Florida boasts fantastic tourist attractions, with some of the biggest and most expensively built theme parks, amazing beaches and luxury resorts all on offer. It’s great if that’s what you’re looking for on your holiday, but if you want to go on the less travelled route to feel like you’ve really explored, a fly drive Usa holiday will be just up your street.
Weeki Wachee Mermaids
A show unlike any other, featuring real life mermaids! Well, as close as you can get anyway. These guys and girls must undergo thorough training and stringent tests before they are allowed to perform at the Weeki Wachee Springs State Park, an attraction that is under Florida State protection. An animal show with snakes, alligators and more, as well as a river boat cruise which takes you down the pristine waterway of the Weeki Wachee River, are just some of the things there are to do at this fun filled park.
The Everglades
An expansive area of wetlands, the Everglades is perhaps not the first place you’d think of when suggesting a holiday to Florida. However, they boast some fantastic scenery and there is plenty for the angler to enjoy here, with many species of fish to catch as well as other wildlife to spot including birds and alligators. Take a break from your road trip to jump in an airboat and see all this unique area has to offer. Be sure to watch out for the local big-foot known as the Skunk-Ape! The Everglades host the Skunk-Ape Research Centre where people present their findings on this mythical, or perhaps not so mythical, creature.
Museum of Drag Racing
In Ocala, the Big Daddy Don Garlits Museum of Drag Racing, to give it its full title, shows off personal items from its names-sake, who lives just next door. Having performed stunts from strapping himself to a rocket to racing a fighter jet down an aircraft carrier runway, this daredevil was a legend of drag racing, as any fan will tell you. But it’s not just Garlits and his legacy on display here, with displays dedicated to over 200 drag racing pros filling out the huge collection of memorabilia.
Ferdz Decena is an award-winning travel photographer, writer and blogger. His works has found print in publications such as Singapore Airlines’s Silver Kris, Philippine Airlines’ Mabuhay, Cebu Pacific’s Smile and Seair InFlight. He has also lent his expertise to various organizations like the Oceana Philippines, Lopez Group Foundation, Save the Children and World Vision, contributing quality images for their marketing materials.
