Destination Discovery: Visit the Nation's Best Sandbox in Naples!

Known for its fantastic tropical climate, golfing, beaches and natural beauty, Naples draws thousands of vacation goers and winter snowbirds to its Gulf Coast shores each year. Here are a few ideas to help inspire you when you're planning your next trip to this sensational vacation destination!  

Charter Fishing Excursions

Charter boats take fishing trips to a whole new level with knowledgeable captains who can take you to all the hot spots to hook that elusive monster you've always been searching for! With everything from equipment and licenses to bait and ice provided for you the only thing you'll need to focus on is the getting your catch of the day with species like sailfish, dolphin, tuna and sharks!  

Naples Botanical Gardens

Discover beautifully restored natural habitats with gorgeous tropical gardens at the Naples Botanical Garden. This unique treasure offers special events, traveling exhibits and performances that bring people together through display, education, conservation and science. Come and get inspired!  

Shopping and Dining

Historic downtown Naples offers a fantastic variety of shopping and dining options to choose from during your vacation. When it comes to shopping, there are options for everyone from high-end shopping at the Waterside Shops to everyday casual at hot spots like Tin City and Coconut Point.

Tantalize your taste buds with local flavor and cultural delights from a seemingly endless array of restaurants, eaters, bistros and sidewalk cafes.  

Sand and Surf

Soak up the sun on the famous sugar sand Gulf Coast beaches in the Naples area. Many of these beaches offer a full range of activities to enjoy such as swimming, sailing, nature trails, jet-skiing, kayaking and shelling. Here is a list of popular beaches to visit during your trip to Naples:

• Delnor-Wiggins Pass State Park
• Bonita Beach Park
• Lowdermilk Park
• Barefoot Beach Preserve Park

Naples Zoo at Caribbean Gardens

Take a walk on the wild side at the Naples Zoo at Caribbean Gardens! Convenient paved pathways lead you through this gorgeous zoo with a tropical setting past favorite animals like lions, giraffes, pythons, bears and monkeys!

The historic botanical gardens here have a great variety of exotic foliage for you to enjoy like the swiss cheese plant and monkey puzzle tree! Plan your trip around events like the upcoming Elephant Fest and Veterans Day in November and International Cheetah Day in December.  

Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary

Home to the largest old growth Bald Cypress forest and one of the last remaining stands of pond cypress, this sanctuary is under the protection of the National Audubon Society and preserves wilderness that dates back more than 500 years! Over two miles of boardwalk winds through this preserve with an abundance of alligators, otters, white-tailed deer and red-bellied turtles, so be on the lookout! There is also a variety of song birds and raptors that can be seen throughout the year as well.

The landscape at the Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary includes pine flatwoods, wet prairies and marsh lands that foster the perfect environment for a number of plant species as well. Some rare finds would include the "Super Ghost" orchid and native Florida vegetation such as mosses, lichens, bromeliads and ferns.

Golfing

The Naples area boasts the most golf courses per capita than anywhere else in the world with over 90 of them offered in this area. This has attracted many well-known course designers such as Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer who have made sure to carve their mark here and created some of the state's best golf courses. Here are some favorites you want to check out:

• Arrowhead Golf Club
• Eagle Lakes Golf Club
• Forest Glen Golf & Country Club
• Old Corkscrew Golf Club

The Everglades

This vast network of state and private parks is Florida's most valuable resource and brings visitors the beauty of nature at its most basic. Outdoor adventures are plentiful here with hiking, canoeing and kayaking, bicycling and airboat tours! There's also an abundance of wildlife that includes countless birds like snowy egrets, ospreys and bald eagles, plus animals unique to Florida's tropical climate like the American crocodile, bottle nose dolphins and manatees.  

Marco Island

Explore six miles of crescent-shaped beaches on the largest barrier island within southwest Florida's Ten Thousand Islands! Linked to the mainland by bridges just south of Naples, visitors can enjoy fishing and an abundance of wildlife, great restaurants, golfing and sun-drenched beaches to soak up that fabulous Florida sunshine.  

Nearby Resorts in the Naples area:

Naples RV Resort  •  Lake San Marino RV Resort  •  Club Naples RV Resort  

Sun RV Resorts offers a fantastic selection of resorts in a number of other very popular vacation destinations as well. Make sure to keep checking The Scenic Route for more locations in our Destination Discover series!