The holidays are all about spending time with family, and what better way to spend the special season with your loved ones than to visit a National Park for free?
The City of Homestead, designated as the “Gateway To Biscayne and Everglades National Parks,” is offering a special holiday trolley service every day from December 26 through December 31. Riders get to enjoy free transportation, a guided tour and free admission to Everglades and Biscayne National Parks with an additional stop at Homestead Bayfront Park.
You can board the trolley from any of the following locations:
- Homestead Station in Downtown Homestead at 4 South Krome Ave.
- Marriott Hotels complex located on Campbell Drive, east of Exit 2 of Florida’s Turnpike
- Bus routes from Miami-Dade County public transportation
In addition to the holiday trolley service, the regular season trolley will return and run every weekend from January 7 to April 9, 2023. The trolley departs from Downtown Homestead, where you can watch a performance at the Seminole Theatre or eat at a local restaurant, to the Everglades’ Ernest F. Coe Visitor Center, where riders can stroll down the Anhinga Trail. Observe alligators, turtles, butterflies and dozens of beautiful birds while you’re there!
On the way back, the trolley makes a stop at local fruit stand, Robert Is Here, home to some of the most unique fruits and renowned milkshakes.
The trolley also travels to Biscayne National Park’s Dante Fascell Visitor Center and boardwalk, for visitors to explore the park by land or sea! Walk the waterfront, paddle the mangrove shoreline, look for wildlife or take an Island Boat Tour, which departs at 10 a.m. or 1:30 p.m. on select dates.
Trolleys also make it to Homestead Bayfront Park for visitors to sunbathe and take a dip in the atoll beach, although this wintery weather (yes, even in Miami) might have anyone thinking otherwise. The park also offers a beach-side restaurant, picnic pavilions, grills, a fishing area, and a large playground.
The National Parks Trolley program is the result of the efforts of the Everglades Foundation in collaboration with the National Park Service and the City of Homestead. For more information, complete time schedules and reservations, click here.