Florida, NY Road Trips

While Florida is considered to be part of the South, it originated not as a British colony, but as a Spanish one. As a result, the state has a unique history. Although Florida was a founding member of the Confederate States of America, and like other Southern states shared the experience of slavery and racial segregation during its history, today, Florida is a very diverse state, and contains a number of regions with slight cultural differences of their own that contribute to the state's diversity. Therefore, no one accent dominates in the speech of its residents, and it's often said that Florida is the only state that gets more "Southern" the farther north you go, and that is indeed true in a cultural sense. For a long time, Florida had been a swing state in presidential elections, almost evenly divided between Republicans and Democrats. However, a large influx of retirees in the 21st century has swung the political balance in favor of the Republicans as of the 2020s. Florida was inhabited by Native Americans for over 13,000 years before the arrival of European explorers, colonists and slavers. It is estimated that there were some 350,000 inhabitants, of many tribes, when the Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de León arrived in 1513 in search of, according to legend, the Fountain of Youth. The first European settlement dates back to the 1560s with St. Augustine, established in 1565, holding the distinction of being the oldest permanent European settlement in what is now the United States.

The 1 Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral was America's spaceport for the manned missions to the Moon and the Space Shuttle. The Visitor Complex contains spacecraft displays, two IMAX movies, the Astronaut's Hall of Fame, exhibits chronicling the history and future of space exploration, and a Space Shuttle Launch Experience.Florida has a long and complex history and is worth visiting for those interested in historical travel. 2 St. Augustine, founded by the Spanish in 1565, is the United States' oldest permanent European settlement. It contains a large colonial fort, multiple attractions and site detailing its history, countless restaurants and bars, and plenty of shops in its small, walkable downtown. Florida's Lighthouses are numerous, historic, and beautiful; take some time to visit these iconic images of the coast. 3 The Florida Holocaust Museum in downtown Saint Petersburg, this is one of the largest Holocaust museums in the U.S. and exhibits a box car used by Nazis to transport prisoners to extermination camps like Auschwitz. 4 Salvador Dalí Museum, also in downtown St. Petersburg, is the largest collection of Dalí artwork outside of Europe. Sports are popular in the state of Florida, and particularly well-known is 5 Daytona International Speedway near FL-92 and I-95 in Daytona Beach. The famous speedway venue is home of the number one event in stock car racing, NASCAR's Daytona 500 (February), along with other events throughout the year.

Go to the beach! You have numerous options here: Panama City Beach, Daytona Beach, New Smyrna Beach, St. Pete Beach, West Palm Beach and Siesta Key are some of the best. Visit Florida's world class theme parks and water parks. Walt Disney World - The most visited resort in the world, home to four theme parks, two water parks, and shopping, dining, and hotels galore. Universal Orlando - Disney World's biggest competitor, these three theme parks are home to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. SeaWorld in Orlando and Legoland in nearby Winter Haven. Busch Gardens in Tampa. Visit Everglades National Park, a place like no other on Earth, and take an airboat ride through the swamps. A drive across the Everglades on US 41 is a great way to get a sense of the park's size and scenery. Check out Everglades City for great attractions. Explore some of the more than 150 Florida State Parks. The only three-time winner of the National Recreation and Park Association's Gold Medal for state park systems. Get a Florida State Parks Annual Pass for free admission to most of the state parks, or discounted admission at Skyway Fishing Pier State Park, Ellie Schiller Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park and Weeki Wachee Springs State Park. Visit the Seminole or Miccosukee Native American reservations throughout the state. Here you can find out about their history and culture, try their food, and gamble in the casinos on their land, which include several Hard Rock Casinos.

Florida's cuisine is a mix of many influences and its styles vary across the state from North to South. North Florida has a more Southern style; South Florida a more Caribbean one. There specifically, early Spanish and African cuisines have been given a new spin with the impact of Cuban and other Caribbean cultures, as well as from "snowbirds" escaping the Northern U.S. winters. Being on a peninsula, Florida's chefs have always had access to fresh seafood, and the long growing season provides fresh native vegetables almost year round. Citrus is a main export, and a tourist is apt to see many roadside stands offering free samples of orange juice and fruits to be shipped or carried home. Florida also grows grapefruit, avocado, mango, papaya, passion fruit, kumquat, coconut and other tropical fruits. These often provide the base for sauces and marinades and are also used in marmalades, soups, and desserts. Official state welcome centers located on I-10, I-75, and I-95 as you enter Florida offer free samples of orange juice to all visitors, a tradition that goes back decades. Strawberries are another popular fruit in Florida. Plant City, off I-4 east of Tampa, is the center of the Florida strawberry industry, where during the peak season (Feb-Mar) many roadside vendors offer flats (16 pints/12 lb/5.4 kg) and half-flats of strawberries for a small fraction of grocery store prices. Since most stands are owned by the individual farmers, the fruit sold was often harvested that morning or the day before.

