Hold onto your seats. Parrot Jungle is set to reopen this Saturday The Park has been closed for 6-weeks due to damage caused by Hurricane Wilma. An outdoor theater roof was destroyed and much of the landscaping was damaged.

Another South Florida attraction, Miami Seaquarium, is still closed because of storm damage. They are not expected it to open until next spring. I bet the folks at MiamiSeaPrison.com hope the Seaquarium stays closed for good.

If you ask me, both of these attractions are outdated. It’s too bad Miami doesn’t have more fun activities for visitors.

When people ask me what there is to do here, my first recommedation is usually Everglades National Park. The Park is just an hour away. It only costs $10 to drive-in. If you go, make sure to stop at the Royal Palm Visitors Center and walk around the alligator pit. It is a great way to see alligators in the wild. Last time I was there, we saw about 20 alligators, some of them close enough to touch. Note: during my last visit, I ran out of gas and waited two hours for AAA. I found out later Park Rangers offer free gas and roadside assistance. Silly me for not asking for help.

Just outside Everglades National Park, you can find the Coral Castle, along with many roadside tour operators offering airboat rides.

Many people don’t know about Quiet Water Park up in Deerfield Beach. The 443-acre park has a freshwater swimming beach, cable water skiing, boat rentals, and a children’s water playground. At SkiRixen, you can waterski without a boat. Popular with wakeboarders, this man-made lake has ramps for busting out wakeboard tricks.

If you enjoy go carts and video games, Boomers is fun. They also have batting cages, bumper boats, laser tag, and the largest wooden roller coaster in Florida.

For those who like to skate, ollie up to our Yellow Pages for a list of skateboard parks in South Florida.

But if you want to experience both a fun and educational family tourist attraction, take a Miami Duck Tour. The tour guides are entertaining and offer a wealth of knowledge about the City. The tour lasts over two hours. Michelle and I took our out-of-town wedding guests on a Duck Tour and we all had a great time.

Gus Moore heads up Miami Beach 411 as site administrator, where he has been helping people understand how Miami works for over a decade. See more articles by Gus >