The crystal-clear waters of the 5-mile-long Silver River are so pristine, glass-bottom boats were invented just to look at it. Yup, this is the birthplace of glass-bottom boat tours. Today, campers can canoe, kayak, or catch a ride on one of those boats along the waterway, where the teal waters house manatee, turtles, and American alligators. But another of the park’s most famous inhabitants lives in the trees: rhesus macaque monkeys. In addition to the park’s hiking trails, mountain biking, boardwalks, and equestrian trail system, the sole Silver Springs State Park Campground features more than 50 tent campsites and 10 cabins, plus rv camping sites with electric hookups, picnic tables, and fire rings.

• Like other Florida state parks, campsites at Silver Springs State Park can be booked online or by phone. Florida residents can make campsite reservations 11 months in advance, while non-residents can make reservations 10 months in advance.
• Same-day reservations are accepted online or by phone until 1pm ET, after which any remaining sites become available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Silver Springs State Park is accessible year-round. A rush of families tend to visit during spring break and summer vacation, while winters can be an excellent time to visit, when temperatures are moderate for tent camping and more manatees can be spotted. Summer visitors should prepare for heat, humidity, and rain showers along the nature trails and hammocks.

• Silver Springs is about a 90-minute drive from Orlando. For an extended Central Florida trip, the Ocala National Forest is adjacent to the park.
• Canoe and kayak rentals are available at Silver Springs. It’s popular to paddle five miles from the main entrance’s boat launch near the confluence of the Silver and Ocklawaha rivers to Ray Wayside County Park, then return via the park's livery service.
• The park’s Silver River Museum & Environmental Education Center is a great family activity for rainy days, as is the 19th-century pioneer town called Cracker Village.
• Nonnative rhesus macaque monkeys were first introduced in the park in the 1930s as a tourist attraction. Today, an estimated 300 monkeys live here, where lucky paddlers might catch a splash party—the primates are known to climb the trees and do belly flops into the river.