Culture vultures should not miss out on one of Florida's major cultural attractions, the Norton Museum of Art in trendy, upmarket West Palm Beach. The museum's permanent collection is internationally renowned, including European, American, Chinese and contemporary art, from Renaissance through Baroque. There is also a photography section. The museum also hosts travelling exhibitions and offers education programmes for children. There is a museum shop and café serving refreshments. Guided tours are available.

Situated in Boca Raton at Red Reef Park on a barrier island, Gumbo Limbo (named after a species of tree) is an eight-hectare (20-acre) marine and estuarine reserve dedicated to showcasing and preserving a concentration of plants known as a 'tropical hammock'. The Environmental complex also includes large outdoor aquariums containing local marine life, including the area's ubiquitous sea turtles. Visitors can also visit a butterfly garden, see visual presentations and interpretive displays, catch the view from an overhead observation tower, and stroll an elevated boardwalk through the hammock and mangrove swamp.

An hour west of Fort Lauderdale on the road to Naples the Big Cypress Seminole Reservation boasts the Ah-Tah-Thi-Khi Museum, giving visitors an insight into the history and culture of Florida's so-called 'unconquered' Indian tribe. The museum features exhibits and a living village where visitors can watch artisans at work. There is also a nature trail to explore, and a film on Seminole history is shown regularly.

Nothing is staid or boring in Miami, least of all its museums. The Miami Science Museum, north of Coconut Grove, contains more than 140 exhibits, all designed to be hands-on and interactive, coupled with live demonstrations and collections of rare natural history specimens that make discovering and learning a great deal of fun. The Wildlife Center boasts more than 175 live reptiles and birds of prey, and the adjacent Space Transit Planetarium provides more thrills with projected astronomy and laser light shows.

At least a half a day is required to fully enjoy south Florida's premier attraction. The Seaquarium is world-renowned for its marine life shows and attractions, including performing killer whales and television aquatic star and dolphin, Flipper. Another favourite star is the sea lion Salty and his colleagues, who amuse and amaze with their antics.

The outwardly unattractive complex of the Miami-Dade Cultural Centre, in the rather unsavoury area of West Flagler Street, is worth a visit because it houses a plethora of interesting artistic and historic exhibits. The Centre contains the Miami Art Museum ( www.miamiartmuseum.org), featuring a collection of modern and contemporary works by American, Latin American and Caribbean artists. There are also themed exhibits, which bring art and artists to life, as do the twice-monthly 'happy hour' parties, organised to highlight a particular exhibit. The Cultural Centre also contains the Historical Museum of Southern Florida ( www.hmsf.org) with exhibits that relate to the fascinating history of the area and the culture, folklore and archaeology of South Florida and the Caribbean.

Lovers of antiques revel in visiting the magnificent 34-room Vizcaya bayfront villa, built in the Italian Renaissance style in 1916 as a winter retreat for wealthy industrialist, James Deering. The grand mansion took hundreds of artisans five years to complete, and the formal gardens, which surround the villa fronting on Biscayne Bay, took even longer to lay out. Today visitors can tour the villa and grounds, enjoying the original furnishings and décor in a variety of Renaissance, Baroque, Rococco and Neoclassical styles.

Miami boasts the oldest building in the Western Hemisphere - but there is a catch. Dating from 1133 the Monastery of St. Bernard de Clairvaux in North Miami Beach is a hugely popular tourist attraction, although not quite indigenous to the area. The monastery stood originally in Segovia in Spain, but in the early 1950s the medieval building was bought by newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst, disassembled, shipped to Miami and rebuilt on its present site.

Legend has it that unrequited love led a Latvian immigrant to spend 25 years single-handedly carving a castle out of rock between the Florida Keys and Miami, on the South Dixie Highway. The amazing monument to the man's determination has been called America's Stonehenge and has been featured in numerous magazine and newspaper articles. Visitors are awed by the castle, which also contains affidavits from neighbours testifying to the fact that the builder had no assistance with his mammoth task.

