Enjoy Our Area!

Florida is an incredibly diverse state, which is a real gift for our visitors! Within just a short driving time, there is a world of culture, entertainment and nature, etc., ready to be experienced. Here are just a few of the activities and attractions that await you when you visit the Bonita Springs/Naples/Sanibel/Fort Myers area.

Bailey-Matthews Shell Museum
The Bailey-Matthews Shell Museum on Sanibel Island is the only museum in the United States devoted exclusively to shells. The museum occupies a 25,000-square-foot facility and holds 2 million shells, representing one-third of the world's 100,000 species of living mollusks. Location: 3075 Sanibel-Captiva Road. Hours: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays. Admission: Adults, $5; children 8 to 16, $3. Information: (239) 395-2233.

Bank of Everglades Building Museum
Free walking tours of the Bank of Everglades Museum are available. A national register landmark, this was the first bank in Collier County and received its Florida charter July 9, 1923. It remained in operation until 1962, when the charter was sold to the Bank of Immokalee.

The building, which now contains a bed-and-breakfast inn, features the original hardwood floors, original 3,000-pound safe and walk-in vault. Location: 201 W. Broadway in Everglades City. Information: 695-3151.

The Calusa Nature Center and Planetarium
The Calusa Nature Center and Planetarium is a private, not-for-profit environmental education center. The museum and trails are open Mondays through Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Daily programs allow visitors to get up close and personal with some of the creatures of Southwest Florida. The snakes are fed every Sunday at 11:15 a.m.

The center consists of a small natural history museum, an Audubon aviary which houses permanently injured birds of prey, nature trails, a picnic area, a gift shop with an assortment of nature books, and a planetarium which features astronomy programs and laser light shows. The center also offers guided walks every Tuesday and Friday at 9:30 a.m.

The center is located at 3450 Ortiz Avenue in Fort Myers. Admission to planetarium shows is $3 for teens and adults, and $2 for children. Admission to the museum and trails costs $5 for teens and adults, and $3 for children ages 3 through 12. Group rates are available for 15 or more people. Information: 275-3435.

Caribbean Gardens
Caribbean Gardens, the Zoo in Naples, features animals from apes to zebras exhibited within a botanical garden founded in 1919. Zoo guests get close to lions, tigers, leopards, alligators, hyenas, kangaroos and many other species throughout the 52-acre setting.

The zoo features a variety of wildlife presentations. Safari Canyon offers live animals exhibiting natural behaviors while narrators show custom graphics and wildlife videos from conservation groups such as World Wildlife Fund.

There is also a restaurant, picnic area and gift shop on site. Hours: 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. daily, with last ticket sold at 4:30 p.m. Location: 1590 Goodlette-Frank Road. Admission: adults 16 and up, $14.95; children 4 to 15, $9.95; under 4, free. Information: 262-5409

Collier County Historical Society
Historic Palm Cottage, the second-oldest home in Naples, is at 137 12th Ave. S., one block east of the pier. Built in 1895, Palm Cottage is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. A new garden was recently added, funded by a grant from the Naples Garden Club.

Tours are available from 1 to 4 p.m. Sundays and Fridays. Donation at the door is $6 per person; under 10 free. Information: 261-8164.

Collier County Museum
This historical park offers a natural history gallery, archaeological laboratory, native fish and animal gallery, and restored swamp buggy and steam locomotive, along with a boardwalk trail through native Florida flora, an orchid house and a gift shop.

"Crackers in the Glade: Life, Art and Writings of Rob Shorter, Everglade Pioneer" is on view through Aug. 30. Born in 1894, Storter earned his living by fishing, hunting and guiding in the Everglades and recorded his memories in journals, paintings and wood carvings, many of which are included in this display. In addition, there is a Sherman tank on permanent display outside the museum.

Admission is free. Museum hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays. Location: 3301 U.S. 41 E. (County Government Center). Information: 774-8476.

Naples History
Be sure to visit this web site for a great look back at the history of the Naples area!

Collier-Seminole State Park
Collier-Seminole State Park, a 4,760-acre wilderness preserve, offers a 0.9-mile interpretive boardwalk/nature trail, RV and tent camping, a 5 1/2-mile mountain-bike trail, a 6 1/2-mile hiking trail, canoe rentals, a 13 1/2-mile aquatic trail, playground, picnic area, pontoon boat tours and historical displays, including a huge "walking" dredge, a National Historic Engineering Landmark. Location: 17 miles south of Naples on U.S. 41 East. Hours: 8 a.m. to sunset. Admission: $3.25 per car, up to eight people, $1 per person over eight people. Information: 394-3397.

