Key Largo, FL
John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park
The first undersea park in the US. Snorkel boats run out to living coral reef, and two calm beaches work for kids not ready for the boat.
- Snorkeling
- Ages 5+
- ~5h
- Paid
Things to Do 1–2 Hours from Miami with Kids
10 kid-friendly adventures about 1 to 2 hours from Miami, nearest first.
- 1-2 hours (10)
- 2-3 hours (8)
About these times. Each estimate is a straight-line measurement from downtown Miami — the Keys run south on US-1 and the Everglades west on US-41, padded by 17% for winding roads and divided by a 55 mph average — so “about 1 to 2 hours” means roughly that, not a routed time. Traffic, where in Miami you start, and the last few miles of park road can all move it by half an hour. Check a map before you load the car.
about 1 hr drive
about 1 hr 15 min drive
Boynton Beach, FL
Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge
The last intact northern Everglades, with two short boardwalks over cypress swamp and sawgrass marsh and alligators on the levee at dawn.
- Nature
- Ages 3+
- ~3h
- Paid
about 1 hr 15 min drive
Islamorada, FL
Anne's Beach
A free roadside beach with warm, ankle-deep water for hundreds of feet and a boardwalk through mangroves - made for toddlers.
- Swimming
- Ages 1+
- ~2h
- Free
about 1 hr 15 min drive
Islamorada, FL
Windley Key Fossil Reef Geological State Park
Walk through a quarry cut into 125,000-year-old coral reef, with fossil coral heads standing out of the sawn rock walls.
- Nature
- Ages 5+
- ~2h
- Paid
about 1 hr 30 min drive
Riviera Beach, FL
Peanut Island Park
An island reached only by water taxi, with a rock-protected snorkel lagoon shallow enough to stand in and a campground on the far side.
- Snorkeling
- Ages 4+
- ~4h
- Paid
about 1 hr 30 min drive
Long Key, FL
Long Key State Park
A marked canoe trail through a shallow mangrove lagoon in the middle Keys - bring your own boat, because there is nothing to rent here.
- Kayaking
- Ages 5+
- ~3h
- Paid
about 1 hr 45 min drive
Jupiter, FL
Blowing Rocks Preserve
At high tide on a windy day, waves force seawater fifty feet into the air through blowholes in the largest limestone outcrop on Florida's coast.
- Nature
- Ages 4+
- ~2h
- Paid
about 2 hr drive
Hobe Sound, FL
Jonathan Dickinson State Park
Paddle Florida's first Wild and Scenic River through cypress, and climb the sand pine ridge for a view over the whole coast.
- Kayaking
- Ages 5+
- ~5h
- Paid
about 2 hr drive
Marathon, FL
Curry Hammock State Park
Shallow, protected flats ideal for a first family paddle, a quiet beach, and the best hawk-watching site in the Keys each October.
- Kayaking
- Ages 4+
- ~4h
- Paid
about 2 hr drive
Marathon, FL
Sombrero Beach
A free, shaded, sandy municipal beach in the middle Keys with calm shallow water, a playground and real palm-tree shade.
- Swimming
- Ages 1+
- ~3h
- Free