Itineraries14 min25 Best Things to Do in Naples, Florida
Naples rewards people who slow down. Here is what is genuinely worth your time, in the order we'd do it.
Read itNaples, FloridaNo sponsored picks
The Gulf coast,at its own pace.
An independent field guide to things to do in Naples, Florida — the beaches worth the drive, the water behind the beach, and the long dinners outdoors that make people move here.
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All guides →Three things Naples does better than anywhere else
Itineraries14 min
On the water11 minNaples Boat Tours & Getting on the Water
Almost everything worth seeing in Collier County is on the water. Here's how to actually get out there without wasting a day or a lot of money.
Read itBeaches9 minBest Sunset Spots in Naples (and How to Time Them)
Naples faces due west into open water. The whole town knows it, and at about six o'clock the whole town goes to look.
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Beaches10 minBest Naples Beaches, Ranked
The sand is broadly excellent everywhere here. What separates these beaches is parking, shade and how far you have to walk to be alone.
Read itPick a mood
On the water →
Boats, backwaters, islands and the Gulf itself.
Beaches →
Where to park, where to swim, where to be alone.
Eat & drink →
Courtyards, raw bars, stone crab and coffee.
Arts & culture →
Galleries, gardens, botanical detours.
With kids →
Days that work for four-year-olds and fourteen-year-olds.
Outdoors →
Mangroves, boardwalks, birds and swamp.
Itineraries →
One day, three days, a rainy afternoon.
Sand report
Eleven miles of sand, and only a few decisions that matter
The sand quality barely changes along this coast. What changes is parking, shade, facilities and how far you have to walk to be alone. We ranked all of them on exactly those terms.
- Lowdermilk ParkOld Naples
- Naples Pier BeachOld Naples
- Vanderbilt BeachNorth Naples
- Delnor-Wiggins Pass State ParkNorth Naples
- Clam Pass ParkCentral Naples
On the water
The best parts of this coast have no road to them
Gordon Pass, the sandbars, the back side of Keewaydin Island, the mangrove maze that becomes the Ten Thousand Islands. None of it is walkable, all of it is half an hour from the city dock, and choosing between a cruise, a rental and a charter is the single most consequential decision of a Naples trip.
More good stuff
Everything else worth knowing
On the water8 minDolphin Watching in Naples: Where, When and How
Southwest Florida has one of the densest resident bottlenose populations in the country. Knowing where the tide runs is most of the trick.
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Beaches8 minShelling in Naples and Keewaydin Island
Southwest Florida's shelf is shallow, wide and gently sloping, which is why this coast collects shells the way other coasts collect seaweed.
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With kids9 minNaples with Kids: A Three-Day Itinerary That Works
Naples is unusually good with young children: the Gulf is shallow and warm, distances are short, and almost everything happens outdoors.
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Itineraries7 minNaples in One Day
If you only have a day — passing through to Miami, or off a Gulf coast road trip — this is the sequence that wastes the least of it.
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Eat & drink7 minEating on Fifth Avenue South
Eight blocks, three dozen kitchens and a strict local rhythm. Learn the rhythm and you'll eat far better than the average visitor.
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Beaches6 minNaples Pier: What to Know Before You Go
The most photographed structure in Collier County, and still the best free hour in Naples if you time it right.
Read itWhen to come
Month-by-month guideEveryone books February. Locals would tell you November.
July: Bath-warm Gulf and dramatic skies. Plan water time before noon. A month-by-month breakdown of weather, water temperature, crowds and prices — including the shoulder weeks that quietly beat peak season.
Naples Florida Things To Do