Florida National Parks Itinerary (4 & 7 Day Road Trip To Everglades, Biscayne + Dry Tortugas)
It’s fairly rare to be able to visit 3 different National Parks on one road trip! For the most part, the US National Parks are spread out across the country (with a few exceptions, like the Utah Mighty 5). Luckily, these 3 in Florida are within a short drive of each other – making a Florida National Parks itinerary easy to plan.
I recently headed down to Florida for a quick 4 day Florida National Park road trip. I saw everything I wanted to, but it was a lot of driving and not a lot of sleeping.
I’m sharing my itinerary below, as well as a 7 day Florida National Parks itinerary that (I think) is more ideal if you’re not so short on time.
In this article:
- How to get to the 3 National Parks in Florida (best routes & airports)
- Recommended Florida National Parks itinerary for 4 or 7 days
- Best things to do at Biscayne, Dry Tortugas and Everglades National Parks
- Tips for where to stay and the best time to visit

Let’s start with a quick lay of the land!
3 National Parks In Florida:
- Biscayne National Park (near Miami)
- Dry Tortugas National Park (off the coast of Key West)
- Everglades National Park (southern tip of Florida)
Biscayne National Park is located just south of Miami. From Biscayne, it’s about 3 hours south down Overseas Highway (US-1), over 42 bridges, and into Key West where you travel another 70-miles by sea plane or ferry to Dry Tortugas National Park.
On your way back up to Miami, swing through Everglades National Park which is a short detour from your route back to the airport.
The good news is that these parks are all relatively close to each other, so you can visit them in any order you prefer.
The hardest park to get to is Dry Tortuga because you’re limited by available ferry or sea plane tickets – so I recommend booking these tickets and adjusting the rest of your Florida National Parks itinerary around that.
For the purposes of this article, this road trip itinerary departs from Miami to Biscayne, Dry Tortugas, Everglades and then back to Miami. You can easily make it your own with a few tweaks to your itinerary.
How To Get To The Florida National Parks
The best place to begin a road trip to the Florida National Parks is in Miami. Miami is the easiest airport to fly into for this trip, but there are several options slightly farther away.
I recommend comparing flight prices between Miami and Fort Lauderdale.
Fort Lauderdale tends to have better flight prices (and more budget airlines available), but it’s 40 minutes farther north than the Miami airport and traffic can be extremely unpredictable.
It’s not unlikely that this could add more than an hour to your overall drive-time to Biscayne National Park.
If you’re renting a car, you’ll also want to compare car rental prices from Fort Lauderdale or Miami. Generally, I don’t find that they fluctuate much but it’s worth seeing if you can find a good deal.
Other airports include Orlando and Tampa. These are a bit farther off this Florida National Parks road trip route, but they could be convenient if you have plans to visit the “other” parks – Disney and Universal!
Distance from Miami to Biscayne National Park: 1 hour
Distance from Fort Lauderdale to Biscayne National Park: 1.5 hours
Distance from Orlando to Biscayne National Park: 4 hours
Distance from Tampa to Biscayne National Park: 5 hours

Miami To Key West Road Trip
The ideal route for this Florida National Park itinerary looks like this:
- Miami Airport to Biscayne National Park – 1 hour
- Biscayne National Park to Dry Tortugas National Park (Ferry Terminal) – 3 hours
- Dry Tortugas National Park to Everglades National Park – 3 hours
In total, this route is about 9 hours of driving over the course of this Florida National Parks itinerary.

Florida National Parks Itinerary 4 Days
My Florida National Parks itinerary was just 4 days. Is it possible? Yes. But you’ll be going non-stop and squeezing quite a bit into a shorter trip.
- Day 1: Arrive in Miami early morning, spend the afternoon in Biscayne National Park, drive to Key West at night.
- Day 2: Full day exploring Dry Tortugas National Park, drive to Everglades National Park at night.
- Day 3-4: Two days in Everglades National Park.
This 4 day itinerary is really tight, but it works! I’ve done it myself.
You’ll need to arrive into Miami first thing in the morning and head straight to Biscayne National Park. You’ll have time to take a boat tour and explore the visitors center and Jetty Trail.

