When you think of visiting Florida, you likely imagine theme parks in Orlando or ritzy beachfront stays in Miami. But the Sunshine State is host to many hidden gems from the panhandle to the Atlantic coast.
Ready to step up your travel game? Here are a few great towns in Florida worth visiting that you may not have heard as much about.
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1. Lake Wales
This small inland town is home to Bok Tower gardens, lush citrus groves, and rodeos. It’s also the location of Spook Hill, a magnetic hill where a car put in neutral will be mysteriously pulled uphill.
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2. Seaside
This picturesque small town in northwest Florida is next to Grayton Beach State Park. It’s a small resort town with pastel-colored homes and white picket fences that border sugar-white sand beaches. It hosts the 30A Songwriters Festival each year.
3. Cedar Key
This old-fashioned fishing village is home to several famous seafood restaurants and the Fall Seafood Festival. It’s next to Cedar Keys National Wildlife Refuge, where you can find bald eagles, manatees, and grizzly bears. The Cedar Key Museum State Park has seashells and 19th-century Native American artifacts on display.
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4. Crystal River
This city in western Florida is next to Crystal River National Wildlife Refuge, which is home to many manatees year-round. Once you’re done viewing the wildlife, check out the pottery, jewelry, sculpture, paintings, and photography offered by the Franklin Anderson Gallery of Arts, which represents local Florida artists.
5. Titusville
Just a short drive away from the Kennedy Space Center, Titusville is home to the Astronaut Hall of Fame and the Spacewalk Hall of Fame. It provides an ideal view for rocket launches. You can also sample the local delicacy, rock shrimp, at one of its seafood restaurants.
6. Cassadaga
This small town is known as the “Psychic Capital of the World” as it has an outsized share of psychic mediums, healers, and spiritualists. The Southern Cassadaga Spiritualist Camp resides here and offers spiritual healing and communication with spirits…