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This dizzyingly beautiful tropical paradise was established in 1938 and serves also as a botanical research institute. Around a series of man-made lakes stands one of the largest collections of palm trees in the world (550 of the 2,500 known species), as well as countless other wonderful trees and plants. During a 40-minute tram tour, guides describe how plants are used in the manufacture of everything from Chanel No. 5 to golf balls. Allow another two hours to explore on your own.

Held on Key West in October, for at least ten days leading up to and including Halloween, this is the festival with the most fun, positive atmosphere the US has to offer (see Key West Fantasy Fest).

Flagler is Downtown Miami’s main drag – loud, bright, busy, and lined with small shops and street peddlers. Pop into the Galería International Mall (243 East Flagler Street, at SE 2nd Avenue) for cheap and tasty ethnic snacks, while on the next block is the stylish Gusman Center. On East Flagler Street at NE 2nd Avenue, look for the Alfred I. DuPont Building (1937–9), a paean to Art Deco in the Depression Moderne style.

The museum specializes in Latin American and 20thcentury American art and presents six to eight major exhibitions each year. The Martin Z. Margulies Sculpture Park displays 69 works in a variety of media distributed throughout the 26.5 acres of the FIU campus – a wonderfully rich and important representation of modern work. It is recognized nationally as one of the world’s great collections of sculpture and the largest on a university campus. It includes major pieces by Dubuffet, Miro, Nevelson, Calder, Noguchi, and Serra.

Though the town is historically famous as the base of operations for the 19th-century inventor Thomas Alva Edison, modern Fort Myers has become one of the main escapes for Midwesterners seeking a holiday by the sea, especially in winter. Its beaches have the feel of Indiana or Iowa about them, full of families without any of the Miami obsessions with style. The only problems you’re likely to encounter are traffic snarls.

This 30-acre (12-ha) tropical botanical park is devoted to exotic plants, such as citrus fruits, grapes, bananas, herbs, spices, nuts, and bamboo. It forms a unique attraction in the United States – after all, South Florida’s tropical climate is found nowhere else in the US. The astonishing number of varieties on display include a selection of poisonous species and hundreds of bamboo and banana varieties. A wonderful store enables you to stock up your cupboards with many unusual fruit products.

Located in very gay Wilton Manors, this is a big and wellmaintained center. There’s an extensive library of gay literature and reference works, friendly staff, a full calendar of special events, and plenty of opportunities for lively social interaction.