Miami Things to do With Kids

Head for the beach! There are endless stretches of sand for children to enjoy. If you have small children Matheson Hummock on Key Biscayne is a great choice for sheltered swimming and clean loos. Also on Key Biscayne, Crandon Park Beach has plenty of amenity and lots going on. For teens it is difficult to beat Lummus Park Beach on South Beach where there is always plenty going on. For more information see our section on beaches.

Put on a snorkel. If you have a family covering a wide age group Boca Raton is a good place to go. Smaller children will enjoy playing on the beach and paddling while older kids (and adults) can snorkel on the artificial reef and amble the nature trail. There are also well kept loos and showers.

‘Gators seen from the observation tower at Shark Valley

Check out The Everglades. You can access The Everglades a short drive out of Miami and it is a great place for a family trip. The best places to head for are Shark Valley for the tram tour or a cycle if you fancy a leg stretch or Royal Palm to wander the Anhinga Trail and explore the Ernest F Coe Visitor Center where kids can sign up for the junior ranger program. You can absolutely promise they will see an alligator.

If you were a fan of Flipper then head to the Miami Seaquarium on the Causeway to Virginia Key and you can see where it was filmed along with the current residents including various dolphins, sea lions and killer whales.

Zoo Miami is another good option – it is a large zoo featuring animals from all over the world, gardens and a children’s zoo with opportunities to pet domestic animals. There are some exhibits about the local flora, fauna and ecology and the Zoo is in the process of creating much larger exhibit to focus on the unique Florida ecosystems.

On a more domestic note, head for the Bill Graham Farm Village based at Amelia Earhart Park. This has a re-created homestead so kids can learn something of pioneer life as well as an excellent petting zoo where they can cuddle cows, sheep and goats. There is also pony riding and tractor driving as well as my personal favourite, the opportunity to jump into a massive haystack. http://www.miamidade.gov/parks/parks/amelia_earhart.asp

Finally, a great place to escape any rain is the Miami Science Museum. This is full of interactive exhibits including a new one on hurricanes which is really good. There is also a planetarium and outside there is a wildlife center which specialises in the rehabilitation of local species of birds of prey. http://www.miamisci.org/