After, you’ll drive 3.5 hours south to Key West so you’re positioned for an early morning trip to Dry Tortugas National Park on day 2. The ferry leaves at 8am and returns at 5:30 pm.
You can spend a second night in Key West, or you can drive up to the Everglades for an early start to day 3. You’ll have 1.5 – 2 days in Everglades National Park before flying out of Miami the evening of night 4.
Note: If I did this trip over again with more time, I would add a 5th day so I could spend one day in Key West, too. The historic downtown has a lot going on and I wish I’d had more time to bike around and explore.
Florida National Parks Itinerary 7 Days
If you have a week to road trip to the Florida National Parks this itinerary will give you more time to enjoy without feeling quite as rushed.
- Day 1: Arrive early to Miami, spend the afternoon in Biscayne National Park
- Day 2: Spend the morning in Biscayne National Park, drive to Key West
- Day 3: Spend the day exploring Key West
- Day 4: Full-day in Dry Tortugas National Park
- Day 5-7: Drive to Everglades National Park, spend 2 days exploring
This 7 day Florida National Park road trip includes a day in Biscayne National Park, some time to explore Key West and spend a day at Dry Tortugas National Park, and two days in Everglades National Park.
Biscayne and Dry Tortugas are both parks you can easily see in just one day. Everglades is best seen with two days because the areas of the park are more spread out and there’s a variety of free ranger programs to participate in.
With the general itineraries planned out, let’s get into to fun part – what to do in each park!
Biscayne National Park Highlights
Biscayne National Park is a short drive from Miami, and has free park admission, but the majority of the park is underwater and requires a boat to access.
Biscayne National Park Institute is the only authorized concessionaire for Biscayne National Park, so all the tours in the park are booked through them.
Boat tours launch from two locations: Coconut Grove / Dinner Key Marina (in Miami) and Dante Fascell Visitor Center (near Biscayne National Park entrance). They’re about an hour apart from each other – so keep this in mind when booking boat tours.
There are a few popular boat tours I recommend:
- Heritage of Biscayne Cruise ($83, 3.5 hours) – A boat tour and historical overview of Biscayne Bay with a 1-hour stop at either Boca Chita Key, Elliott Key, or Adams Key depending on conditions.
- Stiltsville Guided Tour From Coconut Grove ($70, 2 hours) – This two hour boat tour takes you from Coconut Grove (closer to Miami) through the 6 remaining historic Stiltsville houses.
Both of these tours take you to iconic spots in Biscayne National Park. Boca Chita Key and Elliott Key are the most popular spots. At Boca Chita Key you’ll see the famous Boca Chita Lighthouse that represents Biscayne in most of the photographs you’ll find.

I recommend spending some time visiting the Dante Fascell Visitor Center, too.
In the visitor center you’ll find educational displays that show the ecosystems in Biscayne Bay and a bit about the history of the park.

