Page Updated: November 15, 2023

Biscayne National Park

2022 MAY

Biscayne Bay - Islandia FL

Because the park is over 90% water, Biscayne National Park has a completely different feel from national parks we’ve ticked off our proverbial bucket list. Originally slated to be included in the land that would eventually become Everglades National Park and cut to allow Everglades creation, the waters of Biscayne Bay deservedly stands on its own as the largest protected marine sanctuary in the country.

Since our “go to” national park activity (hiking) is pretty much non existent in Biscayne, we opted to take a sailing tour! This worked perfect for us since we don’t yet travel with kayaks and neither of us has ever sailed.

We were close enough to the park to not need a camp and decided on a simple day trip. We arrived at the park through the Homestead entrance and discovered the park is free to enter.

We spent our time in Biscayne on and in the waters of the bay. A little bit of sailing, little bit of snorkeling, little bit of kayaking - a lot of fun.

We booked our tour - Sail, Paddle, Snorkel, and Island Visit - with Biscayne National Park Institute. and had our packed lunch on the sail across the bay.

I anticipated paddle boarding in the bay since the tour info stated we’d have the option, but it wasn’t meant to be since there wasn’t a board to use. Kayaking Sands Key was still great, though!

Snorkeling Sands Key was just as fun! It was interesting to see different species than what we’d already seen since being in the Keys.

Terry, our guide, was personable and did well. The weather was beautiful for sailing, and she had plenty of information on the park to share. The “island visit” was scratched due to repairs being done on the island, but we enjoyed making memories while snorkeling and kayaking near Sand Key.  

This was such a fun and unique experience, that I can see us returning to explore further on our own. Originally, I thought it would be great to camp overnight… then I read no-see-ums are troublesome year round! No camps for us! Maybe on a house boat!

scenes from Biscayne National Park

-b&b

Theater of the Sea

Kayaking Sands Key