Last Updated on November 29, 2022
We look forward to compiling this list each year and 2022 is certainly no exception. With COVID still being an issue, we made sure the majority of our Authentic Florida bucket list items were outside and/or could be done with social distancing.
We encourage everyone to create their own Florida Bucket List (you can get a lot of ideas by doing a search on our website) and start checking them off one by one.
Without further ado … Here’s our 2022 Authentic Florida Bucket List:
1. Purchase a Florida State Park Passport & Collect Stamps
Did you know that Florida State Parks has a passport program? This travel-sized journal helps you discover new places to explore and allows you to collect those memories in a passport.
Each time you visit one of the 175 Florida State Parks, you will receive a stamp on your passport, along with a short blurb with facts about the park you’re visiting.
The best part? If you collect all the stamps, you will receive a special prize – a Family Annual Entrance Pass that covers the entrance fee into any state park for up to eight people for a year. Make sure to order your Real Florida Passport online before you visit. Let us know how many parks you check off your Florida bucket list this year.
2. Tour Village of the Arts: Bradenton Galleries and Artists
The Village of the Arts in Bradenton is an eclectic mix of 20th-century bungalows, Florida Cracker homes, and more, featuring over 275 properties. The original purpose was “to build a community where artists live and work while enhancing the quality of life and creating a harmonious environment.”
Each month they feature a First Friday event where the art galleries and studios, restaurants, bakeries, specialty shops, healing arts, and places to stay open late. They have different themes and interesting vendors and live entertainment.
While strolling through the color-filled streets, you’ll find the Village has something for everyone. Make sure not to miss the popular art walk hosted by the Village on the first Friday night and Saturday afternoon of every month! You’ll be able to experience live music, delicious food, and of course unique art. This has been on our Authentic Florida bucket list for quite a while.
Make sure to check out this map of businesses from Villages of the Arts!
3. Attend the Old Florida Celebration of Arts Festival in Cedar Key
We love Cedar Key! We wrote an article about our past Cedar Key Adventures. However, we haven’t made it to their annual art festival yet. We are so committed to attending this art festival in 2022, that we booked an Airbnb cottage to make sure we would be in the heart of the festivities.
The Old Florida Celebration of the Arts reputation has grown since it launched in 1964. It’s now recognized as one of the top Small-Town Art Fairs in the nation.
The Old Florida Celebration of the Arts in Cedar Key is planned for April 9 & 10, 2022. The juried art event features 120 fine artists and craftsmen along with delicious local seafood, homemade baked goods, kid’s activities, music, and more. The festival is free, pet-friendly, and takes place on Historic 2nd Street as well as in beachfront City Park.
4. Take an Interesting Class at a Zoo or Botanical Garden
Throughout the pandemic, we were exposed to all sorts of interesting virtual classes. Many of them were free or charged a nominal fee. We made a pact to earmark a class or workshop and physically participate at one of our favorite zoos or botanical gardens in Florida.
There are a wide array of classes and workshops for horticulture, landscaping, fine arts, and other specialties all year round for children and adults at most botanical gardens around the state. We also plan to check out a yoga class or two.
5. Shop & Dine at Crystal River’s Shoppes of Heritage Village
In case you didn’t know, the 35th Annual Florida Manatee Festival is happening on January 15 & 16, 2022. We attended the Florida Manatee Festival in 2019 and fell in love with Citrus Avenue and an area known as the Shoppes of Heritage Village. We promised to return shortly thereafter when the festival was not happening, but COVID-19 put a kink in those plans.
In 2022, we plan to return to historic downtown Crystal River and soak in all it has to offer, including a visit to the Shoppes of Heritage Village. “The Heritage House” is where the vision of Heritage Village began. This home, dating back to the early 1800s, along with other small cracker style cottages were preserved and turned into specialty shops of all flavors. We plan on checking out all unique gift and specialty stores, the Tea Bar, Cattle Dog Coffee Roasters, and BubbaQues.
NOTE: To stay updated on the 2022 Florida Manatee Festival visit www.GoManateeFest.com.
6. Venture Out to A Variety of Historic Parks & Trails
This Florida bucket list item is similar to the first one on our list, however, this has a bit of a twist. We plan on seeking out parks and trails with rich Florida history and reporting back on our findings. These will be primarily parks & trails we have not visited before.
Our guidance will come from the Florida Department of State’s Florida Heritage Trail series. It began in 1991 with the publication of the Florida Black Heritage Trail. Since then, additional titles in the series include the World War II, Native American, French, British, Florida Spanish Colonial Heritage Trails, and the Florida Seminole Wars Heritage Trail. Designed to raise awareness of the state’s cultural and historical resources, these educational and travel publications are popular resources for residents, students, historians, visitors to the state, and the team at AuthenticFlorida.com.
7. Participate in a Variety of Florida Non-Profit 5K Run/Walks
One of our favorite things to do in Florida is to walk. We are thrilled to watch our daily step number increase and there’s no better way to do that than by exploring Florida on foot. There are so many incredible places to walk throughout the Sunshine State. We love walking in areas we have explored in the past and adore finding new places we don’t know a lot about.
