Day Trippin' › Florida › From Orlando › Best wildlife spots
Our picks for the best wildlife spots within 3 hours of Orlando: 28 places, 4 under an hour away, 14 between 1 and 2 hours and 10 between 2 and 3 hours, counted by road time from ZIP 32801.
We put first the places with a real photo, a well-known name, a family-friendly note and an official site, then list the rest by drive time. The closest is Central Florida Zoo and Botanical Gardens, 27 min north of Orlando.
Under 1 hour 1 to 2 hours 2 to 3 hours
Photo: Ramos Keith, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Public domain
#1 · Wildlife · 1 hr 33 min west
Boardwalks over clear springs where hundreds of manatees gather on cold winter days.
Heads-up: Best Nov-Mar. Guided tours in manatee season. No in-water access from the boardwalk.
Photo: LittleT889, CC BY-SA 4.0
#2 · Hike · 1 hr 34 min west
Quiet trails and a long loop through salt marsh and pine flatwoods on the Nature Coast. Great for birding and biking.
Heads-up: Open 8 a.m. to sunset. Little shade on some trails, so bring water and bug spray.
Photo: Ebyabe, CC BY-SA 3.0
#3 · Aquarium · 2 hr 27 min southeast
Sea turtle hospital in Juno Beach where you can see patients recovering. Free to visit.
Heads-up: Open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The beach next door is good for a swim.
Photo: Zrowny, CC BY-SA 4.0
#4 · Zoo · 27 min north
A shady, walkable zoo in Sanford with rhinos, tortoises and a lantern festival in winter.
Heads-up: Asian Lantern Festival select nights Nov 13-Jan 17. Train closed for maintenance.
Photo: Sudhir Viswarajan;, CC BY-SA 3.0
#5 · Wildlife · 53 min east
Black Point Wildlife Drive is a 7-mile loop full of wading birds, gators and winter ducks.
Heads-up: Pay with fee envelopes when the visitor center is closed. Best birding in winter.
Photo: Rusty Clark from merritt usland FLA, CC BY 2.0
#6 · Zoo · 56 min southeast
A hands-on zoo where you can kayak past animals and feed giraffes.
Heads-up: Some early closings for events.
Photo: User: (WT-shared) Gamweb at wts wikivoyage, Public domain
#7 · Wildlife · 1 hr 10 min northeast
A sea turtle and seabird rescue center with aquariums and a boardwalk in Ponce Inlet.
Heads-up: Veterans free.
Photo: Slapp9, CC BY-SA 4.0
#8 · Wildlife · 1 hr 21 min southwest
Boardwalk through a cypress swamp on the Hillsborough River with gators, birds and an observation tower.
Heads-up: Hours 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. fall and winter, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. spring and summer. Canoe launch and rentals paused for rebuilding.
Photo: James E. Scholz, CC BY-SA 4.0
#9 · Aquarium · 1 hr 21 min southwest
Big aquarium on the Tampa waterfront with a coral reef tank, sharks, penguins and a splash pad.
Heads-up: Open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily per the official site. Parking is extra.
Photo: TampAGS, for AGS Media, CC BY-SA 3.0
#10 · Zoo · 1 hr 24 min southwest
Large zoo with manatee rescue, giraffe feeding and a kids' area. A great family day.
Heads-up: Hours about 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.. Little shade at midday in summer.
Photo: Ebyabe, CC BY-SA 2.5
#11 · Wildlife · 1 hr 33 min west
See manatees up close from an underwater observatory, plus panthers, bears and birds.
Heads-up: Manatee talks at 11 am and 1 pm.
Photo: Operator 16, CC0
#12 · Wildlife · 1 hr 37 min northwest
A huge open prairie where wild horses, bison and alligators roam. Climb the tower for the view.
Heads-up: Keep well back from bison, horses and gators. Hot in summer.
Photo: Ebyabe, CC BY-SA 3.0
#13 · Zoo · 1 hr 44 min north
Every kind of crocodilian on Earth, plus a wading bird rookery and a zipline course.
Heads-up: Rookery is busiest in spring nesting season.
Photo: Ebyabe, CC BY-SA 3.0
#14 · Wildlife · 1 hr 45 min southeast
America's first national wildlife refuge with trails and an observation tower over the lagoon.
Heads-up: No pets or bikes.
Photo: qwesy qwesy, CC BY 3.0
#15 · Aquarium · 1 hr 49 min southwest
Working marine rescue center where you can meet rescued dolphins, sea turtles and otters.
Heads-up: Hours shown as 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on the official site. Buy tickets online on busy days.
Wild Florida (53 min), Marineland Dolphin Adventure (1 hr 26 min), Guana Tolomato Matanzas Research Reserve (1 hr 54 min), National Navy UDT-SEAL Museum (1 hr 58 min), Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium (2 hr 12 min), Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens (2 hr 20 min), Cedar Key (2 hr 24 min), Palm Beach Zoo (2 hr 38 min), Manatee Park (2 hr 39 min), Lion Country Safari (2 hr 47 min), Wakodahatchee Wetlands (2 hr 48 min), Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve (2 hr 50 min), Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge (2 hr 51 min)
Our top picks are Three Sisters Springs (1 hr 33 min), Crystal River Preserve State Park (1 hr 34 min), Loggerhead Marinelife Center (2 hr 27 min), Central Florida Zoo and Botanical Gardens (27 min) and Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge (53 min). The page lists 28 places in all.
28: 4 under an hour away, 14 between 1 and 2 hours and 10 between 2 and 3 hours, by road from ZIP 32801.
Central Florida Zoo and Botanical Gardens, about 27 min north of Orlando.
3 need no pass or fee, including Loggerhead Marinelife Center, Cedar Key and Crystal River Preserve State Park. Fees change, so check each place.
9 of the 28 list themselves as open year-round. Places with a season say so on their card; check hours before you go.
Drive times are by road on a typical day from ZIP <class 'zip'> (OpenStreetMap data with the OSRM route planner); places under 25 minutes away count as in town. Facts checked against official sites; passes and hours change, so check before you go.