shark valley

AppreciateAdvice

Friends and family who are visiting are always surprised to see alligators freely meandering along the paths and waterways - with no fences or other means of separations. And the abundance of other wildlife, especially words is enjoyed as well. Walk. Rent a bike. Ride the tram -- you an enjoy how you want! Great for families and visitors of all ages..

BHartMich

Arrive early or you will wait to get into the small parking lot. If you are there after 10:30 or so, you will wait up to 20-30 minutes. It is worth the wait.We did not take the tram and decided to walk a couple of miles down the path. There is a wide array of wildlife and we found it very interesting. Make sure to bring a camera and take water as well. Because the parking area is small, the park never seems to be crowded. We thought walking the path was a better way to see the animals. Many people went riding by oblivious to all the things we were seeing. Each to his own however.

seaturtle30_12

Visiting Shark Valley in the Everglades National Park is well worth the trip. It is off the beaten path, but is well worth the trip. We took the tram tour and found it very informative, interesting and fun. Our guide was very knowledgeable and enthusiastic. We saw many gator, birds and the beauty of the Everglades. The park office had interesting displays and a fun gift shop. There were bikes to rent, for those who wanted to do the 15 mile trail on their own. If you don't take the tram tour, just walk down the canal path at the end of the parking lot and you will see plenty of birds, gators, turtles and who knows what else! It was a great day. Do bring a lunch and beverages as there is very little available to eat or drink at the park.

Tim_CiG

Had a nice time cycling through the glades. Bikes could have been in better shape. Everything squeaked. My daughters bike was very uncomfortable for her over fifteen miles. That said, we saw a lot of wild life. Being new we stopped at the beginning to see every gator. After seeing eight in the first mile we decided to move a little faster and just count them. We stopped at sixty.

tommy1125

OK, if you want to see gators, this is THE PLACE! After 5 minutes you stop counting! There is an amazing 15 mile path that you can bike or take a tram! Awesome observation tower at the far end with great views of rivers, gators, birds, swamps, hammocks, and everything that is the everglades! Hurry before the Koch Bros. destroy it! Bike rentals are scarce in the season, so bring your own if you can. But, we waited about 30 minutes for 3 bikes (brought 2 more).

mgmaple

We took our bikes and rode the 15 mile trail. It was paved and a smooth easy ride. We saw alligators galore, waterbirds, and turtles. Halfway through you can climb a tower and view the Everglades. Bring your lunch and water bottles. The wildlife was my favorite part - watching an alligator climb out of the water and crunch on a big fish for lunch, spotting a water bird snatch a snake. You're not sure what's around the next bend. You'll enjoy every minute of this ride!!!

jkdussault

this is our second year that we tried to park to go to the shark valley visitor center and this is the second year in a row that the lot was full. we had the kids in tow and so we parked along route 41 and walked in. we figured that there were so many cars, it must be worth it. we were a bit disappointed. the tram tours are really expensive. i think it was about $20/pp. we are a family of 6. they ran out of bikes to rent, so we walked along the canal. that was actually fun. there were gators, birds, geckos. our kids had a blast. we stopped here because the kids wanted to complete the junior ranger booklet. this is cool. you go see the ranger in the info center and get a booklet, one for under 6 years, and one for above 6 years. i like the fact that there were 2 different booklets. my kids completed them and got to become a junior ranger. the ranger gives you a hat, and you pledge and become an official junior ranger.

FGTraveler

You must visit Shark Valley Trails National Park for a true wild encounter with birds and alligators. These creatures roam the park free and are not afraid of people. This is the place to get within 3 feet from a wild alligator! The alligators are well feed by Mother Nature so they don't see humans as a snack. But like any wild creature, caution and common sense is the name of the game - don't try to pet an alligator!The park offers a couple of walking/biking trails and a tram tour. Bikes are available for rent on premises. You must go to the observation tower which is located about 7 miles south of the visitor center and at the end of the trail. From here, you can get a clear view of the everglades from about 60 ft. high.For more travel info visit www,travel.gabela.com

Brian0Tindall

Guess is didn't do my research, the tram is like 20 bucks and leaves only a few times a day. Also had to park outside on the road and walk in.We rented some bikes and decided to just bike until we got tired. We went for an hour and saw lots of the grasslands. It was nice to get away from all the people at the main visitors center. Bikes dont have gears but we made it farther than if we were walking.

auroralights

We took the 2 hour tram tour and I was not disappointed. I always find I enjoy visiting attractions more when a tour guide can tell you what you are looking at and some of the history. I was a bit nervous about alligators but the tour guide said that at this time of year (winter) their hearts only beat around twice per minute, so you know they aren't likely to start attacking anyone. I would definitely recommend the tram tour for adults; children may get bored. I have never seen so many alligators or types of birds in one place so close up. It was great!We should have gone earlier in the morning to avoid a 20 min lineup to wait to get in to the park to park in the parking lot. There is some food available for purchase from the little store, but no restaurant so either buy snacks if you are hungry or pack your own food.

pore

Many times we visited the Shark Valley in the passed and never we were able to do the tram tour to the tower for different reasons. This time we did it.Along the route we saw many different aspects of the Everglades and many animals, especially birds and of course also alligators.The overview from the tower was great. There were many gators laying in the sun around the tower.On the way back to the base we saw turtles, alligators, herons, ibis, a snake etc. etc.This tour is really recommended if you do not want to do it by bycicle.pore

757200traveller

We took the tram tour at Shark Valley. Saw lots of gators and other wildlife. The tour guide was great being very friendly and answered all our questions. Excellent time!

Stacy12345789

We got to see gators, birds, insects, tons of vegetation, fish. The parking lot fill fast. There is a tram tour (we did that) there were also bicycles to rent or you could bring your own. The loop is 15 miles.

cagtraveling

i'm a local and i go there very often, great 15 mile loop bike path, but you can also walk or take the tram around,(they also rent bikes) is only like 40 minutes from miami, on a cold day you will see a lot of gators warming up, on a hot day well you'll be the one warming up cause there is no shade on the whole path, i recommend to do it early in the morning as soon as they open the park that will also let you park inside the park other wise you'll be parking outside by the highway, you'll find a couple of soda/water machines, but no food... nice clean bathrooms, this is a good half a day trip, enjoy the swamp!

GregB386

When I pictured the Everglades, it was something like this. My wife and I got there right before 4pm, when the last Tram tour was heading out. The ride up was amazing. Our tour guide was both knowledgeable and comical, and gave us a ton of good information on the way. We have never seen so much wildlife! Dozens of gators and what seemed like hundreds of birds. The view from the observation tower was spectacular. The valley seemed to stretch forever. The one downfall is if you take the tram, they only give you about 20 minutes up there. If I was to go again, I would definitely ride a bike.