• The Florida panther's watchful gaze- Courtesy- Ralph Arwood

    Big Cypress

    National Preserve Florida

There are park alerts in effect.
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  • Annual 60-Day ORV Closure for Wheeled Vehicles

    Beginning at 12:01 am Monday, June 3, the annual 60-day recreational ORV closure for all units of the Preserve that allow for wheeled ORV access will begin. The closure will be lifted on Friday, August 2. More »

  • Campground Closures

    Beginning Monday, May 13 through Friday, August 16 camping will be available at the Midway Campground and the “loop” in the Bear Island Campground within Big Cypress National Preserve. All other established campgrounds will be closed. More »

  • Interstate 75 Mile Marker 63 Closure

    Beginning summer of 2013 the rest area and backcountry access at mile marker 63 will be closed due to construction. More »

Directions

GETTING HERE

Car
The entrance to Big Cypress is located on Interstate 75 (Alligator Alley) and US Highway 41 (Tamiami Trail). These are the main roads that traverse the site. Visitor facilities and most activities originate from the Tamiami Trail.

Plane
Commercial airlines serve Fort Myers and Miami, Florida. By car, these cities are roughly 1 and 2 hours (respectively) away from the preserve entrance.

Public Transportation
Due to the distance from major urban areas, there is no public transportation to the preserve.

GETTING AROUND

Sightseeing is usually by car, bike or foot.

Did You Know?

manatee

Mermaid sightings have been reported by sailors throughout history who often blamed the part-woman, part-fish beings for leading them astray. But folklore experts believe that what those sailors were seeing were not mermaids, but rather air-breathing manatees, or their dugong relatives. More...