Hi there!
So you want to do a Florida road trip driving from Tampa to Miami!
How long is the drive from Tampa to Miami?
Driving directly, it might take around 4 to 4.5 hours of driving time from Tampa to Miami.
Explore the map.
So Tampa is not too incredibly far from Miami, and it’s doable to drive from Tampa to Miami in one day.
And if you want to make a stop or 2 on your way to Miami, there are some things to do along the way!
Or you can take a few days to get from Tampa to Miami!
Below will show some ideas of stops you can make as you make the drive to Miami if you want to take your time!
Best stops driving from Tampa to Miami
Explore the map.
1. Tampa
The Sunshine Skyway Bridge is an icon of Tampa Bay.
As you are leaving Tampa, it can be reasonable to set your route so that you drive across the Skyway Bridge as you start your drive to Miami!
And, there are a few rest areas around that you can stop at too in order to take in the views of Tampa Bay.
🐠 Side note! If you're doing any type of swimming, like at the beach, for snorkeling, or at some springs, here are things you must consider packing for Florida!
You can find these things on Amazon. I am an Amazon Associate.
- Swimsuit or swimming shirt aka rash guard
- rash guard: swim set for women and swim shirt for men
- Water shoes
- Waterproof phone case (so you can capture pictures underwater!)
- cheapo phone case OR waterproof camera
- I also have this "camera" wrist float to attach to my cheapo waterproof phone case so my phone won't sink to the bottom of the ocean in case I somehow let go of it. (Mine does stay afloat - test this for yourself before completely trusting it!)
- Swimming goggles or snorkeling mask set
- Reef-safe(r) sunscreen
- lightweight travel towel
I also like to go swimming with a personal swim float buoy. Not only does it help to keep me visible, but it makes for a perfect way to rest out in deeper water! Oh, and it also serves as a dry bag so I can take stuff into the water with me.
Another way I have taken valuables into the water with me is to wear a travel money belt that I don't mind getting wet with salt water (it's not waterproof but I have several so I just use one of them) and then I put things in a ziplock freezer bag, and put that freezer bag in the money belt.
There are also designated waterproof waist pouches that you can store your valuables and take into the water with you.
How to save money on your trip
I tend to use booking.com or hotels.com to look for the cheapest hotels. You can also try the expedia hotels site (good for car rentals too) or see if you like any of the vrbo vacation rentals.
Search for the cheapest car rentals at the airport.
/end side note
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2. Lido Key
If you are looking for an island stop and a beach stop between Tampa and Miami, you have lots to choose from if you don’t mind making a detour to the Gulf Coast of Florida before you start really heading to Miami!
Lido Beach on Lido Key is one of them.
👆 One stop you can make as you make the drive from Tampa to Miami is to see the beautiful white sand beach and turquoise water of Lido Beach!
You’ll pass through St Armands Circle on your way to Lido Key where you will find lots of restaurants and shops.
See more about the best Lido Key beach.
🌴
3. Siesta Key
Siesta Key is an island that you can stop by on your drive from Tampa to Miami, and it’s one of the most popular beach destinations in Florida.
It has been named one of the best beaches in America.
At one end of Siesta Key is the famous #1 beach that is Siesta Beach.
This is where you’ll find an amazing white sand beach with a wide stretch of sand.
On the other end of Siesta Key is the quieter end, and it’s where you’ll find Turtle Beach… along with the Turtle Beach campground! If you want to go camping on Siesta Key, the Turtle Beach campground is it!
There is a direct path from the campground to the beach, so your campsite will just be a few minutes walk from being able to see the amazing Gulf coast.
I also saw dolphins swimming along the shoreline from Turtle Beach!
You need to get lucky in order to find camping availability, as campsites get booked up pretty much as soon as they are available months in advance. But people do cancel.
Camping between Tampa and Miami:
- Turtle Beach campground (Siesta Key)
- How to make reservations for Turtle Beach campground
- Oscar Scherer State Park campground
- How to make reservations for Oscar Scherer State Park
4. Myakka River State Park
You will be driving a little inland.
You can make it a stop at Myakka River State Park if you’re looking for a pleasant nature stop with lots of green.
It can be a scenic drive through Myakka River State Park.
Myakka River State Park is also known for the canopy walk.
You’ll walk across a bridge that’s suspended in air, and then continue climbing the stairs up the tower for views above the trees.
There is also a spot in Myakka River State Park that’s known for alligator sightings.
When you come across the alligator bridge in Myakka River State Park, make a stop to see if you can spot some alligators!
Plus you might make some bird sightings!
Camping between Tampa and Miami:
- Myakka River State Park campground
- How to make reservations for Myakka River State Park
5. Cayo Costa State Park
Heading back to the coast!
Cayo Costa State Park is on an island in Florida.
To go to Cayo Costa State Park, you’ll need to leave the car behind!
