Best time to visit
November to April is the best time to visit Florida – with temperatures between 20 and 28 degrees and barely any rain.
Florida round trips: Miami, Key West & Fort Lauderdale
Florida experience: From the Gulf Coast to Greater Fort Lauderdale
Florida isn't a destination – it's a decision: a decision for beaches that stretch out endlessly, for skylines that blaze through the night and for wilderness where nature still has the final say. Miami pulses with energy, Key West drifts in its own dreamy rhythm, Fort Myers glows golden along the Gulf Coast, and Greater Fort Lauderdale opens itself out to the water – while the Everglades draw their own quiet line through it all. Do a round trip around Florida and you'll quickly realise that things come together here that simply wouldn't work anywhere else. Rooftop bars and airboat tours. Art Deco and alligators. Beach in the morning, skyline in the evening. You take the highway, wind the windows down and let Florida unfold – on your terms, at your pace.
Tips and info for your Florida trip
Currency
In Florida, you pay with the US dollar (USD).
Flight time
Direct flights to Orlando, Miami or Fort Lauderdale take between 9 and 11 hours.
Language
English is the official language in the USA – you'll have no trouble getting by anywhere in the country.
What are the must-sees in Florida USA?
Florida is full of highlights, but these must-sees belong on your bucket list.
Miami: sea, skyline and subculture
Miami Beach and Miami are two separate cities – worlds apart yet utterly inseparable. On one side: Ocean Drive at seven in the morning, palm trees casting long shadows across pastel-coloured Art Deco facades, the first cafés pushing chairs out onto the pavement, the sea still glittering and untouched. Three kilometres away, Little Havana is already in full swing – the scent of coffee, dominoes on the pavement and cumbia drifting from open windows. Coconut Grove, Miami's greenest neighbourhood, trades neon for tree canopies and a marina. Wynwood, meanwhile, transforms warehouses into one vast open-air street art museum. Miami doesn't have a single identity -- it has many, and they all run at the same time.
Greater Fort Lauderdale: The Venice of America
They call Greater Fort Lauderdale the Venice of America and with 300 kilometres of navigable canals weaving through the city, it's easy to see why. Boats pull up directly outside restaurants, and kayaks slip silently between mangroves. Add 39 kilometres of sandy beach that's still largely off the radar, and the Las Olas Boulevard stretching from downtown all the way to the shore lined with boutiques, bars and restaurants that pulse with energy deep into the night. Dive beneath the surface and you'll discover a whole other world: Greater Fort Lauderdale is considered one of the finest diving destinations on the entire East Coast, with shipwrecks, coral reefs and crystal-clear water waiting to be explored.
The Keys: Over the sea to Key West
The Overseas Highway takes you out to the Florida Keys, a 180-kilometre island chain connected by 42 bridges. Out on the Seven Mile Bridge, there's no land in sight, just water, sky and open road. Off the coast of Key Largo lies the only living coral reef on the North American mainland, home to more than 6,000 marine species. Islamorada proudly calls itself the Sportfishing Capital of the World, spreading Caribbean vibes across six islands. Key West is where the USA comes to an end. Behind wild, lush gardens, colourful Victorian timber houses hide in plain sight, and the arts scene has pulsed with life ever since Hemingway lived and wrote here. Every evening, everyone gathers at Mallory Square to watch the sun sink into the sea.
Gulf Coast: Fort Myers and wild islands
Fort Myers is where Florida slows down. Eighty kilometres of stunning beach, more than 100 offshore islands and mangrove forests that glow in the morning light. Sanibel Island is Florida's shell paradise, home to up to 400 species, while Captiva Island is its more intimate counterpart – both reachable only by boat. You can paddle through mangroves, watch dolphins from your kayak or simply dive in. In the heart of the city stand the winter residences of Thomas Edison and Henry Ford – two inventors, one street and a genuine piece of history. Further up the coast, there's still more to discover: Sarasota with its arts scene and white beaches, St. Petersburg with the Dalí Museum and Clearwater Beach with the most turquoise water in Florida – the Gulf Coast delivers on every front.
Natural wonders: Everglades and national parks
Everglades National Park is not a swamp – it's a river, so wide and shallow that it disguises itself as grassland. You glide through reed beds on an airboat and hold your breath as alligators lie in the water right beside you. Manatees drift through lagoons while herons stand motionless in the reeds. Florida's national parks stretch well beyond the Everglades: Biscayne National Park, south of Miami, lies largely underwater – coral reefs, mangroves, sea turtles and perfect conditions for snorkelling and diving. The Dry Tortugas are reachable only by boat or seaplane: seven islands, turquoise blue water and a vast Civil War fort standing in the middle of nowhere.
Orlando and Central Florida: fantasy on an epic scale
Orlando draws more visitors than any other city in the USA – and anyone who's been there knows exactly why. Central Florida builds fantasy on a scale that leaves even adults lost for words: the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, the Hogwarts Express, Islands of Adventure, Walt Disney World, Universal Studios Florida, SeaWorld Orlando and Disney MGM Studios – these aren't children's attractions, they're entire worlds you won't find anywhere else. If you need open space after a marathon day in the parks, Cape Canaveral is just an hour away: rockets on the launchpad, real space history up close and Cocoa Beach right next door.
