Museums
Edison and Ford Winter Estates (Fort Myers)
Thomas Alva Edison purchased 14 acres of land on the south side of the Caloosa River in tropical Ft. Myers, Florida and built a beautiful home complete with a laboratory, botanical and research gardens. In 1896 Edison became friends with the legendary automobile maker, Henry Ford. Ford would visit Edison during the winters and in 1916, bought his own two story home next to Edison. Edison & Ford Winter Estates is a National Register Historic Site, a Florida Historic Landmark and is among the top 10 visited historic homes in America.
Muscle car museum (Punta Gorda)
Muscle Car City in Punta Gorda houses a memorabilia shop, a 1960s-style diner and a car museum all under one roof. The shop has a considerable collection of old and retro-style metal signs. In the back of the shop, several muscle cars from the 1960s and 70s are for sale. The inside of the museum is also lovingly decorated. Visitors are almost transported into a different world, where approximately 200 cars from different decades are exhibited. The oldest vehicles date back to the 1920s.The excellent condition of the vehicles is impressive—they look like they just rolled off the production line. Car enthusiasts (and their children) should not miss out on this museum.
John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art (Sarasota) - Free on Mondays
Add the stunning Ringling Estate to your travel plans. This treat for the senses includes the Ca d'Zan mansion, the Ringlings' winter home, beautiful grounds and gardens, two Circus Museums, the Historic Asolo Theater and the amazing Museum of Art. Recognized as the official State Art Museum of Florida, the Museum of Art offers 21 galleries of European paintings as well as Cypriot antiquities, Asian Art, American paintings, and contemporary art. The estate features the spectacular Cà d’Zan ("House of John"), a waterfront mansion that was restored in 2002. The Circus Museum displays costumes, wagons, performance equipment, and other artifacts chronicling the history of the Circus. The estate also features Mable Ringling’s Rose Garden, completed in 1913, and beautifully landscaped grounds overlooking Sarasota Bay.
Salvador Dali Museum (St Petersburg)
A unique museum housing the most comprehensive collection of the famous artist Salvador Dali. featuring one of the largest private comprehensive collections of Salvador Domingo in the world..
Southwest Florida Museum of History (Fort Myers)
Housed in the former Atlantic Coastline Railroad depot, the Museum is home to the history of Southwest Florida. Paleo Indians, the Calusa, the Seminoles, Spanish explorers, and early settlers are just a few of the people you will meet as you view our exhibits. A peek inside an authentic replica of a pioneer "Cracker" house, a 1926 La France fire pumper, and a visit aboard a 1929 private Pullman rail car are also part of the tour.
G.WIZ Hands-on Science Museum (Sarasota)
This state-of-the-art science and technology hands-on museum offers people of all ages to discover the magic of interactive exhibits and displays. Visitors can choreograph an avalanche, create animated videos, freeze their own shadows, launch cloud rings, and see butterfly and native animal habitats while at this museum.
Tampa Bay Automobile Museum (Tampa)
The Tampa Bay Automobile Museum, located in the Tampa, Clearwater, St. Petersburg area of west central Florida, features a unique collection of vintage cars and vehicles that demonstrate special creativity and imagination in their history and engineering. They include pioneering front wheel drive and rear engine cars from the 1920’s and 1930’s, and each vehicle was chosen based on the engineering achievements that ma de it an important part of the evolution of the automobile. These are the cars that set the standards for the engineering of automobiles today.
Museum of Science and Industry (Tampa)
If you're a science nut,or even if you just like to know why things happen the way they do, this museum is a great diversion. With more than 450 hands-on exhibits, visitors become part of the action and can experience hurricane-force winds, zero-gravity and the effects of simulated flight. Displays on anatomy and ecology provide insight into the natural world, while the butterfly garden, nature trail and planetarium offer total immersion programs that further explore the physical environment. An IMAX theater awes guests with spectacle and is just one more reason that MOSI is the Southeast's largest science center and a perennial favorite of tourists and residents alike.
Henry B. Plant Museum (Tampa)
With splendid Moorish architecture, opulent furnishings and spectacular tropical gardens, a visit to the museum and restored rooms of the Tampa Bay hotel will transport you back in time.
American Victory Mariners Memorial & Museum Ship (Tampa)
This 60-year-old cargo vessel, which served during three wars has been re-activated and modified into a museum/cruising ship, is open for Self Guided Tours when alongside the dock. Visitors may view the ship (and her exhibits) directly behind the Florida Aquarium.