The Billie Swamp Safari Park: Off the Beaten Path in Florida

Luckily, I did some quick checking on the Internet before we left. The Everglades National Park offered buggy tours but no airboat tours, while commercial services in and around the park offered airboat tours at exorbitant prices and would take a good part of the day. Driving distances were also a factor – we wanted to do this in one day, and the Billie Swamp Safari Park was about the shortest drive possible. After weighing all options, I decided we would try a visit to the Billie Swamp Safari on the Big Cypress Seminole Reservation if the opportunity arose – and so it did!

The Big Cypress Seminole Reservation is located just above the northern boundaries of the U.S. Everglades National Park, and below Lake Okeechobee. The best way to get there is to take I-75 to Exit 49, and then drive roughly 19 miles along marked county roads. We got slightly lost, but luckily had the number of the park with us, and they were very helpful in directing us back on track! There are directions from multiple locations on their site. The website itself is very cool – the roaring bear can get to you after awhile, but there's lots of nice graphics and well organized information, including their restaurant menu, photos of the activities, and discount coupons.

From the Sarasota area, it takes roughly three hours to get there. The car drive was essentially uninspiring and a bit worrisome – you find yourself in remote areas with long stretches of roads, surrounded by alternating open fields and orange groves, with occasional plumes of smoke rising from distant orange processing plants. However, once we arrived all was well! Just before you get to Billie Swamp Safari, you will pass the Seminole Native American museum, Ah-Tah-Thi-Ki Museum. Unfortunately, we did not budget time for the museum, but it looked very impressive on the outside and will be on our list of things to get back to at a future travel date.

An alligator beneath the swampy water

PassPorter's Walt Disney World 2013 Guidebook Available for 15%-35% Off! Purchase includes a free Online Edition!

The Billie Swamp Safari grounds are very attractive and comfortably laid out – a first impression is a cross between Disney's Wilderness Lodge and Adventure Land in the Magic Kingdom. The rustic log buildings and the tropical vegetation dotted with caged birds and small creatures along a path winding between them was quite impressive! Adjacent to the parking lot is the visitor building and gift shop. You can purchase separate admission for the airboat tours, eco-buggy tours, and critter shows. Since we wanted to stick to the "untamed" parts of the Everglades, we purchased tickets for the airboat and eco-buggy tours, skipping the shows. Before our tours we needed to refuel, so we headed to the Swamp Water Café where you can get breakfast or lunch. The menu offered traditional burgers and sandwiches – but we opted for a Seminole alternative that was available – Native fry bread filled with ground beef or tuna. We also decided to try the "gator nuggets" (skipping the frog legs and catfish), which were kind of the texture of chewy mussels in fried dough! The Seminoles also produce their own delicious orange juice, which can be purchased at the Café.

Following our lunch break, we headed over to the Airboat Dock and waited a short time before boarding a 12-person airboat (three rows of four). There was just one other family with us, so our two girls and theirs sat in the front row, with each pair of parents in the other two rows. Earplugs are provided and yes, you need them! The boats are very loud, but incredibly smooth and fast. Our skipper could only narrate when the boat was stopped or idling, but it didn't matter too much – it was a beautiful panoramic view of the Florida Everglades! We cruised through open areas as well as waterways canopied by trees. We saw lots of gators, a few different types of birds, and even a raccoon, standing on his hind legs, following our boat a short distance!

Apparently, because of the cold weather, the gators were out basking along the shores. Our skipper informed us that when they are cold, they don't eat, so we didn't feel quite as nervous, especially as our boat was at that moment directly approaching a gator with just his eyes visible above the water, looking right at us. The skipper just drove right over him which gave the girls a shock! As novice spotters, our skipper congratulated us several times when we excitedly pointed to "gator rocks" – that is, rocks that you think are gators.

After the airboat tour, we headed towards the loading area for the eco-buggies. Giant wheels and open sides make this a fun way to get around. We were there in what was technically the dry season, so water levels were low and we saw marks on trees that indicated just how high it could get in the rainy season – the reason for the mega wheels! The tour takes you around a large area of the reservation, through open fields where you can see water buffalo, American bison, ostriches, and wild pigs. We headed into the forested areas where the stillness and shadows easily lead you to imagine that a stalking panther or a deadly, slithering snake can't be too far away. We saw neither that day, but apparently they are out there!

