Biscayne National Park
Within sight of Miami, yet worlds away, Biscayne protects a rare combination of aquamarine waters, emerald islands, and fish-bejeweled coral reefs. Evidence of 10,000 years of human history is here too; from prehistoric tribes to shipwrecks, and pineapple farmers to presidents. For many, the park is a boating, fishing, and diving destination, while others enjoy a warm breeze and peaceful scenery.
About 1 hours from Miami by car.
Alerts
- CautionBoater Awareness
Please use caution in park waters due to navigational markers that may be missing or moved due to unforeseen circumstances.
- InformationCamping and Docking at Boca Chita and Elliott Keys
Day Use Docking at Boca Chita and Elliott Keys: $25.00 Friday - Monday and Federal Holidays. Overnight Camping and Docking at Boca Chita and Elliott Keys: $60.00 per night. Payments must be made on site using the recreation.gov phone app.
- InformationRide Share Services
Convoy Point grounds, Jetty Trail, kayak launch, and picnic area open at 7 a.m. and close at 5:30 p.m. If you are using a ride share service for transportation to and from the park, ensure ride share services can be onsite before closing time.
Fees & passes
Free. No entrance fee here.
Hours
| Convoy Point Grounds | Daily · 7:00AM - 5:30PM |
| Dante Fascell Visitor Center | Daily · 9:00AM - 5:00PM |
| Park Waters | Daily · All Day |
When to go
May draws the most visits here and October the fewest, averaged over 2021 to 2025.
Campgrounds
| Boca Chita Campground | 45 sites | |
| $35 a night · There are two campgrounds in Biscayne National Park. Both are located on islands, Elliott Key and Boca Chita Key. The only access to these islands is by boat. | ||
| Elliott Key Campground ↗ | 20 sites | |
| $35 a night · Campgrounds Open 24 hours a Day | ||
Every campground here has its own page on Campsite Atlas, with site counts, hookups, rig limits and booking windows. All of them on one page → How park camping works
Visitor centers
- Dante Fascell Visitor CenterPassport stamp
The Dante Fascell Visitor Center is located at Convoy Point, 9 miles East of the city of Homestead, Florida. A beautiful museum offers a virtual journey through the park's four ecosystems using dioramas, audio and video.
Explore
Things to do
- Fishing in Biscayne National Park
Biscayne National Park preserves unique marine habitat and nursery environments that sustain diverse native fishery resources and support world-class fishing for spiny lobster, snapper, grouper, tarpon and bonefish.
Opens on the Park Service site - Birding at Boca Chita1-3 Hours
Along with incredible array of marine life, Biscayne National Park is also home to significant populations of birds including protected species.
Opens on the Park Service site - Birding at Elliott Key1-3 Hours
Along with incredible array of marine life, Biscayne National Park is also home to significant populations of birds including protected species.
Opens on the Park Service site - Birding at Convoy Point1-2 Hours
Along with incredible array of marine life, Biscayne National Park is also home to significant populations of birds including protected species.
Opens on the Park Service site - Become a Biscayne Junior Ranger
Join Diego the dolphin, Peter the panther and Aleesha the alligator in exploring three South Florida parks (Big Cypress National Preserve, and Biscayne and Everglades National Park).
Opens on the Park Service site
Films
National Park Service productions, public domain.
Events
- Ranger's Choice 11a10/1411:00 AM · runs through Oct 15 · free9700 SW 328th St Sir Lancelot Jones Way Homestead. FL 33033
- Ranger's Choice 3p10/1403:00 PM · runs through Oct 16 · free9700 SW 328th St Sir Lancelot Jones Way Homestead. FL 33033
- Park After Dark - Jeepers on the Jetty10/1702:00 PM · freeDante Fascell Visitor Center 9700 SW 328th St Homestead, FL 33033
- Fishing Clinic10/2402:00 PM · runs through Oct 31 · freeFishing Bridge 9700 SW 328th St Sir Lancelot Jones Way Homestead, FL 33033
- Bark After Dark11/2101:00 PM · free9700 SW 328th Street Sir Lancelot Jones Way Homestead, FL 33033
- Park After Dark12/1902:00 PM · free9700 SW 328th Street Sir Lancelot Jones Way Homestead, FL 33033
News
- Boca Chita Key Lighthouse Reopens at Biscayne National Park ↗2026-06-25
Biscayne National Park today announced the reopening of the historic Boca Chita Key Lighthouse to public visitation following more than two years of closure for major repairs and restoration work.
