Best springs near Miami?! (prettiest!) + swimming, kayaking, camping 🌴 most beautiful natural springs with clear water for things to do as a road trip from Miami Florida!

Hi there!

 

Well, there really aren’t any famous Florida springs near Miami.

The best springs are located in Central Florida and Northern Florida.

This means that you’ll likely want to make it an overnight trip from Miami to go to the best natural springs in Florida.

And so, you can make it a road trip to Florida springs from Miami!

 

 

Likewise, if you’re making it a road trip to Miami from out of state, you have lots of springs to choose from that you can stop by on your way to Miami to break up your drive!

 

Best natural springs from Miami

 

1. Rainbow Springs State Park

 

The driving time from Miami to Rainbow Springs State Park is around 5 hours. (map)

 

What can you do at Rainbow Springs?

• Swimming? Yes! You can go swimming in Rainbow Springs.
• Kayaking? Yes, you can go kayaking in the Rainbow River. There are kayak rentals and canoe rentals.
• Tubing? Yes, tubing is very popular in the Rainbow River.
• Camping? Yes, there is a Rainbow Springs State Park campground for RV camping and tent camping, although it is located in a different area from the springs.

 

 

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2. Wekiwa Springs State Park

 

The driving time from Miami to Wekiwa Springs is around 4 hours. (map)

 

What can you do at Wekiwa Springs?

• Swimming? Yes, you can go swimming in Wekiwa Springs!
• Kayaking? Yes, you can go kayaking in the Wekiva River and Rock Springs Run. There are kayak rentals and canoe rentals.
• Camping? Yes! There is a Wekiwa Springs State Park campground!

 

See more about Wekiwa Springs State Park.

 

 

3. Blue Spring State Park

 

The driving time from Miami to Blue Spring State Park is around 4 hours. (map)

 

What can you do at Blue Spring?

• Manatees? Yes! You can see manatees in Blue Spring State Park in the winter! Sometimes there are 500+ manatees at this Florida spring!
• Swimming? Yes! You can go swimming in Blue Spring in the summer when manatees are not around.
• Kayaking? Yes, you can go kayaking in the Blue Spring Run and St Johns River. There are kayak rentals and canoe rentals.
• Boat tours? Yes, there are boat tours on the St Johns River.
• Camping? Yes! There is a Blue Spring State Park campground!
• Cabins? Yes! Blue Spring State Park is one of the Florida state parks with cabins!

 

 

See more about Blue Spring State Park manatees.

 

Blue Spring State Park is not to be confused with Gilchrist Blue Springs State Park which is a different “blue spring” for swimming and kayaking!

It’s also not to be confused with the Blue Hole Spring of Ichetucknee Springs State Park or the Blue Hole Spring of Florida Caverns State Park!

For more Florida state park cabins, there are also Lake Louisa State Park cabins on your way to some Florida springs!

There’s the Oleta River State Park cabins near Miami!

Or, if you want to go elsewhere, see the list of Florida state parks with cabins!

 

 

5. Juniper Springs Recreation Area in Ocala National Forest

 

The driving time from Miami to Juniper Springs is around 4.5 hours. (map)

 

What can you do at Juniper Springs?

• Swimming? Yes! You can go swimming in Juniper Springs.
• Hiking? Yes! You can take a nature trail from Juniper Springs back to see more springs, including bubbling springs at Fern Hammock Springs! You might even see an alligator! This means there is no swimming at Fern Hammock Springs!
• Kayaking? Yes, you can go kayaking in the Juniper Run. The US National Forest Service says it’s been named one of the top canoe runs in America.
• Camping? Yes! There is a Juniper Springs campground.

 

See more about Juniper Springs.

 

 

5. Silver Glen Springs Recreation Area in Ocala National Forest

 

The driving time from Miami to Silver Glen Springs is around 4.5 hours. (map)

 

What can you do at Silver Glen Springs?

• Swimming? Yes! You can go swimming in Silver Glen Springs.
• Kayaking? Yes, you can go kayaking in the Silver Glen Run.
• Hiking? Yes, you can do a short nature trail from Silver Glen Springs to some bubbling springs! You can also hike to Lake George. It’s a nice walk through the forest, but there are no springs, though!
• Camping? No, there is no camping at Silver Glen Springs. But there are other Ocala National Forest springs with campgrounds!

 

See more about Silver Glen Springs.

 

 

6. Silver Springs State Park

 

The driving time from Miami to Silver Springs is around 5 hours. (map)

 

What can you do at Silver Springs?

• Swimming? No, there is no swimming at Silver Springs State Park.
• Glass bottom boat? Yes! Silver Springs State Park is most famous for its glass bottom boat ride!
• Kayaking? Yes, you can go kayaking on the Fort King paddling trail. There are rentals for kayaks, canoes, and stand-up paddleboards SUP.
• Camping? Yes! There is a Silver Springs State Park campground.
• Cabins? Yes! Silver Springs State Park is one of the Florida state parks with cabins!

 

 

 

More road trips from Miami:

• Bahia Honda State Park
• John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park
• Miami to Tampa
• Miami to Key West
• Things to do in Everglades National Park

 

What can you do at springs on your Miami road trip?

 

The most popular things to do at springs as a day trip are swimming and kayaking!

According to the Florida Park Service, there are over 1,000 springs in Florida!

 

 

👆 There are over 1,000 springs in Florida! There are several springs in one of Florida’s most popular national forest, and there are many Florida state parks with springs! You can go to some of these as a road trip from Miami!

 

👆 You can go swimming and kayaking at springs! One of the most popular springs to kayak in Florida is Rainbow Springs.

 

 

Yes, there are a lot of springs in Florida for swimming and snorkeling!

Many springs in Florida have a designated swimming area.

It’s like swimming at an outdoor pool!

You’ll be swimming at a natural outdoor swimming pool when you go to Florida springs!

 

 

According to the U.S. Forest Service, the water temperature of springs in Florida are a constant 72 to 74 degrees year-round.

This means that in theory, you can go swimming at springs in Florida any time of year.

In terms of water temperature, the 70s can be considered warm enough for swimming for many people!

As long as you can handle coming out of the water wet to a cooler air temperature, then you can go swimming in Florida springs any time of year – summer, spring, fall, and even winter!

It really just depends on your tolerance for colder water and just how much you want to go swimming in natural springs!

There could be areas of a spring that are shallow enough that you can stand.

And there may also be areas that are deeper where you can’t reach the bottom.

 

👆 Add a personal float to your Florida springs packing list! This way if you are in deeper water you won’t have to constantly be treading water!

 

👆 Florida springs have some of the clearest water on earth, according to the Florida Park Service. You can find some of the clearest springs in Florida state parks, including Rainbow Springs State Park!

 

👆 You can do a glass bottom boat tour to see springs as a road trip from Miami!

 

 

 

And those are some of the best springs for a road trip from Miami!

 

More road trips from Miami:

• Bahia Honda State Park
• John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park
• Best snorkeling in Key West
• Best snorkeling in the Florida Keys

 

HAPPY DRIVING TO BEAUTIFUL SPRINGS FROM MIAMI!