The vast Everglades National Park that spans the tip of the Florida peninsula, 35 miles (56km) southwest of Miami, has been described as a 40-mile-wide (64km) slow-moving river of grass, interspersed with shallow wetlands. It is the only subtropical preserve in North America, containing temperate and tropical plants. It also boasts dozens of endangered species that find a home in this natural habitat, like the swallowtail butterfly, American crocodile, leatherback turtle, southern bald eagle and West Indian manatee. The best way to explore the Park is by canoe; private operators however run rapid air-boat tours, which are popular with thrill-seeking visitors. The Park has been accorded several honours including its designation as a World Heritage Site, an International Biosphere Reserve and a Wetland of International Importance.

Ybor City in central Tampa, with its cobblestone streets and huge old cigar factory buildings, is a National Historic Landmark District that beckons visitors back to an era when this Latin Quarter was known as the cigar capital of the world. The historic enclave, founded in 1886, has been fully restored and although the cigar factories are no longer operational, the buildings now house shops, restaurants, clubs and art galleries drawing large numbers of visitors. It is still possible to watch locals demonstrate the ancient art of premium hand-rolled cigar making, or spend a wild night applauding Spanish Flamenco dancers.

Busch Gardens is a massive zoo-come-theme park, which predates Florida's more famous Walt Disney World and offers an equally exciting and entertaining experience for visitors. The park is based on an overall African theme, divided into eight different areas with thousands of animals living in naturalistic environments. The site also contains thrill rides, live entertainment venues, shops and restaurants, all easily viewed from above from the Skyride cable car that crosses the park. In one day it is possible to visit Tutankhamen's Tomb in Egypt, cross the plains of the Serengeti and watch snake charmers in a Moroccan sultan's tent.

The hands-on Tampa Science Museum is designed to educate, amaze and amuse both young and old with more than 450 interactive exhibits. Visitors can, for example, experience what it is like to be in a Gulf Hurricane with winds of up to 74 miles per hour (200km/h), or defy the laws of gravity in space. The biology section features a unique way to explore the human body and stroll through a butterfly garden. Also at the museum is Florida's first IMAX dome theatre, and the museum building is set in a 47-acre nature reserve which features walking trails.

The Tampa Museum of Art has recently reopened in a stunning new facility at Tampa's Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park. The 66,000-square-foot building houses a collection of 20th century and contemporary art, as well as a renowned collection of Greek and Roman antiquities. There is also a changing special exhibitions programme. The new building, opening in February 2010, is itself a work of art. From the innovative translucent ceilings to walls covered with LED lighting, the seven interior galleries and one exterior sculpture gallery offer visitors a world-class experience.

The Henry B. Plant Museum in the heart of downtown Tampa is designed to transport visitors back to the turn of the century. The ornate building is Moorish in design, featuring 13 silver minarets, said to be a copy of the famed Alhambra Palace in Spain, and in itself is worth a visit. Railroad tycoon Henry Plant built the edifice in 1891 as the 511-roomed Tampa Bay Hotel. Today it houses period art and furnishings from Europe and the Orient, and details via exhibits the history of the resort and the early days of the tourist industry.

More than 5,000 aquatic creatures, including crocodiles and moray eels, live at the three-storey Florida Aquarium where it is possible to explore the underwater world in air-conditioned comfort. The aquarium utilises behind-the-scenes tours, dive shows, audio tours, close-up animal encounters and touch-tanks to spice up the experience. There are also numerous informative and entertaining theme exhibits.

Orlando's most familiar landmark is undoubtedly the turreted Cinderella Castle that stands in the centre of the original Disney Florida theme park, the Magic Kingdom, at Lake Buena Vista. The park was opened in 1971 and has been making childhood fantasies come true ever since. Today it is just one of four Disney parks that cover more than 28,000 acres of Orange and Osceola counties in central Florida, with accompanying resorts, shopping complexes, hotels and waterparks. Apart from the Magic Kingdom, Walt Disney World Orlando now includes Epcot, a futuristic showcase of the world's different cultures and traditions; MGM Studios, a working animation and television studio; and Animal Kingdom, where a huge variety of animals are kept in themed surroundings along with a cast of Disney characters.