Our guide used a mix of humor and history that was entertaining and informative. We learned about the fact that this area became home to the Seminoles as they and other Native groups were being forced further and further south in a time known as that of the Indian Removals. The Everglades became a refuge for the Native Americans who would rather remain free in the east than be moved onto reservations in the west as many others were forced to in the first half of the 19th century.

It was also interesting to note how the palm tree (of which we also learned there are hundreds of varieties) was used for everything from food, to medicine, to clothing, transport, shelter, and toys for children. And we discovered that the little thatched structures we had observed earlier along our ride there, in fields and in front of houses, were in fact replicas of the original "chickee" which means "house" in Seminole. The structures are two stories high and made of cypress logs and palmetto thatch. They date back to the period of Indian Removal and appear to be a symbol of cultural pride for the Seminole people.

After our buggy tour, we took a quick walk along the marked trails. The first was a short boardwalk trail, leading into a section of the forested swamp. The second was a circular path along an area called the Seminole Camping Village, where about a dozen or more chickees are situated, and that are actually available to rent for the adventurous camper. You can stay overnight in one of these structures and take advantage of the night tours that are offered as part of the camping experience. Finally, there was an area where you could see the more dangerous animals of the Everglades, safely ensconced in enclosures: the black bear and Florida panther!

It was a full day and a fun day – a worthwhile trip off the beaten beach path. We even saw a bit of sun that day in the Billie Swamp Safari! If you want more information on the history and culture of the Seminole Native Americans, go to: http://www.semtribe.com/

About the Author: Heidi Bamford previously contributed to PassPorter News with articles on Hersheypark and the Disney Film Festival. She lives with her family in upstate New York.

Related Links:
 
Serendipity 3 in New York City - A Dining Review last updated 12/29/2008
Hong Kong Disneyland Celebrates - A New Year In A New Disney Park last updated 12/18/2008
Valencia, Spain - Travel Tips last updated 11/27/2008
Bellagio of Las Vegas - Simply Bellissimo! last updated 1/08/2009
Hever Castle - Kent, England last updated 1/15/2009

---

Reader Comments:

You drove by many family owned airboat/swamp buggy rides that are very good. You referred to them as commercial, but none is more commercial than the Seminole rides. You missed the opportunity to partake of the locally, family owned rides. As opposed to the corporate Seminole rides/casinos which are a multimillion dollar business.

     bunnykoko on March 19, 2010 @ 9:46 am

Thank you Heidi for your kind words - we truly appreciate it!!!!

Cindy Malin
Billie Swamp Safari

     Billie Swamp Safari on March 21, 2010 @ 5:17 pm

Sounds like a lot of fun! Great article

     home4us123 on March 26, 2010 @ 2:42 pm

bunnykoko;3192499 >You drove by many family owned airboat/swamp buggy rides that are very good. You referred to them as commercial, but none is more commercial than the Seminole rides. You missed the opportunity to partake of the locally, family owned rides. As opposed to the corporate Seminole rides/casinos which are a multimillion dollar business.

To clarify, my comment was not meant to imply that the Billie Swamp Safari is not a good experience. I was merely commenting on your thoughts regarding the rides that you bypassed because you thought they were too commercial. SWFlorida is tourist driven. Those other rides are examples of people who have developed a business to support their families based on the resources available, just as the Seminoles have. As a resident of SWFl, not associated with any of the other buggy/swampboat rides, I was just attempting to point out that the other rides are good experiences, too. You and your article, which I enjoyed reading, have the power to affect the decisions of others.

     bunnykoko on March 27, 2010 @ 7:23 am

View all 4 comments in forum thread

So what do you think? Click here to share your comments, feedback, and experiences on this article and topic!

(Note: You must be a member of our PassPorter Message Board Community to leave comments. Join today for free!)

---

Updated 3/18/2010 - Article #442 

Read additional articles from PassPorter.com

Subscribe to our free e-mail newsletter, PassPorter News, published for more than 55,000 opt-in subscribers worldwide. As an added bonus for subscribing, you will receive a 20% discount coupon for the PassPorter Store -- no catch! E-mail Address: First Name: E-mail Format: -Text/Don't Know   -HTML    We respect your privacy and never sell or rent our subscriber list. Subscribing will not result in more spam! We guarantee it.

Copyright 1999-2012
by PassPorter Travel Press, an imprint of MediaMarx, Inc.