File this under perfect Florida fall activities: Nature lovers can now check into the only hotel in Everglades National Park, the newly christened Flamingo Lodge. Nestled on the edge of the picturesque Florida Bay, Flamingo is a unique destination for adventurous travelers at the southernmost tip of the Florida peninsula.
All 24 of the Flamingo Lodge rooms boast their own balconies with open water views, ideal for taking in breathtaking sunrises and sunsets. The modern accommodations also feature their own full bathrooms, kitchenettes, air conditioning and Wi-Fi. There’s a reception for checking in, an on-site retail area and elevators, too. In short, this isn’t glamping, folks (though you can do that here, too).
It gets better: The hotel’s indoor-outdoor Flamingo Restaurant—open daily for breakfast, lunch and dinner—serves everything from smoothies and breakfast burritos to a mahi-mahi sandwich, conch chowder and burgers. You can even have the chef cook up your own fresh catch, served grilled, fried or blackened with a choice of two sides. And yes, the restaurant has a full-service bar, open daily for lunch and dinner.
In addition to unveiling the Flamingo Lodge and Restaurant, Everglades National Park and its authorized concessioner, Everglades Guest Services, recently debuted a newly redesigned, reconstructed and renamed visitor center. The Guy Bradley Visitor Center, named for the first Audubon game warden, opened its doors in July with several new exhibits telling the story of the coastal ecosystem and its inhabitants.
When it comes to the design, the park placed special emphasis on preserving the visitor center’s unique, historic features. In addition to its expansive terrace, the center features plenty of large windows framing panoramic views of the bay. Painted in pastel pink and blue hues, the building highlights the Mission 66 architecture and iconic Miami Modern elements.
The former lodge and visitor center building were damaged by hurricanes in 2005 and 2017. Before that, the original Flamingo Lodge and Restaurant was a popular attraction for nearly 40 years.
Planning for the new lodge began in 2018, taking into account resiliency and storm protection in the face of sea level rise from climate change. The recent renovations incorporated energy-efficient features while meeting the Florida building code for coastal high-hazard zones.