Experience the unexpected in Florida with this six-day Gulf-coast itinerary that takes you on airboat rides through the Everglades and boat tours to abandoned dome houses out at sea. Spend a few days on peaceful Marco Island to enjoy its seashell-covered beaches, waterfront restaurants, and sunset boat rides. Head down to Everglades City for a day to enjoy fresh stone crab, pass the country’s smallest post office, and pay a visit to the utterly bizarre Skunk Ape Headquarters. End your vacation in charming Naples, where you can visit the botanical gardens and wander around the Tin City’s shops and eateries.
Itinerary / 6 DAYS
PLAN YOUR TRIP
MARCO ISLAND BEACH
Darron R. Silva
DAY 1Marco Island
Seashells blanket many of the area beaches, one of the most beloved details about this little island. A short drive from the Marriott, Tigertail Beach is a good place to start your adventure by combing the beaches for sand dollars, calico scallops, or horse conchs. When you leave, take a drive through the nearby streets, keeping a lookout for the areas of sectioned-off grass, the protected turf of teeny-tiny burrowing owls who make their home underground. Alternatively, a shelling tour will take you out by boat, teaching you about the local ecosystem while showing you hidden shelling spots and helping you to identify the different shells.
To celebrate your first night on Marco Island, head over to Old Marco’s popular waterside eatery, Snook Inn. Nightly live music fills the dockside dining area while patrons feast on fresh seafood such as oysters, delicious local grouper, and calamari.

THE ABANDONED DOME HOUSE ON THE EDGE OF CAPE ROMANO WAS BUILT ON LAND IN THE EARLY 1980S, BUT THE ISLAND HAS SINCE ERODED.
DAY 2Cape Romano
To experience the beautiful and bizarre, take a boat tour of the Ten Thousand Islands and Cape Romano Dome Houses. The Ten Thousand Islands National Wildlife Refuge is a 35,000-acre maze of waterways and mangrove islands. Depending on the tour you choose, you’re in for a lesson on the regional ecology, wildlife-spotting opportunities, and a glimpse at the Dome Houses. Protruding from Gulf waters on stilts, these igloo-shaped structures were originally built as a self-sustainable vacation home. Abandoned for decades, they’re now an architectural oddity within Southwest Florida’s seascape.
In the afternoon, enjoy Marco Golf and Garden, 18 holes of mini-golf surrounded by lovely gardens and populated by lizards darting across the greens. In the evening, enjoy fine dining at Fin Bistro, the go-to spot on Marco Island for high-end seafood dishes with fresh fish caught and cooked daily.

TARPON BAY IN EVERGLADES NATIONAL PARK, LOOKING SOUTHWEST TOWARDS FLORIDA BAY
DAY 3The Everglades
Instead of turning back toward Marco Island when you leave, head slightly farther east toward Miami. You’ll feel like Gulliver when you pass the Ochopee Post Office, the smallest in the United States. It measures 56 square feet and is how more than 900 rural residents of the Everglades region send and receive mail. A minute down the road is the massive “COLD BEER” sign out front of Joanie’s Blue Crab Cafe. Inside, you’ll find walls overflowing with Southwest Florida trinkets and fridges full of beer for patrons to help themselves to on the honor system. On the menu, fried green tomatoes, gator bites, frog legs, and of course fried blue crab are all prepared with love.
Now that you’ve refueled with the finest Everglades grub and cold beer, you’re ready to absorb Everglades mythology at the Skunk Ape Headquarters. What’s a Skunk Ape? According to local legends that date thousands of years, the Skunk Ape is a Bigfoot-like creature, akin to a man covered in fur walking on two legs. Dave Shealy’s Skunk Ape Headquarters offers souvenirs, eerie details on the legend, and live animals including a 25-foot python named Goldie. You can also book pole boat tours, rent kayaks, and camp in the surrounding nature.
BIG CYPRESS NATIONAL PRESERVE.
Darron R. Silva
Day 4Fakahatchee Strand Swamp
Treat yourself to one of the best seafood dining experiences on Marco Island tonight at The Oyster Society. Live music from the Jazz Age accompanies their Roaring ’20s, Art Deco-inspired interior while you enjoy daily oyster and raw bar selections.

NAPLES’ FIFTH AVENUE IS A LIVELY SHOPPING AND DINING DESTINATION.
DAY 5Tin City
For a multicultural experience, hop in the car and head to Celebration Park, only 10 minutes away, for lunch. This collection of food trucks—from gyros to Indian street food, with an outdoor bar and big-screen TVs by the water—is a great place to spend a laid-back lunch hour.
Keep the easygoing vibe going by grabbing a pre-dinner drink at local favorites Bar Tulia or The Bevy before a wander around Naples’ posh Fifth Avenue. You’ll enjoy dinner tonight at high-end Truluck’s or at the more relaxed Hobnob Kitchen + Bar.

A LARGE LILY POND AT NAPLES BOTANICAL GARDENS