Fun Florida road trip stops include driving on dirt roads and beaches, drive thru churches and other businesses, funky buildings, and other quirky Florida.
Building on the theme of Florida Road Trips from a previous McCool Travel article (Road Trip Habits), here are some Florida road trip stops to entertain (and hopefully inform) you.
McCool Travel tip: When possible, stay off the major roads. Seeing Florida from smaller roads is much more fun than from the highways.
1. Florida Beach Scenes
Although there are so many fun Florida road trip stops all over the state, I certainly hope you incorporate some beach time into your next Florida road trip. Perhaps you will see some of Florida’s colorful lifeguard stands, amazing beaches, or kitschy fun decorations.
The area near the Daytona Beach boardwalk retains yesteryear charm. The Jantzen lady is just one of the old school discoveries you will find.
Perhaps you will also witness an exploding sunrise.
2. Fun Florida Mailboxes
>>> Please also see the McCool Travel article: Road Trip Sights: Manatee Mailboxes
3. USA’s Smallest Post Office
Driving Tamiami Trail—the road between Tampa and Miami (thus, its name Tamiami)—in the middle of the Everglades, is the world’s smallest post office. It is located in the small village of Ochopee. By the way, my grandparents lived a mile from this post office for about 25 years, so my cards and letters went through this building.
>>> Please also read the McCool Travel article: 7 Fun Scenic Drives in Florida.
4. Florida’s Funky Buildings
In addition to the smallest post office, Florida is home to the oldest building in the Western Hemisphere and countless other quirky, funky, fun buildings.
Little pink houses for you and me!
See also 16 Cool Things to Do in Anna Maria Island Florida
I like to call the above house, The Flintstone House? So many houses in Florida were constructed with a miss-mash of whatever stones they could find. Interesting, right?
Explore the Arabian themed architecture in Opa Locka, Florida (but read my warnings first!).
Can you believe there is a building in Florida that was built in the year 1141? Read the amazing story about the oldest building in the Western Hemisphere
5. Mossy Roads in Florida
Exploring smaller roads in North Florida will present you with many opportunities to see Spanish moss hanging from oak and cypress trees.
6. Dirt Roads in Florida
If your Florida road trip experience has only been on I-95, I-75, and the Turnpikes, then you will be surprised (pleasantly, I hope) to learn that there are plenty of opportunities to drive on unpaved roads.
Plenty of dirt roads can also be found in and near the Everglades. For exact locations, see 6 Sensational Miami Scenic Drives for Fun Florida Road Trips.
Some beaches allow for beach driving. Daytona Beach is perhaps most well known car beach in the world and it has 13 miles of drivable beach.
>>> Please also see the McCool Travel article: 8 Great Things to Do in Daytona Beach
7. Florida Drive Thrus
The state of Florida has ample opportunity to shop, worship, and more from your car. Good thing we are on a road trip!
Farm Stores are a staple of South Florida living.
Drive thru liquor stores are all over Florida. Big Daddy’s is the most weep-established and oldest brand, so there are knock offs with cutesy names like Happy Pappy’s.
Alas, this location was closed so I could not cure my “eat catfish while driving” jones.
And, yes, Florida has at least one drive in church. The Daytona Beach Drive In Christian Church has two services on Sundays. They serve snacks in the Friendship Hall but I wonder how many bring their own to eat in their vehicles.
8. Florida Cemetery Humor
Somewhat appropriately, I hope, this article on fun Florida road trip stops will end with cemeteries. Residents of Key West, locally called The Conch Republic, celebrate life every day and, as I found out, even spin a humorous slant to death.
Here are just two humorous examples I found in the Key West Cemetery.
>>> Please also see the McCool Travel article: 8 Great Spots to Visit in the Florida Keys.
Other historic cemeteries, not necessarily humorous, in Florida include three Florida National Cemetery locations (Bushnell, Jacksonville, and Lake Worth) and the Coconut Grove Bahamian Settlers Cemetery (where Michael Jackson’s Thriller video was filmed).
Some of the other fun Florida road trip stops categories I left off this list include Florida hills, local Florida food and drink, signs, McCool Travel Florida favorites, and attractions.
Do you have any favorite Florida road trip stops?
Interesting choices. I’ve seen quite a few of these since living in Florida. I like visiting all of our great rest areas myself. 😉 The manatee mailboxes are all along US1 and A1A.
A1A has all kind of critter mailboxes: dolphins, gators, and so many manatees. Keep on enjoying the Sunshine State.
What fun Florida road trip ideas! 🙂 I have pretty much drove the entire length of Florida a couple of times when we used to vacation in Key West. There is definitely so much to see and do along the way.
Thank you, Carrie! 😀
A drive-in church? That’s something I’ve never seen! Florida is definitely full of some quirky sights and road-side attractions.
Oh, I just skimmed the surface. 😀
Fun way to look at Florida. Must’ve spent six months there in two winters. Brought back great memories!
Thank you, Carolina. Fun indeed. That is how I like to think about road trips in Florida.
Loved this! One of my favourite things about Daytona is the “yesteryear charm” you mention! Great article
Thank you, Rachel. Travel Happy!
Great ideas for roadtrip stops – and great images! From reading those first two headstones, it looks like Disney took inspiration from Key West Cemetery for their Haunted Mansion graveyard!
Good one, Vicki. I wonder if Walt Disney visited Key West cemetery and was inspired?
Great road trip stops!! I would love the humorous cemetery gravestones! I’ve never made it as far south as Key West, so I’ll keep that stop in mind. The history in Florida always amazes me. St Augustine is one of my fav cities. Would love to see some of Opa Locka one day. Great post! Thanks for sharing!
Thank you for the note. Happy travels!
I need to explore more of Florida. I would love to see the cool mailboxes.
Thank you for the note, Holly. The funky mailboxes are just another wacky Florida attraction.
I love a good road trip!! I’ve been watching Bloodline, some of these shots remind me of that show!
Ooooh, Bloodline sounds like something I should watch.
How fun! I’ve always loved Florida’s colorful lifeguard stands, but the diving woman at Daytona Beach takes the cake!
I know! That diving woman figure is so retro!
We did the trip twice. Our favorite stops were St. Augustine the town and Vilano Beach, St. Pete – Dali Museum, Alligator Alley for the airboat rides, Nokomis – the beach, and a stop for Indian River Grapefruits near the northern border of Florida.
Thank you, Wendy. All sound very lovely.
Love the mailboxes! We took a long road trip through the US last summer (approximately 6,000 miles zig-zagging about) which included part of Florida’s western coast and plan to do some more driving when we visit again in August. So fun to see the US from the road! Anita
Thank you for the note, Anita. Happy travels!
I love the fun things you see by the side of the road. I wish I had kept a separate file of photos just labelled ‘roadside nonsense.’ BTW ‘I told you I was sick’ is also the epithet on Spike Milligan’s grave except the church authorities required it to be printed in Gaelic because it looked irreverent.
Love that trivia! Roadside Nonsense is a great idea! Time for a collaboration post!?!
What a great round-up and reminder of why I love Florida. From quirky sights to natural beauty ( love that Spanish moss!), it’s a one of a kind place.
Thank you.
So quirky! Love it 🙂
Drive thru churches that’s a first for me! I was always taken a bit aback by the drive thru liquor stores, that just seems like such a bad idea.
Really, what could go wrong with drive thru liquor stores and gun crazy populace?
Thank you, Jack!