The Conservancy
The Conservancy of Southwest Florida operates two nature centers in Collier County to educate residents and visitors about the area's natural resources. The centers offer numerous exhibits and activities.

The Naples Nature Center includes the Conservancy Museum of Natural History, Wildlife Rehabilitation Center, a butterfly garden and short trails featuring a broad variety of native Florida trees and plants on the 14-acre site. The museum provides hands-on exhibits, special programs, daily presentations about water, turtles and snakes, and daily guided tours of the nature trails.

The Wildlife Rehabilitation Center has a behind-the-scenes hospital for injured native wild animals. Permanent residents, including owls, hawks and a bald eagle, are on view.

Canoe and kayak rentals are offered, plus narrated boat tours of the upper reaches of the Gordon River. Boat tours are free and available on a first-come, first-served basis.

The Naples Nature Center is at 14th Avenue North, off Goodlette-Frank Road. Hours are Mondays through Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Admission is $7.50 for adults; $2 for children 3 to 12. Children under 3 and Conservancy members are free. Call 262-0304, ext. 333.

Briggs Nature Center, six miles north of Marco Island, features an interpretive center and a half-mile boardwalk through a variety of plant communities. A butterfly garden includes more than 20 species of native plants designed to attract 27 species of native butterflies.

The center is off Collier Boulevard in the Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve. Hours are Mondays through Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Admission is $4 for adults; $2 for children 3 to 12. Children under 3 and Conservancy members are free. Call: 775-8569.

Yearly family memberships to The Conservancy of Southwest Florida begin at $35 and include admission to nature centers, education publications and other discounts.

CREW Marsh Trail System
The CREW Marsh Trail System, which offers five miles of hiking through pine flatwoods, sawgrass marsh and an oak/cabbage palm hammock, is located at the edge of the 6,825-acre Corkscrew Marsh on Corkscrew Road in northern Collier County.

The trails are free and open to the public seven days a week, sunrise to sunset. In addition, guided tours or group outings may be arranged by calling the Corkscrew Regional Ecosystem Watershed (CREW) office from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays at (239) 332-7771. The CREW Trust, formed in 1989, assists with wetlands acquisition, management and public-use activities in Lee and Collier counties.

Location: From Interstate 75, take exit 19 and travel east for approximately 18 miles. Entrance is on right. From State Road 82, travel east to County Road 850 (Corkscrew Road) and turn right. Entrance is approximately 1.5 miles on left.

Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary
Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, owned and operated by Audubon of Florida, is an 11,000-acre preserve where visitors can find a pristine wilderness that dates back more than 500 years. A 2 1/4-mile boardwalk winds through pine flatwoods, open prairie and finally into the largest forest of ancient bald cypress in North America.

The forest is also home to hundreds of alligators, otters, Florida black bear, white-tailed deer, red-bellied turtles and almost 200 species of birds, including egrets, ibis, herons and wood storks.

Corkscrew's Blair Audubon Center features six exhibits that help explain what visitors will see and what they should look for on the boardwalk. Among the exhibits is the multimedia "Swamp Theatre," which depicts the daily and seasonal changes in the swamp. The center also features a tearoom, nature store and art gallery.

The sanctuary is open daily from 7 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. through Sept. 30. Admission is $8 for adults, $5.50 for full-time college students, $5 for Audubon members, $3.50 for children 6 to 18, and children under 6 are free. Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary is at 375 Sanctuary Road, Naples. Directions: take Interstate 75 to exit 17 and drive east for 15 miles. Information: 348-9151.

Delnor-Wiggins Pass State Recreation Area
A 166-acre tract located on the south side of Wiggins Pass in North Naples, Delnor-Wiggins Pass State Recreation Area features shaded picnic areas, grills, a pavilion, bath house, short nature trail and an observation deck.

The beach, which was purchased from Collier County in 1970, frequently has ended up on the national "Best Beaches Survey" by Stephen Leatheman, director of the University of Maryland's Laboratory for Coastal Research. Shelling is usually good, and while swimmers are not allowed in the dangerous currents of Wiggins Pass, fishing is allowed there. Swimmers may go into the Gulf of Mexico on the south side of the pass. Native gopher tortoises, manatees, dolphins, osprey and a wide variety of wading birds are commonly seen.

