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Sunset over the Everglades’ River of Grass

335 · Further Horizons

Everglades National Park

A very shallow, moving sheet of water supports an intricate meeting of freshwater marsh, mangrove coast and wildlife.

PhotographEverglades NPS from Homestead, Florida, United States · Public domain

Summary

Everglades National Park protects part of southern Florida’s wetland landscape in the United States. Shallow moving water connects freshwater marshes, mangroves and coastal habitats, supporting a distinctive range of wildlife.

The wonder is a whole system whose movement is almost imperceptible. Small changes in water and elevation produce different habitats, making this apparently flat landscape ecologically complex.

301–400 · Further Horizons

The essentials

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Allow time

2 days as an initial allowance, excluding approach travel

Choose a base

Homestead or Everglades City

Getting there

Choose an entrance for the experience: Homestead for the road to Flamingo, the Tamiami Trail for Shark Valley, or Everglades City for the Gulf Coast. These areas are not linked by an internal through-road.

Plan ahead

Reserve a campground, guided boat trip or tram excursion with the relevant operator. Overnight wilderness camping needs its own permit and reservation; a day-entry pass does not cover it.

Practical notes updated 30 September 2026. Visitor information and sources

United States · Nature
Country guidesUnited States
Open my 100Record a visit

The essential experience.

A detail that changes the visit

Shark Valley, the main park road and the Gulf Coast area are different approaches, not one compact circuit.

Vegetation beside the borrow pit in Shark Valley
Shark Valley Borrow Pit VegetationPhoto: Daniel Kraft · CC BY-SA 3.0

For the curious reader

History, landscape and context.

Everglades National Park is a United States national park that protects the southern twenty percent of the original Everglades in Florida. The park is the largest tropical wilderness in the United States and the largest wilderness of any kind east of the Mississippi River. An average of one million people visit the park each year.

Abridged background from Everglades National Park, by Wikipedia contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0. Paragraphs have been selected and shortened; this adapted background remains under the same licence. Retrieved 23 September 2026. Source revision.

The eastern entrance to Everglades National Park
Everglades National Park east entrancePhoto: Daniel Schwen · CC BY-SA 4.0
A pond with water lilies and swamp grass in the back on the Anhinga trail in Everglades National Park, Florida
A pond with water lilies and swamp grass in the back on the Anhinga trail in Everglades National Park, FloridaPhoto: Daniel Kraft · CC BY-SA 3.0

From inspiration to a practical plan

Plan your visit.

Physical demands
Boardwalks and short trails allow a gentle visit. Paddling and wilderness camping require much greater self-sufficiency; heat, insects and water conditions affect the whole day.
The consequential detail
Shark Valley, the main park road and the Gulf Coast area are different approaches, not one compact circuit.
Add to my travel workbenchResearch access requirements

Through the seasons

A place in the world.

United States.

A place in the world
Everglades National Park location mapEverglades National Park location map

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Map: Natural Earth
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In pictures.

The Everglades’ shallow flow links freshwater marshes with mangroves and the coast.

Sunset over the Everglades’ River of GrassPhoto: Everglades NPS from Homestead, Florida, United States, Public domain
The eastern entrance to Everglades National ParkPhoto: Daniel Schwen, CC BY-SA 4.0
Vegetation beside the borrow pit in Shark ValleyPhoto: Daniel Kraft, CC BY-SA 3.0
A pond with water lilies and swamp grass in the back on the Anhinga trail in Everglades National Park, FloridaPhoto: Daniel Kraft, CC BY-SA 3.0
Everglades, Florida, U.S.A.: Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, operated by the National Audubon SocietyPhoto: Marc Ryckaert (MJJR), CC BY 2.5
The wetlands seen from Shark Valley’s observation towerPhoto: Daniel Kraft, CC BY-SA 3.0
NPS Photo by Daniel Miguel InstaMeet 2019 at Anhinga Trail/Royal PalmPhoto: evergladesnps, Public domain
The entrance sign for Everglades National ParkPhoto: Ken Lund from Reno, Nevada, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0
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Follow the connection

Keep exploring.

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Useful links and further reading.

Choose a source for the job: official visitor information for access, the UNESCO record for the named property’s designation, and background or library resources for deeper reading.

Visit · US National Park Service

Everglades National Park: Plan your visit

Official park visitor information: use this for access, permits, operating seasons and facilities.

External resource. Check the provider for access and current arrangements.

Understand · UNESCO World Heritage Centre

UNESCO World Heritage property record

Read the named property’s significance, maps, components and conservation documents. The World Heritage boundary may cover only part of this guide’s wider destination.

External resource. Check the provider for access and current arrangements.

Read · Wikipedia

Everglades National Park: background reading

Encyclopaedic context and its bibliography. Follow the cited research for a deeper examination of particular claims.

External resource. Check the provider for access and current arrangements.

Books · WorldCat

Find books about Everglades National Park

Search library holdings and editions, useful for finding specialist histories, field guides and works beyond a general travel guide.

External resource. Check the provider for access and current arrangements.

Maps · OpenStreetMap

Explore the local map

Inspect the surrounding area.

External resource. Check the provider for access and current arrangements.
Visitor information behind these practical notes