After our visit to Shark Valley Visitor Center in the Everglades we continued our exploration of…read morethe Everglades. Local knowledge directed us to take Loop Road through the Miccosukee tribal lands to reach Big Cypress NP-Oasis Visitor Center. Note: Loop Road is only paved to about the Miccosukee Cultural & Visitor Center. Very interesting one hour route through virtually untouched Everglades with sporadic homesteads. We then arrived at Big Cypress in the afternoon. Staff was very helpful. To my surprise there are still Miccosukee/Seminole men that put on alligator handling shows for tourists. The canal that parallels the visitor (Rt 41 Tamiami Trail) is filled with alligators, fish, turtles, ahingas, egrets & herons. A worthwhile stop when travelling through the Everglades. Nick & Liz, Albany, NY, USA

Would love to come spend more time here. It was relatively spread out, but there's a quaint visitor…read morecenter to help guide you on your way. We visited in November and it was still pretty hot for the season, so definitely recommend water / hats / sunscreen as nothing was super shady.

Small center with good video shown regularly and plenty of infographics. Engaging staff. Junior…read moreRanger badge opportunity. Small gift shop. Good place to start your nature adventure if the area.

A large facility with friendly staff to provide information about Big Cypress to guests. There's…read morelots of parking here and it looks well kept; the grounds and buildings. Unfortunately it's closed during the pandemic, although I did see them making building improvements.

Always a good place to see Gators. Today was a little cloudy, so the gators were few (but some).read more

Bathrooms were absolutely disgusting. They may put toilet paper in them but they definitely do not…read morewipe toilets or floors down. There was dried poop and pee all over toilets and floor. Smelled horrible. They are handicapped accessible but you will not want to take it in there! Besides that there were picnic tables to eat at & boardwalk against water where you seen lots of wildlife, gators, birds, fish & turtles.

This small visitor center has a lot to offer. They have a large parking area and the moment that…read moreyou start heading to the building a lot of gator welcomed you. They have a nice walking area close to gators. They easily have over 10 gator sitting around. Inside the visitor center the staff is friendly. They have many souvenirs themed with the everglades.

After our visit to Shark Valley Visitor Center in the Everglades we continued our exploration of…read morethe Everglades. Local knowledge directed us to take Loop Road through the Miccosukee tribal lands to reach Big Cypress NP-Oasis Visitor Center. Note: Loop Road is only paved to about the Miccosukee Cultural & Visitor Center. Very interesting one hour route through virtually untouched Everglades with sporadic homesteads. We then arrived at Big Cypress in the afternoon. Staff was very helpful. To my surprise there are still Miccosukee/Seminole men that put on alligator handling shows for tourists. The canal that parallels the visitor (Rt 41 Tamiami Trail) is filled with alligators, fish, turtles, ahingas, egrets & herons. A worthwhile stop when travelling through the Everglades. Nick & Liz, Albany, NY, USA

Well worth the $3 for parking. Saw several gators. Took about an hour to walk through including…read moretime to look at wildlife like turtles and birds.

Three pretty avid birders decided to pull in on a whim and wander around. None of us had binocs or…read moreour birding books. Let me amend that sentence - three UNPREPARED avid birders. Anyway, it ended up being one of the nicest surprises of our trip. Free admission a plus. Loved the mix of the boardwalk meandering around different kinds of landscapes from palm trees, mangroves, grasslands, etc. So peaceful. Highly recommended if you're near Naples.

Everything went well. The employees were very nice , friendly and helpful. The manager was polite…read moreand helping everyone with the equipment. Nice ice skating . Great place , amazing experience. Thank you for this great idea . Congratulations to the city of Homestead for this

Enjoyed strolling through this park...seeing multiple generations enjoy the amenities...this…read moreevening the trivia games, karaoke, professional singers/DJs graced the stage..excellent food trucks. Will definitely return.

Mackle Park was named in honor of Frank E. Mackle Jr. (1916-1993). Mackle was a developer who had…read morepreviously developed Key Biscayne with his brothers. Frank arrived in what was then a primitive Marco Island in 1962 and saw potential in the undeveloped town. He was soon joined in the venture by his brothers, Elliott and Robert. All of the brothers were engineers and were employed by the Deltona Corporation founded by their father. Frank became the President of the Deltona Corporation and led the modernization of Marco Island. Mackle Park is impressive as it has everything that residents and visitors to Marco Island could want in outdoor recreation. The park has a community center with teen center, basketball court, bocce courts, open field area for play, picnic area, shuffleboard courts, a soccer/football field, volleyball court, and splash pad. One of the standout feature of the park is the creative playground that is a hit with kids. It has a pirate ship, castle turrets, and lots of places to climb and engage in imaginative play. My favorite part of the park is the beautifully landscaped walking path that winds around the lake. A sign at the entrance to the trail shows how you can increase the half mile walk around the lake to .9 miles by incorporating walking the perimeter of the fields in the back of the park. It is perfect for a leisurely stroll or a more vigorous jog. The lake is also a great place to bird watch and fish. Mackle Park has something for everyone. It offers a blend of recreational facilities and natural beauty that makes it a must-visit for anyone in the area. Whether you're looking to let the kids play, enjoy a peaceful walk, or partake in community events or a class, Mackle Park offers it all and more.

It is a beautiful park. Has many wonderful things to do for all ages. Canine Park has two separate…read moreareas for small dogs and large dogs. Maintenance could be better in Canine but it is still a great area. Many different species of wildlife. Great childrens area. Beautiful Community Center with many activities

I'm not a boat owner anymore, but I can appreciate a nice launch site when I see it…read more When my folks lived on Marco Island, they'd walk down to Caxambas Park to enjoy a coffee and watch the action at the launch. You could watch the wildlife (pelicans, seagulls, and the occasional manatee). When we visited them, we'd join the Caxambas adventure, which we enjoyed. Many years later, we did a small vacation to see the "greatest hits" of my folks' past adventures. Sadly, the site was under construction and we couldn't really get the full experience. I can't hold that against them for the repairs - it needed to be done.

It's a longer drive for me get to the southern part of Marco island 41 min by truck/trailer. I've…read moreonly used this facility 2 times it's currently closed the last time I went but many places seem to have been closed temporarily due to hurricane Ian surge wave. So don't expect to buy gas or bait here. Safer yet, call ahead before making the extra trip out. Keep in mind the channels are generally the same but the sandbars come up real quickly even if you are going slow especially on a larger boat. I was lucky enough to back out as soon as the bow glanced sand at slow speed. By the time you touch a sandbar the transom alarm will alert shortly afterwards. I believe mine was set for a 3 foot alert. The trick here to enter caxambas pass is to aim for these building in the picture then slow wake to left side keeping red markers on the starboard side. And hug slight left all the way, unless you have a shallow riding boat. 27/2022