Alcoholic beverages abound throughout the state. However, five rural counties in the northern third of the state are "dry counties", and no alcohol is sold in them. Stand-alone liquor stores are often built into strip malls, supermarkets, and pharmacies, and most grocery stores, gas stations, and convenience stores sell beer and wine. Bars and clubs are popular throughout the state, with Miami Beach being well-known for a variety of themed and upscale bars with innovative mixed drinks. Unique bars and clubs can also be found in downtown Orlando and the nearby tourist areas closer to the theme parks and resorts of Disney and Universal. No visit to Florida is complete without a cup of their famous orange juice. Like every other U.S. state, the purchase and possession age for alcohol is 21 and it's fairly well enforced. Underage drinking "stings" are frequent in most tourist areas. Florida allows smoking in bars, including those that serve food, but the bar must get less than 10% of their revenue from food.

1 Orlando International Airport (MCO IATA) - your choice airport for Disney World and the other attractions in Central Florida. Located south of downtown Orlando, this airport offers tons of car rentals and free shuttles to Disney and Universal for visitors. Being centrally located it serves as a hub or focus city for Jetblue, Frontier, Southwest and Spirit Airlines. There are international connections from South America, Caribbean, Central America, Mexico, Europe and the Middle East. 2 Miami International Airport (MIA IATA) - the biggest airport for travel in South Florida, it's the best option for trips to the Everglades or Miami's beaches. The airport is a hub for American Airlines and the most popular entry point with a wide variety of flights from Europe, South America, Central America, the Caribbean, Cuba and Mexico. 3 Tampa International Airport (TPA IATA) - serves the Gulf Coast, namely the Tampa Bay area. There are direct flights offered from all over the U.S. and from a number of international destinations in Canada, Cuba, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean. 4 Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL IATA) - the fourth-largest airport in Florida, and another valid option to consider with many domestic low-fare carriers such as Allegiant, JetBlue, Frontier Airlines, Spirit Airlines and Southwest Airlines. 5 Jacksonville International Airport (JAX IATA) - primary airport for travel in North Florida, serving Amelia Island and historic St. Augustine.

Traveling by car is the most common and most convenient way to get around the state for travelers and locals alike. For the traveler car rental agencies are abound in Florida and many are available at every major airport. Orlando, in particular, is known as the "Car Rental Capital of the World". With Florida being the most visited state in the US, car rental rates here are among (if not the) lowest rates in the country due to sheer volume. Florida's major highways include: Interstate 4 (I-4) crosses diagonally from Tampa, heads east through Plant City and Lakeland, then continues northeast past Kissimmee, Walt Disney World, and Orlando, before ending at Interstate 95 near Daytona Beach. Interstate 4 is the most travelled highway in Florida and due to the large volume of traffic, high speeds (70 mph,112 km/h outside of urban areas), construction, and large number of tourists it is also the most dangerous highway in the state, in terms of the number of accidents. & I-10 and US-90 enter Florida from Alabama near Pensacola and travels across the Panhandle, past Tallahassee and Lake City, and through rural North Florida to its terminus at I-95 in Jacksonville. US Hwy 90 straddles I-10 through the northern Florida Panhandle, going through the cities and towns as a local surface street/highway while I-10 goes straight through bypassing the cities and towns. US Hwy 90 continues past the I-95 corridor in downtown Jacksonsville and ends at FL A1A at Jacksonville Beach.

Dialing 911 at any telephone will reach the emergency services (police, fire, ambulance, etc.). Any phone connected to a U.S. network, regardless of whether or not it has a paid account, must be able to dial 911 if it is connected to the network, and such calls are always free. Florida has varying crime intensity from city to city. In certain areas of the large cities it may not be safe to walk alone or even in small groups at night, although these are the exceptions and most of Florida is safe for visitors. Tourist areas rarely have violent crimes, but theft is an occasional occurrence. If the area doesn't feel safe, then it probably isn't. Clip joint operators who trick visitors into paying large amounts of money for low-quality services may use local police to shake down voyagers under a Florida law that requires bar and restaurant patrons pay a disputed bill first and take it up later with their credit card company. Florida has a high occurrence of hurricanes, though they don't hit the state every year. You might want to check the hurricane safety page if you are visiting Florida during the Hurricane Season, which runs June 1 to November 30. Few places in the world experience more frequent lightning strikes than Florida. The summer thunderstorms in Florida produce frequent lightning, which kills people each year and injures many more. Stay indoors during a thunderstorm and never seek shelter under a tree. Most casualties occur on golf courses, but lightning strikes everywhere.