Why you should visit Florida once in your life ?

Florida- ‘The Sunshine State’;  ‘The land of the Oranges’;  ‘The land where Sun and Sand meet Sea’ and where you will feel 365 days as a holiday.  Florida is sensuous and physically beautiful. It will drive you crazy with its endless things to explore. I stay in Florida and love its varying landscapes and cultures. Due to its transverse geography, it makes easy to take a weekend mini-vacation. There are 10 reasons why you must visit Florida once in your life:

1. Florida’s Weather will make you jealous.

If you love summers and want to experience winters in your summer wears, Florida is a place for you. When an entire North America is facing the chilly weather,  Floridians walk outside in their denim shorts and t-shirts. No doubt, it lures the visitors in winter for its mild winters where temperature ranges between low 60s (at the lowest) to 70s (at the highest) and summers for its coastal communities and beaches.

2. Florida’s beaches will drive you crazy.

If you love white sand beaches with crystal clear water, Florida will make you bend on your knees with its physically beautiful and sensuous beeches which are among one of the best beaches in the United States. These beeches are a photographers dream.  A place in the sun that warrants returning again and again. Few of the breathtaking Floridian beaches are as follows:

• Siesta Beach, Siesta Key
• St. Pete Beach
• Pensacola Beach
• Clearwater Beach, Clearwater
• St. Augustine Beach, St. Augustine
• Fort Myers Beach
• Hollywood Beach
• South Beach, Miami Beach

My favorite beach is Clearwater beach. It has breathtaking sunset along with live entertainments. 

3. Florida’s theme Parks at Orlando attracts more visitors than any other amusement park destination in the United States.

 If you want to visit world class theme parks with high adrenaline rush for all ages, Orlando is the dream destination for you. With the presence of world class theme parks of  Walt Disney World, Universal Studios, Sea-World and Legoland, it can drive you crazy with gazillion things to explore and experience. For checking about more things to do in Orlando, you can check my blog post here.

4. Florida’s State Parks will mesmerize you by its natural beauty.

If you love natural beauty, Florida will not disappoint you with its 123 State Parks, 4 State Forests, 2 State Memorial, 17 State Historic sites, 3 State Reserves,  3 State Wildlife Management Areas,  3 National Parks and plenty of things to explore.  (You can check more about it here).  These are the favorite destinations of Floridians for a quick day trip or weekend getaway. You can also find unique Alligators, dolphins, manatees and sea turtles in Florida.

My favorite state park is Silver Springs State Park, Ocala which is the world’s largest artesian spring and Florida’s oldest tourist attraction. You can check out more about it on my blog post here.

5. Florida’s St. Augustine is the oldest city in the United States.

If you love History, Florida’s St. Augustine will give you an opportunity to explore the oldest city of the United States and learn about a settlement of European and African-American origin in the country. To check more about St. Augustine, you can check my blog post here.

6. Florida’s Kennedy Space Center is the launching site for the Apollo moon missions and the space shuttles.

If you want to have an experience of space shuttle launch, touch a moon rock, meet an astronaut, explore about Apollo and learn about future journey to Mars and stand nose-to-nose with shuttle Atlantis all in the same day, you must visit Kennedy Space Center located on the Merritt Island on the east coast of Florida adjacent to Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS).

7. Florida has plenty of Art Museums to explore.

If you have an interest in fine arts, Florida has plenty of Art Museums to visit in its many cities. You can check more about it here.

My favorite art museum in Florida is Salvador Dali Museum at St. Petersburg. Salvador Dali is one of the most celebrated artists of all time. I am fascinated by his fiercely technical yet highly unusual paintings, sculptures and visionary explorations in life-size interactive art ushered in a new generation of imaginative expression. 

8. Florida’s Ybor city in Tampa was once known as the Cigar Capital of the World.

Ybor City nearly had 12,000 tabaqueros (cigar-makers) employed in 200 factories and used to produce an estimated 700 million cigars a year at the industry’s peak. Nowadays, you can enjoy historic Ybor City’s exotic blend of sights and sounds, with a rich history to explore during the day and a sizzling nightlife to experience after sundown. You can experience the best party of the town and yeah, don’t miss the world-famous mouthwatering Cuban Sandwich.

9. Florida is the campers paradise.

If you are an experienced camper, you may already know that Florida is a camping paradise. The Sunshine State’s mild climate allows for year-round camping and nearly unlimited outdoor activities. And, whether you consider yourself a “trees and trails” type or one that prefers “sand and surf,” Florida’s diverse offering of campgrounds can deliver. For more information on Florida’s Camping places, check here.

10) Florida is the largest producer of citrus fruits in the United States and second in the world.

If you love citrus fruit and especially Orange,  you must visit Florida’s Orange picking farms and orchards.  The largest customer for Florida’s oranges is Tropicana’s Bradenton plant which has the largest juice tank farm in North America, and one of the continent’s largest refrigerated enclosures. Drink one glass of Floridian orange juice every day for vitamin C and energize yourself. I am telling from my personal experience.

If you are still not convinced, then am sure this will entice you. 😉

If you have visited Florida, do share your memories or if you stay here, do share what you like most about Florida in the comments below?

Happy Traveling!
Ana