Map
Interactive map by the National Park Service
Historic landmarks nearby
Public land nearby
Distances are approximate. Wilderness Atlas publishes a center point and an acreage for each area rather than a boundary, so each area is treated here as a circle of the same size and the figure is the gap to that circle.
Guidebooks for Biscayne National Park and the South
We earn a small commission if you buy through these links. It does not change what we list.
Local history books for Biscayne National Park
Titles come from Open Library's catalog, matched by subject.
Reference
Wildlife
Seen this monthCoyote 42× · Belted Kingfisher 11× · Osprey 5× · Indian Peafowl 4× · Bald Eagle 4× · Brown Pelican 3× · Red Junglefowl 2× · Eastern Screech-Owl 2×Research-grade observations within 25 km, last 30 days, via iNaturalist
Full checklist: 229 birds, 25 mammalsHide
Raptors & owlsAmerican Kestrel · Bald Eagle · Barn Owl · Black Vulture · Broad-winged Hawk · Burrowing Owl · Cooper's Hawk · Eastern Screech-Owl · Merlin · Northern Harrier · Osprey · Peregrine Falcon · Red-shouldered Hawk · Red-tailed Hawk · Sharp-shinned Hawk · Short-tailed Hawk · Swainson's Hawk · Swallow-tailed Kite · Turkey Vulture
Waterfowl & wadersAmerican Coot · American White Pelican · American Wigeon · Black-crowned Night-Heron · Blue-winged Teal · Brown Pelican · Bufflehead · Cattle Egret · Clapper Rail · Common Goldeneye · Common Loon · Double-crested Cormorant · Fulvous Whistling-Duck · Glossy Ibis · Great Blue Heron · Great Egret · Green Heron · Horned Grebe · Lesser Scaup · Little Blue Heron · Mottled Duck · Northern Pintail · Pied-billed Grebe · Red breasted Merganser · Reddish Egret · Scarlet Ibis · Snowy Egret · Tricolored Heron · White Ibis · Wood Duck · Wood Stork · Yellow-crowned Night-Heron
Shorebirds & seabirdsAmerican Avocet · American Oystercatcher · Audubon's Shearwater · Black Skimmer · Black-bellied Plover · Bonaparte's Gull · Bridled Tern · Brown Booby · Caspian Tern · Common Tern · Cory's Shearwater · Dunlin · Forster's Tern · Franklin's Gull · Great Black-backed Gull · Greater Yellowlegs · Gull-billed Tern · Herring Gull · Killdeer · Laughing Gull · Least Sandpiper · Least Tern · Lesser Black-backed Gull · Lesser Yellowlegs · Magnificent Frigatebird · Manx Shearwater · Marbled Godwit · Masked Booby · Parasitic Jaeger · Pectoral Sandpiper · Piping Plover · Pomarine Jaeger · Purple Sandpiper · Red Phalarope · Ring-billed Gull · Roseate Tern · Royal Tern · Ruddy Turnstone · Sanderling · Sandwich Tern · Semipalmated Plover · Semipalmated Sandpiper · Short-billed Dowitcher · Sooty Tern · Spotted Sandpiper · Upland Sandpiper · Western Sandpiper · Willet · Wilson's Plover · Wilson's Snipe
Gamebirds & dovesCommon Ground-Dove · Eurasian Collared-Dove · Key West Quail-Dove · Mourning Dove · Rock Dove · White-crowned Pigeon · White-winged Dove
WoodpeckersNorthern Flicker · Pileated Woodpecker · Red-bellied Woodpecker · Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Hummingbirds & swiftsChimney Swift · Ruby-throated Hummingbird · Rufous Hummingbird
Also on the checklistAmerican Flamingo · American Goldfinch · American Pipit · American Redstart · American Robin · Anhinga · Antillean Nighthawk · Bahama Mockingbird · Baltimore Oriole · Bank Swallow · Barn Swallow · Bell's Vireo · Belted Kingfisher · Black Scoter · Black-and-white Warbler · Black-necked Stilt · Black-throated Blue Warbler · Black-throated Gray Warbler · Black-throated Green Warbler · Black-whiskered Vireo · Blackburnian Warbler · Blackpoll Warbler · Blue Grosbeak · Blue Jay · Blue-gray Gnatcatcher · Blue-headed Vireo · Boat-tailed Grackle · Bobolink · Brown Thrasher · Brown-headed Cowbird · Canada Warbler · Cape May Warbler · Carolina Wren · Cedar Waxwing · Chuck-will's-widow · Clay-colored Sparrow · Common Eider · Common Grackle · Common Moorhen · Common Myna · Common Nighthawk · Common Yellowthroat · Connecticut Warbler · Cuban Yellow Warbler · Dickcissel · Eastern Kingbird · Eastern Pheobe · Eastern Wood-Pewee · European Starling · Fish Crow · Grasshopper Sparrow · Gray Catbird · Gray Kingbird · Gray-cheeked Thrush · Great Crested Flycatcher · Hill Myna · Hooded Warbler · House Sparrow · House Wren · Indigo Bunting · La Sagra' Flycatcher · Lark Sparrow · Least Flycatcher · Loggerhead Shrike · Louisiana Waterthrush · Magnolia Warbler · Mangrove Cuckoo · Northern Cardinal · Northern Gannet · Northern Mockingbird · Northern Rough-winged Swallow · Northern Waterthrush · Orange-crowned Warbler · Ovenbird · Painted Bunting · Palm Warbler · Pine Warbler · Prairie Warbler · Prothonotary Warbler · Purple Gallinule · Purple Martin · Red Knot · Red-billed Tropicbird · Red-eyed Vireo · Red-winged Blackbird · Rose-breasted Grosbeak · Roseate Spoonbill · Ruby-crowned Kinglet · Rusty Blackbird · Savannah Sparrow · Scarlet Tanager · Shiny Cowbird · Smooth-billed Ani · Song Sparrow · Summer Tanager · Swainson's Thrush · Swainson's Warbler · Tennessee Warbler · Townsend's Warbler · Tree Swallow · Veery · Western Kingbird · Western Spindalis · Western Tanager · Whimbrel · Whip-poor-will · White-eyed Vireo · White-tailed Tropicbird · Worm-eating Warbler · Yellow-billed Cuckoo · Yellow-breasted Chat · Yellow-rumped Warbler · Yellow-throated Vireo · Yellow-throated Warbler
Small mammalsKey Largo woodrat · LEAST SHREW · Mexican red-bellied squirrel · black rat · cotton mouse · eastern gray squirrel · hispid cotton rat · house mouse · marsh rabbit
Marine mammalsBOTTLE-NOSED DOLPHIN · Fin whale · HUMPBACK WHALE · Sie whale · Sperm whale · black right whale · manatee
PredatorsNORTHERN RIVER OTTER · STRIPED SKUNK · bobcat · common raccoon · gray fox
Hoofed mammalswhite-tailed deer
BatsBRAZILIAN FREE-TAILED BAT · Florida Bonneted Bat · SEMINOLE BAT
Activities
Activity guides for this park Birdwatching in the national parks · Camping in the national parks · Canoeing and kayaking in the national parks · Diving and snorkeling in the national parks · Fishing in the national parks · Wildlife watching in the national parks
Weather & climate
The park is situated in a subtropical climate, which ensures sunshine year-round. Winters are normally dry and mild, with occasional fronts bringing wind and little rain. Summer brings hot and humid weather with scattered thunderstorms in the afternoons. The average temperature in January is 68 degrees Fahrenheit and 82 in July. The average rainfall for the area is 2.17 inches in January and 3.95 inches in July. June to November is hurricane season.
Questions people ask
Does Biscayne charge an entrance fee?
No. Biscayne is free to enter.
Source: National Park Service
What are the hours at Biscayne?
Standard hours are 7:00AM - 5:30PM, every day.
Source: National Park Service
Can I camp in Biscayne?
Yes. The Park Service lists 2 campgrounds in Biscayne: Boca Chita and Elliott Key. 1 is first-come, first-served.
Which Biscayne campgrounds have showers, hookups, or a dump station?
Showers: Boca Chita.
Source: Campgrounds
Is anything closed at Biscayne right now?
3 active alerts as of October 14, 2026: Camping and Docking at Boca Chita and Elliott Keys; Ride Share Services; and more.
Source: Alerts
How busy is Biscayne?
486,567 recreation visits in 2025, number 115 of 387 units that report visitation.
Source: Most visited parks
When was Biscayne established?
1980. It covers about 270 square miles.
Source: Wikipedia
What is the weather like at Biscayne?
The park is situated in a subtropical climate, which ensures sunshine year-round. Winters are normally dry and mild, with occasional fronts bringing wind and little rain.
Source: Weather & climate
Follow this park
- Alerts feed (RSS)
- Every active Park Service alert for this unit, one item each, rebuilt with the nightly data refresh.
- Add dates to your calendar (.ics file)
- Fee-free entrance days that apply here and each published hours exception, as all-day events.
