Sawgrass Recreation Park

Take a wild ride through the Florida Everglades on the half-hour airboat tour. The $20 adult fee and the $10 child fee also include entrance to the park and its exhibits. (If you've got a group of 10 or more, contact the park before coming to reserve your seats.) It's loud folks, so make sure and wear the ear protection provided by the park.

Airboat rides begin at 9 a.m. daily and run every 30 minutes until 5 p.m.

If you want some privacy, consider the hour-long private airboat tour. Catch a glimpse of swimming gators, tropical birds and other creatures native to Florida. Night tours are available, as long as you're not afraid of the dark.

The park has reptile exhibits featuring Cannibal, a 1,000-pound alligator; Mona, the water monitor; and a baby alligator that you can hold at the end of the reptile show. Learn how this dinosaur-like animals live and play in the Florida Everglades and beyond. Animal exhibits close at 5 p.m.

For those nature enthusiasts who enjoy fishing and camping, fishing boats are available for rent at the park, as well as private islands for camping. If you need a fishing guide to get the scoop on where the fish are biting, you can set that up with the park also.

Gators aren't the only animals you'll find at the park. The Swamp Yard exhibit has pigs, ducks, iguanas, bunnies, chickens, roosters and peacocks. 

The park offers party packages with reptile shows, and they'll even travel to your location for the party. 

HelloFortLauderdale Tip: Print this coupon for a discount on your visit to Sawgrass Recreation Park. Don't forget your camera!

- by Jessica Bates, Fort Lauderdale Reporter for HelloMetro  (Click to leave a message)

Jessica Bates

Jessica is a freelance journalist residing in lovely southern California. She holds a bachelor's degree in English and journalism. She writes for a green living publication, which she thoroughly enjoys. Once upon a time she was an editorial board member for Steel Toe Books choosing poetry manuscripts for publication.