That’s because the way to get to Cayo Costa State Park is by boat!
You can make it a day trip to Cayo Costa State Park, or if you’ve got some time to spare, you can make it a night (or more!) on the island of Cayo Costa!
This will be a mostly rustic stay!
There are no traditional accommodations like hotels or resorts.
Instead, you can get an epic island tent camping experience in Florida.
Or you can get a rustic cabin experience in Florida!
Either way, it’s pretty much bring your own everything!
There’s a small store on the island, but it’s not much to depend on.
So it will require a bit of an effort in the form of planning a trip to Cayo Costa, but no matter how you choose to stay on Cayo Costa, you will be just a few minutes walk from the beach!
Is there a lot to do on Cayo Costa island? No, not really. Your time will be spent at the beach or walking around the island on the beach… or in search of another beach!
And you can watch an epic sunset!
You can also look for shells in Cayo Costa State Park.
It’s the “real Florida” as the people of Florida state parks like to say! It’s a quiet Florida island experience!
See more about Cayo Costa shelling.
Camping between Tampa and Miami:
- Cayo Costa State Park campground
- How to make reservations for Cayo Costa State Park
6. Sanibel Island
Sanibel Island is known for its beaches.
But Sanibel Island isn’t just any beach stop.
Sanibel Island is known as one of the best spots for shelling in Florida.
And even more than that, Sanibel Island beaches are known for being the best beaches for shelling in all of the United States!
You can go to any of the beaches on Sanibel Island and you will find shells.
Along the shoreline, you can find tons of small shells, and the more you look, the greater your chances are for finding different types of shells!
To get you started, you likely will not be disappointed if you make Bowmans Beach your one and only Sanibel Island shelling beach to visit!
And there is also Captiva Island for beaches and shelling!
You can get from Sanibel Island to Captiva Island by driving across a small bridge.
Plus you might make some bird sightings!
There is a toll for driving the bridge to Sanibel Island. See current fees under Sanibel toll plaza.
The Sanibel Island beach parking fee is hourly. See current fees.
And then once you pass that toll bridge, as you are driving along the Sanibel Causeway to get to Sanibel Island.
You will soon see places that you can stop along the bridge.
You can make this a picnic stop or just stop to take in the views!
It’s a part of the Causeway Islands Park, and it’s located directly along the road.
See more about planning your drive from Tampa to Miami:
Camping between Tampa and Miami:
- Koreshan State Park campground
- How to make reservations for Koreshan State Park
7. Marco Island
You can continue to make your Tampa to Miami road trip all about the beaches.
Marco Island is another one of Florida’s best beach destinations.
You can look for shells on Marco Island.
The 2 main public beaches on Marco Island are South Beach and Tigertail Beach.
You will probably have an easier time with parking at Tigertail Beach.
Tigertail Beach is known as the best shelling beach on Marco Island, although you can look for shells along any Marco Island beach.
It’s also known for the lagoon water crossing to get to the beach, although there is also an alternative walking route that is not so bad.
If you want to walk normally to the beach, you’ll want to park at the far end of the parking lot as far as you can drive, and then start walking from there.
Then, after a few minutes of walking, you see a wide expansive white sand beach of Marco Island!
It’s possible you might walk around 10 minutes from your parking spot to where you want to set up camp on the beach.
And if you will be staying an overnight on Marco Island, be sure to catch a Marco Island sunset!
See more about planning your drive from Tampa to Miami:
Camping between Tampa and Miami:
- Collier-Seminole State Park campground
- How to make reservations for Collier-Seminole State Park
8. Ten Thousand Islands, Everglades National Park
The best way to experience the Ten Thousand Islands can be through a boat tour!
You can consider Everglades National Park to have the Tampa side (Gulf side) and the Miami side (Atlantic side).
All land-based activities in Everglades National Park that you can drive to are on the Miami side. (More on the Miami side in a bit!)
On the gulf side is where you will find the Everglades National Park Gulf Coast Visitor Center.
You will not actually be within the Everglades National Park boundary by going to this visitor center.
Instead, the way to experience this gulf coast side of Everglades National Park is by water.
You can do the Ten Thousand Islands boat tour that starts from the Gulf Coast Visitor Center.
You have a chance to see dolphins and manatees on an Everglades National Park boat tour in the Ten Thousand Islands.
You’ll want to book ahead as these boat tours can sell out. You can book through Everglades Florida Adventures.
9. Tamiami Trail
One of the best places to see alligators in Florida is along the Tamiami Trail!
There are several stops along the Tamiami Trail that you can make for a chance to see alligators. (Again, alligators are wild and there’s never any guarantee to see them!)
These stops are located in Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park, Big Cypress National Preserve, and Everglades National Park.
If you are looking to make just ONE stop with the best chance to see alligators, you will want to stop at the Oasis Visitor Center in Big Cypress National Preserve.