A 5K is a great way to commit to getting outside and walking for a great cause. If there’s a cause you feel strongly about, chances are favorable there is a 5K somewhere in Florida that raises awareness and money for that cause. We did a few virtual Florida 5Ks in 2021, including attending a physical one in Winter Garden for Bears Who Care. It’s always a wonderful opportunity to learn more about all sorts of interesting non-profit organizations. Plus, you always meet nice people. We like to walk at our leisure and take photos along the way, so it gives us ample time to talk to others who are also walking.
We try to keep up with 5Ks around the state by posting information about them on our Authentic Florida Facebook page. If there are any you want us to know about, post info in the comments.
8. Celebrate the 75th Anniversary of Weeki Wachee
Authentic Florida started in 2012 and year after year we love to talk about all the cool things you can do in Florida’s Adventure Coast. One of our all-time places to visit is Weeki Wachee Springs. It’s the perfect storm to us — an Old Florida roadside attraction with a rich history in a beautiful natural setting with Florida’s most unusual state employees: MERMAIDS!
2022 is a milestone year for Weeki Wachee. It’s the 75th anniversary and you know they are going to find magical ways to celebrate, and we will be sure to keep you posted on all the festivities.
Here are some facts about Weeki Wachee you may not be aware of … “Weeki Wachee” was named by the Seminole Indians. It means “little spring” or “winding river.” The spring is so deep that the bottom has never been found. Each day, more than 117 million gallons of clear, fresh 74-degree water bubbles up out of subterranean caverns. Deep in the spring, the surge of the current is so strong that it can knock a scuba diver’s mask off. The basin of the spring is 100 feet wide with limestone sides and there, where the mermaids swim, 16 to 20 feet below the surface, the current runs a strong five miles an hour. It’s quite a feat for a mermaid to stay in one place in such a current. Flowing from the spring, the Weeki Wachee River winds its way 12 miles to the Gulf of Mexico.
Here are two books about Weeki Wachee you’ll want to add to your Florida library collection: Two Weeki Wachee Book Recommendations
9. Support the Florida Film & TV Industry
We have a few team members with show business in their blood and some strong ties to the film and television industry in Florida. We have decided that 2022 will be the year two worlds collide. We are going to put a spotlight on the past, present, and future of Florida’s film and TV industry.
Did you know there are film festivals throughout the entire state of Florida? We put together a list of Florida Film Festivals. A film festival is a great way to plan a fun Florida getaway.
Did you know that any qualified production company producing motion pictures, made for television motion pictures, television series, commercial advertising, music videos, or sound recordings in Florida may be eligible for a sales-and-use tax exemption on certain production-related purchases in Florida?
We will be sharing lots of Florida Finds. For example, did you know there is a map for film/TV locations filmed in the Miami-Dade area? You can check it out from MDC Maps.
10. Give Scuba Diving a Try … well, at least, Snorkeling
No one on our team has ever tried scuba diving, so we put this on our Florida Bucket List. We tend to be a bit claustrophobic over here, so we are a little reluctant and may end up doing a little snorkeling as a fallback.
We have really wanted to check out a few places and 2022 could be the year. For example, Jules’ Undersea Lodge in Key Largo is the only hotel where you must scuba dive to your room. It was originally built as La Chalupa mobile undersea laboratory, the largest and most technically advanced in the world. The Lodge has been completely remodeled to provide guests with approximately 600 square feet of luxury living space for up to six people. You also don’t have to be a certified diver to stay there. If you are in good health and over the age of 10 you can take their “Discover Scuba” course with their Mission Director/Instructor to get to your room. It’s a bit pricey (single occupancy is $900), but truly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
There are several other scuba experiences we are also considering: visiting the artificial reefs of Miami’s Wreck Trek, live reef diving at Looe Key, visiting the historic wrecks around the Panhandle, or sending someone not currently on our team (since it requires a special certification) to cave diving at Devils Den and Blue Grotto in Williston (near Gainesville).
Looking to build your own Florida Bucket List? Check out these articles:
- Exploring Florida’s Adventure Coast, Brooksville – Weeki Wachee
- 7 Ways to Experience Orlando Like a Local
- Swim with a Manatee and Experience Authentic Crystal River, the Soul of Florida
- 7 Top Things To Do on Amelia Island
- Enjoy a Fun-Filled Weekend In Authentic Key West
- Experience Miami’s Coral Gables Like a Local
- Exploring the Extraordinary Florida Everglades
- A Getaway to Culturally Savvy St. Pete
- Getaway to Authentic Apalachicola
- Experience Authentic Pensacola (& Pensacola Beach)
- Ten Authentic Things to do in Tallahassee, the “Other Florida”
- Our Top 7 Authentic Things to Do in Jacksonville
- Ten Awesome Things To Do in Gainesville
- Our 15 Favorite Freshwater Florida Springs