Destination Fruitopia: 7 Places for Fruit Fanatics in Florida

Florida’s natural bounty offers a roadmap of delicious destinations featuring kumquats, key limes, strawberries, oranges, watermelon, and more. From the Florida Strawberry Festival to an iconic cucumber stand-turned-fruit-superstore, we’ve curated a flavor-packed tour to impress even the most discerning fruit fanatics.

1. Fruit and Spice Park – Homestead

Taste a Rainbow

At this melting pot of fruit orchards, ylang-ylang trees from Asia stand beside black sapotes from Latin America and giant baobabs from Madagascar and Zimbabwe. With 180 varieties of mango alone, and ample ripe fruit on the ground for the taking (just be sure it’s edible!), you’ll feel like you’ve been let loose in a Garden of Eden. Founded in 1943 by homesteader Mary Calkins Heinlein, this curious attraction is now maintained by Miami-Dade County Parks. All told, the nearly 40 acres of this fruit haven (or heaven?) produce more than 500 varieties of fruits, spices, and herbs. You can celebrate them all at the park’s various festivals and events, or simply by having a fruit-forward frozen concoction at the café.

2. Robert Is Here – Homestead

Shake it Up

In 1959, a local farmer set his seven-year-old son up to sell cucumbers under a simple sign that read “Robert is Here.” Now, more than six decades later, that same Robert is still here, serving an average 1,000 customers per day who stop in to buy his homegrown fruit, souvenirs, and what might be the most popular milkshakes in the state. Using fresh, hand-cut fruit, ice, milk, and nothing else, the shakes and smoothies are a great way to try exotic fruits and flavors like guanabana, caimito, and canistel (egg fruit), as well as fun combinations like the very pink Barbie blend of cherry, dragonfruit, and strawberry. Grab a sandwich, make yourself at home at a picnic table, and take a break with live music. Leave time afterward to feed the resident goats, cows, pigs, and emus and stroll through the huge aviary of beautiful birds.

3. Heart of Palm Salad – Cedar Key

Sweet Eats

No one can deny that “ice cream salad” sounds like a win-win for parents and children. On Cedar Key, an island city on Florida’s Gulf Coast, you can judge for yourself at two eateries: the Island Hotel or 29 North at 83 West. Florida-grown heart of palm forms the base of the salad; this palm-tree delicacy is a good source of, well, just about everything: fiber, protein, potassium, iron, and omega-3s, to name a few. Next, a layer of seasonal fruit, topped by pistachio ice cream or lime sherbet, or any green ice cream that melts down to become one with the peanut-butter-based salad dressing. The kids will love it, but more importantly, you’ll have the rest of their lives to say, “Remember that time we ate ice cream salad?” If you aren’t already posting food pics on Instagram, this might be the place to start.

4. Redland Market Village – Redland

Pick a Winner

Come for the fruit, stay for the entertainment: 27 acres of flea market bargains, food trucks, and fun. If your family doesn’t want to help you pick the perfect papaya, they can check out guitars, jewelry, furniture, toys, and reptiles. Let the kids enjoy a pony ride after they have their faces painted, then name almost any food you want for lunch, and see who can find it first.

5. Florida Strawberry Festival – Plant City

Berry Delicious

Looking for a slice of small-town Americana with a side of strawberry cheesecake? The Florida Strawberry Festival has you covered. Plus, it boasts fair attractions the whole family will love—midway rides, youth livestock shows, arts and crafts, marching bands, and parades. Add in a few things you’ve probably never heard of, like strawberry pizza, a strawberry spaghetti-eating contest, and a “diaper derby,” of crawling babies, and soon you’ll be in that #BerryFest mindset. Be sure to plan your day to continue into the night for big-time entertainment headliners like the Beach Boys, the Black Eyed Peas, and the Bellamy Brothers.

6. Hyppo Gourmet Ice Pops – St. Augustine

Chill Out

There’s a mango habanero popsicle waiting for you at the ever-popular Hyppo pop shop if you need a pick-me-up while strolling St. Augustine (or Tampa, St. Pete, or Gainesville, where they have other locations). Or perhaps mango mojito is more your style? Oh, wait, what’s that over there? Blackberry goat cheese? Pistachio orange! Better look up all three dozen flavors on your phone and start whittling down the options before you arrive. The fruit and herbs are fresh, the sugar is low-process and minimal, and dairy is optional. Disclaimer: Since 2010, the Hyppo has offered 450 flavors, and they’re based on seasonal fruit, so maybe don’t get too attached to any particular one.

7. Watermelon Festival – Monticello

Use Your Melon

Watermelon season is short but sweet, from May to September. As summer fades, the lingering regret about watermelon is always wishing you had eaten more of it. Fortunately, Monticello’s Watermelon Festival gives you the perfect time and place to eat sweet, messy melons, with freshly cut slices to munch on as you enjoy parades, pageants, dancing, fun runs, bed races (yes, actual beds), and barbecue. No matter the event at this annual two-week festival, the real stars of the show are the locally grown melons.

Looking for even more family-friendly activities? Take our Ultimate Travel Quiz to find your dream destinations in Florida.