8 Stunning Small Towns In Florida
Of the nearly 143 million who traveled to Florida in 2024, choosing the Sunshine State was a no-brainer. With its swaying palm trees, gorgeous beaches, clear waters, and colorful reefs, Florida’s natural beauty spans sand and sea, making it one of the top travel destinations in the United States. With that said, choosing a particular town or city in Florida can be a bit trickier, especially with Orlando’s theme park fame overshadowing its smaller communities. But look no further: if you are on the hunt for Florida destinations with natural, historic, and cultural charms, these eight stunning towns enchant all who pass through. Whether visiting for their award-winning beaches, thrilling ocean excursions, or striking landmarks steeped in Florida history, these towns will help you take home some truly unforgettable photos and memories in 2025.
Stuart
Bordered by the St. Lucie River on Florida’s Treasure Coast, Stuart is a waterfront town known for its stunning beaches and world-class angling. In 2024, USA Today Readers’ Choice Awards voted Stuart the #1 Best Coastal Small Town in the nation. Voters applauded the community’s natural beauty and coastal charms, bumping it up from the previous year, when Stuart took the still-impressive #2 spot.
With a mild climate and an average temperature of 72°F, local shores like Stuart Beach and Bathtub Beach can be enjoyed year-round. The Riverwalk boardwalk is equally serene, showcasing views of the Roosevelt Bridge and passing boats on the shimmering St. Lucie. The Riverwalk also connects Stuart’s downtown to its best parks and facilities, like Flagler Park, which offers picnic gazebos on the waterfront and several scenic walking trails. The Fishing Pier and Public Dock are another popular stop along the Riverwalk, allowing travelers to cast a line in this “Sailfish Capital of the World.”
St. Augustine
Steeped in over 450 years of history, the "Nation's Oldest City" of St. Augustine captivates visitors with a wealth of sites and attractions reflecting the town’s storied past. Set on Florida's Historic Coast, like many Florida towns, St. Augustine is home to pristine shores like St. Augustine Beach. However, the town’s seafront is often more of a backdrop and itinerary-filler for those looking to delve deeper into its cobblestone streets, fabulous historic sites, and extraordinary architecture.
Overlooking Matanzas Bay, the Castillo de San Marco is one of the town’s most striking landmarks. Built from 1672 to 1695 using coquina, a limestone mixture of sea shells and coral, it shines as the oldest masonry fort in the country. In the heart of St. Augustine, the Historic Downtown also features countless structures dating back to the 1700s, including the Oldest House Museum and Gardens. Other architectural marvels, like the Villa Zorayda Museum, showcase a different side of St. Augustine’s history. Inspired by 12th-century Moorish castles, the lavish villa was built by an eccentric millionaire in 1883, its intricate patterns and striking domes still stealing breaths to this day.
Everglades City
For a stunning and secluded nature retreat on the Southwest Coast, Everglades City is one of the best gateways to Florida’s famous wetlands. While its name implies a bustling urban center, less than 400 people call Everglades City home. However, what this small town lacks in size, it makes up for with its expansive backyard. The town is a gateway to some of Florida’s best nature areas, including the Big Cypress National Preserve, Collier-Seminole State Park, and Everglades National Park.
The latter is both closest to Everglades City and the most popular. Spanning a 1.5-million-acre area, the park showcases a vast and bewitching tropical wilderness, with Everglades City as your homebase. Whether booking a Private Wildlife Tour with local operators like Tour The Glades or exploring the “mangrove jungle” aboard an Everglades City Airboat Tour, your time in the Florida Everglades will be nothing short of extraordinary.
Punta Gorda
Punta Gorda is another picturesque Southwest Coast town set apart by its position on the Peace River and Charlotte Harbor. Thanks to its setting, waterfront leisure and recreation are a thing of beauty in this Florida town. Whether fossil hunting for shark teeth, taking a sightseeing cruise with King Fisher Fleet, or strolling the 2.5-mile Harborwalk, there is no shortage of ways to embrace Punta Gorda’s natural beauty.
Visitors can also stop at sites along the Harborwalk, like Laishley Park, a 17-acre green space on the waterfront. Here, visitors can enjoy palm-tree-lined walking paths, an interactive fountain, and a 400-foot fishing pier. Elsewhere in Punta Gorda, the Peace River Botanical & Sculpture Gardens is another charming place to relax on the water with lush natural surroundings. The Gardens span 30 acres of breathtaking wetlands, uplands, mangroves, marshlands, and tidal basins.