Spread out between the Disney parks at Lake Buena Vista and the downtown Orlando area is the renowned Sea World attraction, which has been making a major splash in central Florida for more than a quarter of a century. The park, owned and operated by Annheuser-Busch, is designed to give an interactive look at the sea and all its facets, featuring themed animal habitats from tidal pools to iceberg lakes. In addition visitors can hug a dolphin or kiss a killer whale, and watch the famous aquatic Sea World stars go through their paces in various shows. The park also features fun rides like the very popular water roller coaster thrill ride called Journey to Atlantis. Neighbouring Discovery Cove (part of the Sea World group) offers visitors a chance to swim with dolphins, view wildlife, sunbathe on gorgeous beaches and snorkel amongst the coral.

Experienced theme parkers recommend that it takes at least two days to fully appreciate all the delights on offer at the Universal Orlando entertainment complex, which includes two theme parks: the Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios. The movie-themed park with its thrilling, innovative fun-rides, production studios and film sets also has three superb luxury on-site hotels so spending a night is a good idea. At Universal Studios visitors are invited to go behind the scenes and become involved in the movie action, while Islands of Adventure offers thrilling rides, shows and attractions from five different islands.

One of Orlando's numerous water parks, Wet 'n Wild has the distinction of being the most popular water attraction in the area and also the world's first amusement park devoted solely to water flumes, pools and slides. The park was designed by George Millay, creative genius behind the Sea World parks in San Diego and Orlando, and has been operating since 1977. Thrilling rides like The Storm, The Surge and The Bubba Tub are there to be enjoyed, along with numerous other attractions and facilities.

A sighting of an endangered West Indian manatee, a shy and lumbering walrus-like creature whose numbers are dwindling, is a must for visitors to Florida. At the Lee County Manatee Park on the Orange River in eastern Fort Myers these animals can be viewed in their natural habitat from observation decks. The Park also offers information, walking tours and workshops, as well as picnic facilities, a fishing cove with deck and a pier. Kayak and canoe trails are also available.

Housed in an odd-looking building that is tipped to one side and apparently sinking into the ground, the Orlando Odditorium contains a remarkable collection of weird and wonderful exhibits, amassed over a period of 40 years by explorer Robert Ripley. Examples of the exhibits are shrunken heads and a scale model of a Rolls Royce made entirely of matchsticks. Ripley's 'Believe it or Not' collection is world-renowned and has been documented in television series and best-selling books.

In true Florida style, Orlando's Museum of Art is not just another gallery but a fascinating world of creative themed exhibitions showcasing its permanent collections of American Art, Art of the Ancient Americas and African Art. The Museum also has an active programme of visiting exhibitions on display in the elegant building with its marble floors and glass ceiling. Group tours are made memorable and educational with commentary about art appreciation and the lives of the various artists represented.

The John F. Kennedy Space Centre at Cape Canaveral, 46 miles (74km) southeast of Orlando on Florida's east coast, is one place in this fantasyland state where fact is just as entertaining as fancy. Visitors to the centre follow the story of NASA's exploration of space through interactive exhibits, movies and tours. Guests can tour a full-size replica of the space shuttle 'Explorer'; walk through a giant model of a module from the new International Space Station; view films about Mars and the Pathfinder exploration; view historic authentic rockets, like that piloted by pioneer astronaut, John Glenn; and marvel at the Apollo/Saturn Centre, which houses all the artefacts from the historic moon landing. The Space Centre requires several hours to digest, and on the same site is the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, established on the land NASA did not require for its space operations. The 220-square-mile (570 sq km) refuge contains more endangered species than any other wildlife refuge in the US, including the southern bald eagle and Atlantic loggerhead turtle. The US Astronaut Hall of Fame, in the nearby town of Titusville, is another of the area's attractions.

