Welcome to Gainesville!

Discover Gainesville's shopping, sports, nightlife and other fun opportunities. Take a hot air balloon ride, catch a round of golf on one of the area courses, tour the Santa Fe Community College zoo, see the University of Florida football team play, or learn how to travel to and from Gainesville! Gainesville is just a short drive from both the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean, offering a wealth of fun and opportunity to get the most from Florida's tourism industry. Additionally, the Gainesville area offers unique opportunities to visit and interact with natural, historical, and entertaining areas of Florida. Learn all about Gainesville's attractions, including city parks, area freshwater activities, nature trails, and other sites of interest within short driving distance from Gainesville.

Some of the top choices for visitors around the city include:

Fred Bear Museum
4600 Southwest Forty-First Boulevard, Gainesville, FL 32608
352-376-2327, 800-874-2327
There is perhaps no one who did more to popularize archery and bow hunting in the United States than Fred Bear. Born in 1902, Bear didn't become interested in bowhunting until the late 1920's, when he saw the film Alaskan Adventures featuring outdoorsman Art Young, who he sought out and convinced to teach him what Young had learned about bow making. Bear first began making bows and related equipment in his basement as a hobby, eventually expanding into commercial production in 1939 and experimenting with new materials like fiberglass for bow construction.

Spa Royale
618 Northwest Sixty Street, Suite B, Gainesville, FL 32607
352-333-5800
Escape to a place where warm and friendly smiles await to serve your every need. Imagine spending a day with only one person in mind- YOU! Indulge in a soothing aromatherapy massage, unwind in our bath oasis, or simply lie back and enjoy the decadence of being ultimately pampered by our team of expert therapists.

Kanapaha Botanical Gardens
4700 Southwest Fifty-Eighth Drive, Gainesville, FL 32608
352-372-4981
For all practical purposes, naturalists and unenlightened civilians dwell on different planets. Kanapaha Botanical Gardens director Don Goodman was born a hard-wired naturalist and shares the secrets of this unique perspective in tales of a lifetime of interactions with animals and plants… from the magical boyhood incident when two snake eggs hatched in his hand to the loss of his right arm to a horrifying attack by a giant alligator.