Discover Attractions

Visitors come to the Gulfshore mainly for sand, sun, and golf, but if you don't move beyond our beaches and courses, you'll miss a lot. Nature lovers and bird watchers from all over make pilgrimages to the pristine Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary near north Naples and J.N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge on Sanibel Island. Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve offers one of the last undisturbed mangrove estuaries in the country and is a prime place to spot manatees and other Southwest Florida wildlife.

View other kinds of animals at Caribbean Gardens, the Zoo in Naples. Go go-carting at King Richard's Medieval Family Fun Park in Naples or do the swim at Sun Splash water park in Cape Coral. Enjoy more sedate pleasures at the Teddy Bear Museum or at the Collier County Museum, both in Naples. In Fort Myers, the historic Edison-Ford Winter Estates draw thousands of visitors to the famous industrialists' seasonal homes. Or check out the boys of summer during spring training: The Boston Red Sox play at nearby City of Palms park; while the Minnesota Twins practice at Hammond Stadium, also in Fort Myers (and summertime home of the Miracle, a Class A affiliate).