Just outside of the visitor center is the Jetty Trail, a 0.8 mile flat, paved path that takes you out to the jetty point. It’s an easy trail and I really enjoyed how much wildlife I was able to spot given it’s not a very long path.
It starts along a boardwalk so you can see down into the water and spot fish, and sometimes manatees! Then, it transitions to the jetty where there are lots of birds and lizards along the path.
Suggested Florida National Parks Itinerary – Biscayne
If you’re on the 4-day itinerary I recommend booking a boat tour for the early afternoon. Many of them leave from Coconut Grove / Dinner Key in Miami so if you’re coming into the Miami airport they’re nearby.
From there, head down to the visitor center and walk the Jetty Trail in the afternoon before beginning the 3.5 hour drive to Key West.
If you’re on the 7-day itinerary I recommend spending the afternoon in Miami, taking a boat tour from Coconut Grove / Dinner Key. The following morning head to the visitors center where you can take a second boat or snorkeling tour and/or walk the Jetty Trail before driving to Key West.
For more information, I’ve also written a detailed Biscayne National Park itinerary.
Where To Stay Near Biscayne National Park
The best place to stay near Biscayne National Park is Homestead or Florida City. Both are about 15-minutes from Biscayne.
- Courtyard by Marriott Miami Homestead – luxury
- Home2 Suites by Hilton Florida City – pet friendly
- Travelodge by Wyndham Florida City – budget
However, if you’re planning to spend time in Miami and take some boat tours that depart from Coconut Grove / Dinner Key then the best place to stay is Courtyard by Marriott Miami Coconut Grove which is within walking distance to the boat launch.
Dry Tortugas National Park Highlights
The only way to get to Dry Tortugas National Park is through Key West. From Key West, you can take the ferry, the sea plane or charter a private boat. Dry Tortugas is located 70 miles west of Key West.
The ferry is the cheapest way to get to Dry Tortugas (but cheap is a relative term). A ticket costs at least $220 and increases slightly depending on whether you already have a National Parks Pass, plan to camp at Dry Tortugas, or want to bring a kayak onboard.

The ferry is how most people, myself included, visit Dry Tortugas. There are only 175 tickets available daily, so I highly recommend booking as far in advance as possible.
There is only one schedule option if you’re taking the ferry:
- 7:00 AM – Check-in at the ferry terminal
- 8:00 AM – Depart for Dry Tortugas
- 10:30 AM – Arrive at Dry Tortugas, Garden Key + Fort Jefferson
- 2:45 PM – Depart for Key West
- 5:30 PM – Arrive at ferry terminal in Key West
The next best option for getting to Dry Tortugas is a sea plane. There are even fewer sea plane tickets sold each day, so booking in advance is even more crucial.

Sea plane tickets start at $494 per person. There are two schedule options: half day or full day.
Half day trips are around 4 hours in total, with 2.5 hours to spend in the National Park. With the full day trip you’ll have 6.5 hours to spend in the National Park.
Unless you are camping overnight at Dry Tortugas National Park, you will only be able to explore Garden Key due to the limited schedule options and time in the park.
If you are camping overnight you’ll have more time to explore the other keys, like Loggerhead Key, Bush Key and East Key.
If you’re taking the ferry or sea plane and only have one day in Dry Tortugas National Park these are the things I think you should make time for during your visit:
- Free Fort Jefferson Tour – this is provided daily at 11am by the ferry operators. Even if you don’t take the ferry it’s possible to participate – just meet outside the visitors center in Fort Jefferson at 11am.
- Explore Fort Jefferson – definitely walk along the top of the fort where the views are stunning.
- Walk to Bush Key – From October-January Bush Key is open to visitors. The rest of the year it’s closed for nesting birds. Bush Key is adjacent to Garden Key and during low tide can be walked to.
- Snorkel in Dry Tortugas – Ferry and sea plane tickets include the use of snorkeling gear. There are two great beaches on Garden Key where you can snorkel and see tons of fish, crabs, coral, and massive seashells.

Suggested Florida National Parks Itinerary – Dry Tortugas
I recommend arriving to Key West the night before. I had contemplated staying in another of the keys the night before and trying to drive in really early the day I visited Dry Tortugas, but ultimately decided against it – the risk of missing the ferry due to traffic (there’s just one road!) wasn’t worth it.
You absolutely want to check-in at the ferry terminal before 7:15 AM. The ferry runs a standby list for anyone who didn’t get an advanced reservation. They start opening up seats to standby passengers after they count their no-shows so do not be late!
Once you arrive at Garden Key at 10:30 AM I recommend spending a few minutes exploring the outside of the fort and along the moat. By 11:00 AM you’ll want to be inside the fort entrance (near the visitor center) for the tour.