Midway between Tampa and Orlando, about 20 minutes drive west of Walt Disney World, the Fantasy of Flight resort is billed as the world's greatest aircraft collection. The attraction began as a vision of aviation enthusiast and historian, Kermit Weeks, as a tribute to the pioneers of flight, and today it features many rare and vintage aircraft, which actually take to the skies. Visitors are treated to an 'Aircraft of the Day' flypast, as well as the chance to fly themselves in a simulator. The site also offers tours of the aircraft collection in hangars, a sight and sound presentation detailing the history of aviation, a tour of the 'back lot' where vintage aircraft are restored, and an Exploration Centre.

The museum on site at the sprawling US Naval Air Station west of Pensacola is regarded as one of the largest and most remarkable air and space museums in the world, with more than 170 aircraft on display dating from the 1920s to the space age. In addition the museum boasts a very realistic recreation of a World War II aircraft carrier and a wartime Pacific airbase. Between March and November visitors might catch a practise session of the Navy's Blue Angels flight demonstration team soaring through the skies. If not the team can be seen in action on one of two Imax films shown at the museum, or keen would-be aviators can have a go at doing it themselves on the flight simulator.

The museum is a good place to learn about the city's diverse history and understand why Pensacola is known as the 'city of five flags'. The museum is housed in the Arbona Building, built in 1882, and the site includes an archaeological dig dating back to the Spanish colonial era, which visitors can view from a boardwalk with explanatory signs.

A store-front museum in Pensacola's business district houses a fascinating collection of Civil War artefacts gathered by a local physician, Dr Norman W. Haines Jr, throughout his lifetime. The exhibits have been arranged to give visitors an insight into what life as a civil war soldier was like. Particularly interesting are the medical exhibits. The collection also includes the handmade First National Confederate flag captured by Wilson's New York Zopuaves during the Battle of Santa Rosa Island in October 1861.

The capital city of Florida, Tallahassee is located 191 miles (308km) east of Pensacola on the 'Big Bend', close to the border with Georgia, 14 miles (23km) to the north. The city is set in rolling hills and sports moss-draped oaks, fragrant magnolia trees and grand old plantation houses more reminiscent of the Deep South than the Florida sunshine scene. Tallahassee hosts the Florida State University at the state's new Capitol Building, which towers 22 storeys above the downtown area. The city's five Canopy Roads, where trees form virtual tunnels, are lined with interesting sites such as plantations, ancient Native American settlements and mounds, gorgeous gardens and scenic picnic spots. There is also a Museum of Natural History and Science combined with a natural habitat zoo of indigenous wildlife.

Some years ago Juno Beach resident Eleanor Fletcher, affectionately known locally as 'the Turtle Lady', began assembling a collection of turtle artefacts and information that has grown to become the Marine Life Center on the oceanfront at Loggerhead Park, which monitors turtles along the Gold Coast. The Center is essentially a turtle hospital, and visitors can see ill and injured creatures being rehabilitated. The Center has numerous exhibits, including tropical fish and shells, and a gift shop. Evening guided 'turtle walks' are offered during June and July, but bookings must be made in advance.

Famous inventor, Thomas Edison, and his friend, automobile magnate Henry Ford, both spent dozens of winters in the city of Fort Myers in the early years of the 20th century. Edison's home is the region's top historic attraction, and has been preserved as it was during his lifetime. The Victorian house called Seminole Lodge still boasts working light bulbs, which he invented. They burn in the laboratory where he worked on more than 1,000 inventions during his winter visits. The house next door, Mangoes, was built by Ford in 1916. Visitors are given guided tours of both houses by costumed guides giving 'living history' accounts. Scenic river rides on board a replica of Edison's electric boat are also offered.