The Oasis Visitor Center is one of the best places that I’ve seen tons of alligators in Florida.
The alligators are so close to the Tamiami Trail that you can actually see the cars driving along the Tamiami Trail as you are looking at the alligators!
So the alligators are pretty much laying right along the Tamiami Trail.
See more about where to see alligators on Tamiami Trail.
Camping between Tampa and Miami:
- Midway Campground (Tamiami Trail)
- More Big Cypress National Preserve campgrounds
- How to make Big Cypress National Preserve camping reservations
10. Everglades National Park
One of the best places to see alligators in Florida is in Everglades National Park.
Everglades National Park is known for alligators, wetlands, and airboats.
You can experience all 3 with just one day in Everglades National Park!
You might even be able to experience all 3 with just a few hours.
But again, there’s no guarantee to see alligators!
As you continue your drive from Tampa to Miami along Tamiami Trail, you will come across a turn-off for Shark Valley.
Shark Valley is one of the best places to see alligators in Everglades National Park by tram, by bike, or even by foot!
Then if you continue driving along Tamiami Trail, you will pass several spots where you can do an Everglades airboat tour.
One of the best places to see crocodiles in Florida is also Everglades National Park!
That will require a bit of a detour from going directly to Miami, as the spot to (maybe!) see crocodiles in an area called Flamingo in the Everglades that’s located pretty far out of the way.
See more about planning your drive from Tampa to Miami:
- Things to do in Everglades National Park
- How to spend one day in Everglades National Park
- Where to see alligators in Everglades National Park
- Where to see crocodiles in Everglades National Park
Camping between Tampa and Miami:
- Flamingo campground (tent camping, RV camping)
- Flamingo Everglades eco-tent camping
- Long Pine Key campground (tent camping, RV camping)
- How to make Everglades National Park camping reservations
11. Miami
And you’ve made it to Miami!!!
To get you started, you can make South Pointe your first destination in Miami!
See more about how to spend 2 hours at South Pointe in Miami Beach.
Camping between Tampa and Miami:
Can you do a day trip to Miami from Tampa?
Being a possible 4.5 hour drive (or more!) one way with traffic, a day trip to Miami can mean 8 to 10 hours of driving from Tampa to Miami to Tampa… at least!
But if you are only in Florida once and you REALLY want to go to one of the most famous destinations in Florida (and the US! …and the world!)… and you really can’t/don’t want to spend more than one day… and you understand that it’s a lot of driving in one day…
Well then sure. Yes, you can do a day trip to Miami from Tampa, and you might think it’s well worth it.
It really just depends on how important Miami is to you!
If you are very interested in Miami, then once you get to Miami, even just going to South Pointe of Miami Beach and Ocean Avenue can be worth it and it could have you leaving with a happy Miami experience.
But certainly, making it an overnight trip would be better if you have the time!
Miami is a major city, so do expect traffic.
Alligators between Tampa and Miami
There is an area between Tampa and Miami that can be one of the best places in Florida to see alligators.
So if you want a chance to see alligators, then you have a few places you can go!
But, emphasis on CHANCE!
Alligators are wild and they do what they want when they want!
There’s no guarantee to see them.
And, don’t feed the alligators!
While alligator attacks do happen, alligators are generally not interested in people.
It requires everyone’s help to keep it that way.
Feeding alligators is a way for alligators to become more comfortable with humans… and to learn to approach you (and other humans) for food!
And then alligators can become even more dangerous to humans!
When you see alligators, just observe!
Try not to do anything that would cause them to change their behavior.
Alligators you might be able to see between Tampa and Miami:
- Myakka River State Park alligators
- Tamiami Trail alligators
- Everglades National Park alligators
- PLUS: Everglades National Park crocodiles
And that’s a bit about some stops you can make driving from Tampa to Miami!
Where to next?!
- South: Miami to Key West
- North: Ocala National Forest springs
- North: Best things to do in the Florida Panhandle
HAPPY DRIVING TO MIAMI FROM TAMPA!
Here's some info on Florida trip prep!
- Things to do in Southwest Florida
- Best shelling in Florida
- Tampa to Miami drive
- Things to do in Everglades National Park
Southwest Florida is where Hurricane Ian made landfall in September 2022 which resulted in historic destruction.
Fort Myers Beach and Sanibel Island were among the hardest hit by the hurricane.
The Sanibel Island bridge that links mainland Florida to Sanibel Island and Captiva Island was destroyed during the hurricane.
This has since been repaired, but Sanibel Island beaches were still closed to the public for months... until recently!
Read current info from the City of Sanibel: Sanibel Island beaches that are open
What the open Sanibel Island beaches on that list were like pre-hurricane:
- Bowmans Beach
- Blind Pass Beach
- Tarpon Bay Road Beach (Trost parking lot)
- In general: Sanibel Island shelling beaches