The tour concludes around noon, which is perfect because it gives you an hour to get back to the ferry for lunch (provided for free).
After lunch, I recommend exploring the fort on your own for a few minutes. The tour won’t take you to the upper levels and these are worth seeing.
Then, spend the afternoon walking the beaches (especially to Bush Key if it’s open during your trip) and swimming and snorkeling.
I’ve also written a Dry Tortugas National Park itinerary with tips and tricks I learned during my trip.

Where To Stay Near Dry Tortugas National Park
During my trip to Dry Tortugas National Park I stayed just north of Old Town Key West, which I regret. Yes, I saved a little bit on my hotel cost, but then I paid $40 for daily parking downtown anyway.
Next time, I will stay in historic downtown Key West so I can walk or bike everywhere and really enjoy the area.
- La Concha Key West – luxury
- The Marquesa Hotel – adults only
- Opal Key – full resort + spa
- NYAH Key West – budget
Everglades National Park Highlights
Everglades National Park covers a very large portion of south Florida. There are three primary entrances:
- Miami (northeast corner)
- Homestead (southeast corner)
- Everglades City (northwest corner, towards Naples)
The Miami entrance is nearest to Shark Valley and Homestead entrance is nearest to Royal Palms, which then leads farther into the park towards Flamingo.

I recommend splitting your itinerary into two days: one exploring Royal Palms and Flamingo – both located along the same road – and one day exploring Shark Valley.
Note: Everglades City is the farthest from Miami, so it’s out of the way. Additionally, it’s a smaller area and, currently, the visitors center and boat launch are closed because of damages sustained from several hurricanes over recent years. For that reason, I’m not including it in this itinerary.
Royal Palms is where the primary visitors center is located (Earnest F Coe Visitor Center), as well as a majority of the free ranger programs you can sign up to participate in.
The ranger programs were my favorite part of visiting Everglades National Park! During the busy (dry, winter) season there are tons of programs – my favorites were the night walk, the wet walk and canoeing Nine Mile Pond.

Flamingo is located at the end of Main Park Road. It’s a wonderful scenic 38-mile drive.
At the end of the road you’ll enter Flamingo – stop by the visitors center and walk along the marina where you’ll probably spot alligators and manatees. Crocodiles also inhabit this area of the park because there’s more salt water there.
Shark Valley is also fantastic for spotting wildlife. There’s a 15 mile loop trail to the Shark Valley Observation Tower that departs from behind the Shark Valley Visitor Center. You can rent a bike or ride the tram to the tower.

Along the path there are tons of alligators. I saw an alligator at least every 500 feet or so. There are also turtles, birds and some disturbingly large snakes.
Shark Valley is also the area of Everglades National Park where you can take an airboat ride. This was a highlight of my trip and something I highly recommend!

Suggested Florida National Parks Itinerary – Everglades
Split your two days in Everglades National Park between the Royal Palms + Flamingo, and Shark Valley areas.
Get an early start in Royal Palms. Drop into the visitors center on your way into the park to get your National Parks passport book stamped, talk with a ranger on duty, and pick up any tickets you need for the ranger programs you pre-registered for.
Then, head towards Royal Palms visitor center and walk the Anhinga Trail – a 0.8 mile boardwalk loop that takes you through the marsh and pond with lots of opportunities to spot alligators and other local wildlife.

Right next to Anhinga Trail is Gumbo Limbo Trail, a 0.5 mile loop trail that takes you through shade trees and a seemingly completely different type of ecosystem than the Anhinga Trail.
Next, drive Main Park Road down to Flamingo to see how an elevation change of just 3-4 feet can have a profound impact on the ecosystems. The drive takes about an hour, one-way.
Spend the night in Homestead of Florida City before heading into Shark Valley on the second day.
I recommend getting an early start on the Shark Valley Tram Trail, especially if you plan to bike it. Temperatures get hotter and more humid as the day progresses.

