flamingo Marina the place you’ll discover kayak, canoe, skiff, pontoon boat, and houseboat leases together with gas and provides. To hire a powerboat inside Everglades Nationwide Park you’ll must first full the park’s free Boater Schooling Program and get your certificates. Simply take into account that renting a powerboat isn’t the easiest way to discover deep within the park, as powerboat leases are solely allowed in Coot Bay and Whitewater Bay.

Methods to E book a Boat Tour

Guests who aren’t excited by navigating a ship or need to discover deeper into the park ought to take into account reserving a guided boat tour. There are three airboat tour firms that function within the park—Coopertown, Everglades Safari Park, and Gator Park—together with some extra conventional boat excursions. Among the latter journey by means of the park’s iconic Ten Thousand Islands and the expansive Florida Bay, whereas others enterprise into the Florida backcountry. 

What to Know About Boating in Everglades Nationwide Park

All boaters nonetheless want a park move, that are $20 to $35, and anybody who needs to captain a ship throughout the park wants to finish the park’s free Boater Schooling Program. Boaters ought to print out the certificates and carry it with them whereas working a vessel within the park. The park has a number of maps geared toward serving to boaters perceive how and the place to journey by boat, together with data on manatee safety zones and the place motorized boats are presently prohibited.