Florida top to bottom in Mid January, any must see places, good stopping points?

[fastfredracing]

I think the family and I are going to run away from home for 2-4 weeks mid January ish. We have no real itinerary , other than we want to end up in the Keys at some point. We are dragging the camper with us , and would love to find a few great places to camp ,relax, and decompress a little .
We will have our 9 year old boy in tow, so kid friendly stuff will be welcome, however , we are not looking to do Disney, and things like that.
I've been all up and down the eastern Florida coast, but it has been a long time. I am open to suggestions for central Fla as well, we like wildlife, and the outdoors .I remember liking Ocala, I was there for a few races in my youth.
The only sure stops will be Brumos, ( always pop in if I am heading through), and I think I would like to hit Sebastian Inlet. Traci and I spent a few days there when we first started dating, and we both loved it.
We always hit the water park in Jan for the boys birthday, any good ones you can reccomend? Is the space center worth checking out? Water warm enough to snorkel, scuba dive that time of year in the keys? I do remember surfing on New years day in Sebastian inlet and don't remember the water was all that bad.
I'm all ears guys, thanks....

[stevej37]

I would suggest the west side instead...Siesta Key..Fort Myers Beach...Naples then across to the Keys. Just my opinion.

[Mericet]

If you are going to stop at Brumos, you might want to consider visiting Amelia Island (yes, I am partial) and see the downtown area and camp at Ft. Clinch State Park.

[Gogar]

Best thing to see in Florida?




Sorry, couldn't resist.

[JeremyD]

That's Harsh -

January is a good time to see some of the natural springs

Central Florida's Top 10 Springs - Orlando Sentinel

St. Augustine is pretty cool

Brumos - Gunnar Racing

[HardDrive]

Big Pine Key fishing lodge. You can camp there. Its in the national key deer preserve. They're pretty amazing, 8 point bucks the size of a St. Bernard. 33 miles north of Key West, you can stay there and day trip into KW. Bahia Honda state park is right across the channel to the north.

[mjohnson]

Originally Posted by JeremyD

That's Harsh -

January is a good time to see some of the natural springs

Central Florida's Top 10 Springs - Orlando Sentinel
... snip

We had a family wedding with the mouse a few years ago. Didn't have much time but there is a park/beach just north of Cape Canaveral/Kennedy that was nice. There was a river crossing near there that got you a look at Manatees.

We did spend some time back in Orlando at a locals bar discussing how overrated the SEC was (this was in Oct 2011). Fun times were had and I'm sure I changed a few of them over to the Big 10.

If we go back - canoe/kayaking the springs is the big thing on our list. It looks really awesome.

No need to go back to the mouse for us...

[ckelly78z]

The beach on Sanibel Island has lots of sea shells to collect and sparsely populated that time of year. On your way to the keys, take an airboat ride at the Seminole indian reservation called "Billie Swamp" which is half way across alligator alley. They also have an alligator show and exhibits. Don't forget to see the "flash" of the sun as it sets over the gulf of Mexico as veiwed from Key West. I would try to see some Manitees in the wild if I could by taking a boatride in some of the Southern channels coming off the Gulf of Mexico.

[JeremyD]

In the winter time the Manatees will be at the springs - and around the power plants

[john70t]

On the way down:
Lake Cumberland RV Park - Area Attractions
An hour off the freeway. Has a natural woodsy Kentucky feel.

Museum Home
Huge selection of aircraft and walk through museum. Georgia.

On the middle west side (Tampa bay area):
Dunedin to the north has a cool small town feel. Not sure what else is there besides electric go kart racing.

Downtown Sarasota itself is packed with fast snowbird traffic, but tons to do there. Ringling museum. Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium. Selby Gardens plants. Music hall. Lido Key/St. Armands has a nice shopping/restaurant/walking area. Siesta key is a top rated beach.

South of that:
Venice is a quiet, very relaxed area w/good beach. Fishing from the pier/jetties.
Sanibel/Estero has a quirky little small town area feel and is fun. Only spent a day there but would go back.

Keep in mind from Michigan to the central west side, Florida is half of the drive but traffic is easy once you're in-state. The freeway around Atlanta on I-75 is hilly and packed with dangerous fast moving trucks. The first "Florida Welcome Center" is fake, and in Georgia. Fill up gas in Georgia.

[petrolhead611]

On the west coast, the Naval Air Museum at Pensacola is superb:for a quiet island try Cedar Key: the national park near Everglades City has fantastic glass bottomed boat trips to see the wildlife.

[Seahawk]

Originally Posted by petrolhead611

On the west coast, the Naval Air Museum at Pensacola is superb:for a quiet island try Cedar Key: the national park near Everglades City has fantastic glass bottomed boat trips to see the wildlife.

Excellent choice. They have a nice campground at Parrots Point at the entrance to Pensacola Bay near Fort Pickens. If you surf kayak at all, the surf can be good. Thirty years ago I used to put in at the Mustin Beach O Club and paddle across the bay to Parrot's Point. Lot's of wildlife.

Head over to the Flora-Bama Bar and camp in Perdido Key.

Also, don't forget Apalachicola. In the winter the place is great.

[Paul_Heery]

I have a reservation for a tour with a docent here this afternoon. I'll report back later.

The Revs Institute

[Rot 911]

Once you get to Key West I can recommend this campground: http://www.boydscampground.com/attractions.htm

[1990C4S]

If you want to trade some stuff you could stop and see Byron.