In the dying years of the 19th century a former Civil War surgeon, Dr Cyrus Teed, founded a pioneer settlement on the banks of the Estero River south of Fort Myers where he led the community to practice a religion he termed Koreshanity. Chief among his beliefs was the equality of men and women and that the universe was a hollow sphere containing everything within it. Planning to build a utopian city, the community generated their own electricity, built boats, established a general store and constructed numerous buildings, of which 11 remain today to be explored by visitors. The last four members of the sect donated the land to the State of Florida in 1961 and it is now preserved as a park with a nature trail, picnic tables and campsite. Guided tours of the Koreshan buildings are offered.

The Museum of History in Fort Myers is housed in the former Atlantic Coastline Railroad depot and chronicles the history of Southwest Florida, from the Paleo Indians through the Calusa, the Seminoles and the Spanish explorers to the early settlers. A pioneer cracker house, a 1926 fire pump and a 1929 Pullman private railroad car are among the exhibits. Pride of place is held by the 'Land of Giants' section depicting the huge animals like mammoths, mastodons and the Bison Antiqus that roamed the area about 12,000 years ago.

The beaches along this area of the Florida coast are world-renowned for their seashells and the largest collection of shells, fossils, corals and sponges in the world is the focus of a unique family oriented attraction north of Fort Myers. The Shell Factory not only exhibits a fascinating collection, but the 18-acre complex includes shops selling a range of jewellery, ornaments, lamps, objets d'art and glassware. It is even possible to pick your own pearl and have it mounted in gold. The complex includes a petting zoo, wildlife refuge, eco laboratory, a restaurant, game arcade, miniature golf course and boating lake.

In the heart of Key West's old town is the house where Nobel Prize winner Ernest Hemingway, one of America's most respected authors, lived and wrote for more than 10 years. The rooms and gardens are open to the public, enabling visitors to step back in time to Hemingway's most productive period, and to enjoy the lush garden where more than 60 cats have taken up residence. Entertaining guided tours are given.

The landmark beacon of the Key West Lighthouse was built in 1847 to warn ships of the hazardous reefs lying off the lower Keys, and, having been taken out of commission in 1969, is now a popular tourist attraction. Visitors can climb the 86-foot (26m) high tower to marvel at the spectacular view. The clapboard bungalow that was the keeper's quarters has been restored and maintained as a museum, providing a glimpse of life in Key West in the 19th century.

Tiny Pigeon Key is an island west of Marathon on the Overseas Highway, which originally served as a construction camp for the original railroad built through the Keys. It is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places and operated by the non-profit Pigeon Key Foundation as an historic preserve. Visitors can explore a railroad museum featuring artefacts and photographs about the original Flagler railroad and building of the old Seven Mile Bridge. Some of the cottages have been restored.

In the downtown area of Marathon is a tropical oasis of nature trails and educational displays set among hardwood trees on a piece of land that was originally occupied by a Bahamian immigrant family in the early 20th century. Known as Crane Point Hammock, the Adderley's made a sparse and simple life here by selling sponges gathered from the sea and making charcoal. Their home has been restored and the grounds laid out with several miles of walking trails and wooden walkways through the botanic wonderland. One trail takes in the Marathon Wild Bird Center where injured Keys' birds are rehabilitated. There is also a natural history museum on site, dedicated to sea turtles, and a children's museum. Visitors can also witness fish feedings at a tropical saltwater lagoon, and an iguana enclosure.

The Key West Butterfly Conservatory is billed as a trip to paradise, and a walk through the tropical wonderland filled with free-flying butterflies and colourful birds is certainly a magical experience.

The restored homestead known as Audubon House contains the works of renowned ornithologist, John James Audubon, who visited the Florida Keys in 1832 and completed drawings of 18 new birds for his folio in the gardens of this house. The house was originally built in the 1840s by Captain John H. Geiger, harbour pilot and wrecker, who lived here with his wife and nine children. The house has been furnished in the typical comfortable style of a prosperous Key West home of its era. Entertaining audio tours are available. Visitors can enjoy wandering through the gorgeous gardens, planted with orchids, bromeliads and other tropical, exotic and native plants.