If you plan to take the tram be sure to book your ticket a few weeks in advance as they tend to sell out during the busy season (winter).
Finally, take an airboat ride through the Everglades. These are really fun, and usually about 40-minutes to an hour long. Your guide will point out various wildlife and you have a really good chance of seeing several alligators sunning themselves or swimming through the water.
If you want more details and tips for your Everglades National Park itinerary check out this post.
Where To Stay Near Everglades National Park
The closest towns to Everglades National Park are Homestead and Florida City, just like Biscayne (which is on the opposite side of these towns). They’re both about a 20-minute drive from the Ernest F Coe Visitor Center.
The benefit to staying near Homestead or Florida City is that it’s also located between Royal Palms and Shark Valley areas of the park, so you won’t have to spend extra time driving around.
- Courtyard by Marriott Miami Homestead – luxury
- Home2 Suites by Hilton Florida City – pet friendly
- Travelodge by Wyndham Florida City – budget
It’s also possible to camp in or near Everglades National Park. I stayed at 3 of these 4 options:
- Lone Pine Key (In Park Near Royal Palms)
- Flamingo (In Park Near Flamingo)
- Midway Lake (Outside Park Near Shark Valley)
- Monument Lake (Outside Park Near Shark Valley)
I liked Lone Pine Key, and it’s really centrally located in the Royal Palms area of Everglades National Park, but it’s only open during the winter.

I would never stay at Flamingo again and do not recommend it. The mosquitos are indescribable. After one night, and maybe a total of 4 minutes spent outdoors I had over 200 mosquito bites… and it wasn’t even mosquito season! They warn you about this when you book – take them seriously.
Midway Lake was nice, but fairly small and had no showers. Instead, I would stay at Monument Lake, which is equally small but more spread out for better privacy between sites and has wonderful hot showers with fantastic water pressure – a camping dream!
Best Time For This Florida National Parks Itinerary
There are two seasons in Florida: wet and dry. The summer months are the wet season and the winter months are the dry season, and there are benefits and disadvantages to both.
Overall, I think the dry season is the best time to visit the Florida National Parks. The rain, mosquitos and humidity of the summer wet season makes it miserable to be outside… which is the whole point of visiting a National Park!
I visited these parks in mid-December and thought the weather was perfect! I think January would be an equally good month to visit Everglades National Park.
Wet Season: June through October
Pros:
✅ Fewer crowds
✅ Better prices
Cons:
❌ Hurricane season, unpredictable weather
❌ Hot & humid
❌ Mosquitos
Dry Season: November through May
Pros:
✅ Best time to view wildlife
✅ Less rain
✅ Fewer mosquitos (but never none)
✅ Comfortable temperatures
Cons:
❌ More crowded
❌ Higher prices, less availability
More Resources To Plan Your Florida National Parks Itinerary
Check out these additional resources to help you plan an epic Florida National Park road trip itinerary!
- Biscayne National Park Itinerary + Travel Guide
- Dry Tortugas National Park Itinerary + Travel Guide
- Everglades National Park Itinerary + Travel Guide
Quick Booking Links – Florida National Parks Itinerary Planning
There’s a lot to coordinate for a trip to each of these National Parks. Below are some quick-links to help keep it simple!
Biscayne Links
Dry Tortugas Links
Everglades Links
National Parks Entrance Fees
Below are the entrance fees for each of the 3 Florida National Parks:
- Biscayne National Park: Free
- Dry Tortugas National Park: $15 per person
- Everglades National Park: $35 per vehicle
If you’re planning to visit a few National Parks in the next year I recommend getting an annual America The Beautiful National Parks Pass. The pass is $80 and good for a rolling 12-months.
I have bought this pass for several years in a row and it’s saved me tons of money on National Park admission. It also gets you into over 2,000 national recreation areas for free, too.
One pass can be used for 4 discounted tickets on the Dry Tortugas ferry or sea plane. And one pass is all you need for free admission for everyone in your vehicle at the other National Parks.
