The Lodge has its own marina and calls itself an "Outpost Resort," a moniker befitting a place in the wilderness and the only accommodations within the national park boundaries. There is a variety of packages available, four of which are detailed below:
The "Discover Your Everglades" package is on sale from now through April 26, 2002. It features a two-night stay in one of the rooms at the lodge, two adult seats on the Bald Eagle Florida Bay Cruise (taking 90 minutes), two ditto seats on the two-hour Pelican Backcountry Cruise and two adult breakfast buffets each morning in the lodge's restaurant, all priced at $209 (plus tax) for two adults. That works out to $52.25 per person per night.
An "Angler's Special" is available during April and again in November, at $69 per room (plus tax, single or double occupancy). In addition to the room, you get a bag of ice (well, all you plan to do is fish, right?).
Available from May 1 through October 31, 2002, is the "Survivalist Getaway Package," costing just $69 per night (plus tax) for which you get the room, two mosquito head nets, a bottle of Everglades-strength mosquito repellent, two one-liter bottles of water, and two "I Gave at the Everglades" stickers (the "gave" refers to your blood). In case you missed the point, summer is mosquito time in the Everglades, but if you want a jungle experience with the comforts of your room easily available, this is it.
The park is less than an hour from the Miami metropolitan area, yet is the largest mangrove ecosystem in the Western Hemisphere, one of the country's largest parks and a veritable treasure of biological diversity. More than 2,000 species of plants are found in Southern Florida, and the animal life includes crocodiles, alligators, otters, bobcats, deer and many kinds of fish, not to mention a bewildering array of birds. The park covers more than 1.5 million acres, mostly sawgrass prairie and mangrove forest in combination.
A final package is the "Spirit of the Everglades," available from November 1 through December 20, 2002. For $69 (plus tax) you get a lodge room (single or double occupancy) at the beginning of the more expensive winter season.
You can book rooms directly by visiting www.flamingolodge.com or phoning 800/600-3813 or 941/695-3101.
To get in-depth information on the Everglades, visit our free online destinations section.