One of the most enjoyable activities on a visit to the Florida Keys is to get close to the friendly dolphins, which abound in the area. At the Dolphin Research Center visitors can enjoy half-day education programmes, walking tours and a 'dolphin encounter', spending 20 minutes of structured swimming with the Atlantic bottlenose resident dolphins.

The endangered, attractive and unique tiny white-tailed Key deer have found a safe haven in their refuge at Big Pine Key, where they can roam in 14 square miles (36 sq km) of their natural threatened tropical hardwood hammock habitat. There were only 27 or so Key deer surviving in 1957 when the refuge was established; this number has now grown to about 800. The refuge is also home to 22 other federally listed endangered and threatened species of plants and animals, five of which are found nowhere else in the world. More than 90,000 visitors come to the refuge each year.

A pedestrian promenade lined with palm trees and colourful art deco buildings, Lincoln Road Mall is a great haunt for locals and foreigners. Once called the 'Fifth Avenue of the South', this lively seven-block shopping district serves up big name labels like G.A.P. and Banana Republic but also houses the renowned Regal Movie Theatre and the Lincoln Theatre, home to the New World Symphony. Considered one of the best people-watching streets in South Beach, take refreshment at one of the string of sidewalk cafés or soak up some local culture at the many art galleries along the mall. The Farmers Market on Sundays is the best place for fresh vegetables, fruits, juices, homemade breads and flowers and on weekends Antique vendors display their wares along the sidewalk. At night, street performers take to the mall, entertaining passersby.

A vivacious collection of art and design pieces depicting popular culture from 1885 to 1945, the Wolfsonian is the amalgamation of a long-term pursuit by eccentric heir and collector, Mitchell Wolfson Jr. Housed in the original warehouse used as a storage facility for the 70,000 pieces, visitors can pick through the origins of graphic and industrial design in the hotchpotch of distinctive propaganda art from Germany, Italy and the United States, and the remarkable industrial design pieces from modern German design to Bauhaus. Not to be missed is the über cool Dynamo café and museum shop.

An offshoot of Parrot Jungle, which was established in 1936, Jungle Island is a new complex offering an exciting array of wildlife from parrots and macaws to crocodiles and penguins. You can witness over 200 parrots at the Manu Encounter, the world's only aviary replicating the clay cliffs of Manu, Peru and at the Parrot Bowl, a gaping amphitheatre, you can be entertained by the clever antics of cockatoos, parrots and macaws. Look out for the rare albino alligator and 21-foot crocodile at the Serpentarium. A new addition to Jungle Island is the waterpark featuring the 168-foot Hippo Slide, with an exhilarating 40-degree drop.

The Biscayne National Park can be seen from downtown Miami but the two areas are completely different. The coral reefs and tiny islands of this water sanctuary are home to an abundance of wildlife for children to see, and even a couple of awe-inspiring pirate shipwrecks. This is a great camping, boating and swimming spot for families.

A family holiday in Miami wouldn't be complete without spending some time on the beach. Aside from sand and sea, Crandon Park Beach also has the Amusement Center with a carousel, a roller rink, a splash fountain and a playground for kids to enjoy. The Crandon Park Gardens are beautiful to see, and there are a few picnic spots to enjoy as well.

Kids will be delighted by the Gold Coast Railroad Museum, which offers train rides, toy trains to play with and interesting model train exhibits. The museum's railroad car collection includes President Roosevelt's historic Ferdinand Magellan carriage. In March each year there are Thomas the Tank Engine rides for children. On Saturday and Sunday between 11.00am and 4.00pm kids can ride in the cab of a locomotive and get to operate some of the controls.

The child-sized exhibits at the Miami Children's Museum are both colourful and interactive. Kids can explore the museum's simulated hospital, supermarket or fire station, playing with and moving anything they like. The Mt. Michimu rock-climbing wall offers a fun, physical challenge for older children.

Take the kids to play at the Pinecrest Gardens - its banyan trees and abundant vegetation are just crying out to be explored! Other highlights of the gardens include a fun playground, a petting zoo and the 'Splash 'n Play' water area, as well as a couple of tabled picnic spots.