Boca Grande
About an hour’s drive from Punta Gorda, Gasparilla Island is home to Boca Grande, a small residential town famous for its white sands and turquoise waters. While this idyllic barrier island community is quite affluent, there are plenty of affordable ways to enjoy its splendor. The main way is by visiting Gasparilla Island State Park, which can be enjoyed for a mere $3USD vehicle fee and $6USD toll bridge fee.
Cycling the 6-mile Boca Grande Rail Trail is a great way to take in the park’s prettiest scenes and landmarks, including the Port Boca Grande Lighthouse. One of only six public lighthouses in Florida, this historic 1890 beacon is the heart and soul of Gasparilla Island State Park. Beyond the museum, Gasparilla’s beaches are another popular feature, whether searching for shells, wildlife viewing, or swimming and snorkeling in the Gulf Coast waters. Dolphins can frequently be spotted offshore, and some have even seen sea turtles and manatees.
Venice
Another hour from Boca Grande will bring you to Venice, a Gulf Coast town with 14 miles of gorgeous beachfront. The town’s most popular shore and namesake, Venice Beach, is favored for its soft sands, 700-foot Venice Fishing Pier, and offshore reef dive. Similar to Punta Gorda, Venice is also a hot fossil-hunting destination, especially at its namesake shore. However, Venice shines even brighter for its fossils since it is the “Shark Tooth Capital of the World.”
On April 12, 2025, the town’s annual Sharks Tooth Festival will celebrate this feat at Centennial Park in its Historic Downtown. Outside of these festivities, Downtown Venice is a beauty worth exploring in itself. The charming palm-tree-lined district boasts over 100 shops and restaurants like Fossil Frenzy and the Abondanza Italian Deli, along with cultural attractions like the Venice Museum.
Panama City Beach
Although Panama City Beach is often dubbed “The Spring Break Capital of the World,” this northwest Florida town has plenty of fun for families as well. Its 27 miles of beachfront are consistently ranked among the top beaches in the US by TripAdvisor, welcoming students and non-students alike. For a more secluded day in the sand, travelers can take a water shuttle to Shell Island for dolphin sightings, beachcombing, and incredible views of St. Andrews Bay and the Gulf of Mexico.
Closer shores can also be enjoyed at St. Andrews State Park, where surfing, paddling, and snorkeling take the spotlight. The park’s rock jetty has since transformed into an artificial reef, attracting a range of marine wildlife, from coral and sponges to rays and octopuses. If you are traveling with your four-legged friends, Panama City Beach also has dog-friendly beaches, like the one to the west of the City Pier. But no matter which shore you choose, each has sugar-white sands, crystal-clear waters, and phenomenal vibes.
Key Largo
About an hour-and-a-half south of Miami, Key Largo, the “Diving Capital of the World,” has some of the prettiest underwater scenes on earth. Located in the upper Florida Keys on an island of the same name, this aquatic destination features unique attractions like Jules’ Undersea Lodge, an underwater hotel beneath a lagoon. As for popular dive spots in Key Largo, there are almost too many to name. Each has its own spectacular mix of coral reefs, blue waters, and marine life like sea turtles and reef fish.
Some especially notable diving sites include the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, home to the underwater Christ of the Abyss statue, and John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park, the first undersea park in the United States. Visitors can also explore this second setting on a glass-bottom boat tour or snorkeling adventure. Back above the sea, travelers can enjoy natural scenes and wildlife on land at Dagny Johnson Key Largo Hammock Botanical State Park. The area features over six miles of nature trails through lush tropical surroundings, with a wide variety of birds and butterflies flying overhead.
Discover These Stunning Florida Towns In 2025
With Florida reporting record-breaking tourism in 2024, it is safe to assume similar numbers are on the horizon for 2025. If you have hopes of adding to this statistic, these beautiful small towns will make every second of your getaway worthwhile. Whether strolling Stuart’s scenic Riverwalk, hunting for shark teeth in Venice, or exploring St. Augustine’s aged cobblestone streets, you will find that Florida's small towns offer a charm and character that larger cities simply cannot match.