The park, at the western terminus of Bluebill Avenue, is open daily from 8 a.m. to sunset. Entrance fees are $2 for one driver in a vehicle, $4 for more than one person, and $1 for pedestrians and bicyclists. The address is 11100 Gulfshore Drive. Information: 597-6196.

Edison-Ford complex
The winter homes of inventor Thomas Alva Edison and automobile industrialist Henry Ford sit side by side on the south side of the Caloosahatchee River in Fort Myers. The Edison site features his home, laboratory, botanical gardens and a museum. Ford's home has been restored to look the way it did when he purchased the estate in 1916.

A special exhibition celebrating the "Historic Landscapes of Florida" can be seen through Sept. 3. It features 27 historic gardens located around the state. Ticket price is $5.

Presenters in period costume offer living history performances. Hours: Mondays through Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and Sundays from noon to 5:30 p.m. Location: 2350 McGregor Blvd., Fort Myers. Admission: Adults, $12; children 6 to 12, $6; children under 6, free. Information: (239) 334-3614.

Everglades Wonder Gardens
Southwest Florida's oldest attraction includes botanical gardens, native and exotic birds, Florida panthers, black bears, a museum and a gift shop. The facility also features a display of Florida reptiles, including alligators, crocodiles and venomous and non-venomous snakes. Hours: Seven days a week from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Location: Old 41 Road in Bonita Springs. Admission: Adults, $12; children 3 to 12, $6; under 3, free. Information: 992-2591.

Flamingo Island Flea Market
Bonita Springs has his own flea market, great shopping, Great food and fun. Over 600 spaces with everything you are looking for. The Flamingo Island Flea Market is located 200 yards west of I-75 exit 116 in Bonita springs.

Ever thought about the Ferry to Key West
A friendly crew, great food and the world's best sunsets are all part of the cruise on x press to Key West Year round serve from Ft. Myers Beach call 1-800-273-4496.

Fakahatchee Strand State Preserve
Fakahatchee Strand, the largest cypress strand in the world, is comprised of more than 80,000 acres of land in the Big Cypress Swamp. Home to the rare Ghost Orchid, its slough is the deepest in the greater Everglades and borders U.S. 41, Interstate 75 and State Road 29.

Approximately 15 miles long and five miles wide, Fakahatchee Strand is the only remaining natural forest of royal palm and bald cypress.

The strand's Big Bend Boardwalk, six miles west of State Road 29 on U.S. 41, is always open. Admission is free. It's home to a pair of bald eagles, a resident alligator, bears, white-tail deer, raccoons, otters, birds, reptiles and amphibians, offering many photo opportunities.

To best view the royal palms and wildlife, drive along Janes Scenic Drive, and turn left four miles north of U.S. 41 off State Road 29. Tram roads lead off the gravel road in two directions, and hikes can be arranged. Swamp buggy walks can also be scheduled. Information: Call 239-695-4593.

Imaginarium
The Imaginarium Hands-On Museum & Aquarium, a science museum, features more than 60 exhibits about the environment, physics, anatomy, weather and other scientific topics. Attractions include aquariums displaying marine life, a touch pool, a living reef tank and an outdoor lagoon.

The museum also features a 3-D theater, enclosed butterfly garden, citrus grove and interactive areas for preschoolers. Hours: Mondays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sundays noon to 5 p.m. Location: corner of M.L. King Boulevard and Cranford Avenue, Fort Myers. Admission: Adults, $7; seniors, $6.50; children 3 to 12, $4; and children under 3 are free. Information: (239) 337-3332.

AREA HAPPENINGS:

September 12
Summer Evenings on fifth
This downtown Naples celebration combines the community feel of a main street with the sophistication of a world-class destination with musicians, vocalist, dancers and magicians. Fifth Avenue South, Naples 239-435-5742

September 13
Billy Joel & Elton John
The Piano Man and the Rocket Man, two of the 70's most popular singers and songwriters are coming together again. This show promises to be a symphonic melange of their two very distinct music styles. Ice Palace Arena Tampa 813-287-8844

September 28
Summer Jazz on the Gulf: Steve Oliver. A native Californian, Oliver is one of the few artists in contemporary jazz that plays a nylon string guitar. His first album First View was called one of the 10 best albums of 1999. The Naples Beach Hotel and Golf Club 239-261-2222.

September 29
World's fair of Music
Part of the Family fair series of the Naples Philharmonic Orchestra, this event features costumed characters and dancers who guide audiences on a musical journey around the world. Selection range from Brazilian rhythms to Tchaikovsky classics. An afternoon for the entire family. Philharmonic Center for the Arts, Naples 239-597-1900.