If you’re looking to visit an alligator farm in Florida, you have a number of farms and parks in the state to choose from.
Some of these farms only have American alligators while others have a wide variety of breeds. In addition, many of these farms also have other animals, such as snakes, birds and other creatures.
A few of these farms and parks even let you hold a baby alligator and take a photo with it. Most of the farms charge extra for this but a few offer it for free with the price of admission.
The following is a list of alligator farms in Florida:
St. Augustine Alligator Farm:
Address: 999 Anastasia Blvd, St. Augustine, FL
Website: www.alligatorfarm.com
Established in 1893, the St. Augustine Alligator Farm is the oldest private zoo and one of the oldest attractions in Florida.
This seven-acre park is also the only zoo in the world that displays all 23 crocodilian species, including:
- Albino alligators
- African slender-snouted crocodile
- American alligator
- American crocodile
- Black caiman
- Broad-nosed caiman
- Chinese alligator
- Cuban crocodile
- Dwarf caiman
- Dwarf crocodile
- Johnson’s crocodile
- Morelet’s crocodile
- Mugger crocodile
- New Guinea crocodile
- Nile crocodile
- Orinoco crocodile
- Philippine crocodile
- Saltwater crocodile
- Siamese crocodile
- Smooth-fronted caiman
- Spectacled caiman
The farm also features a zip line where you can zip right over the alligator lagoon and has a special exhibit for its largest crocodile, Maximo, who is a 1,200 pound saltwater crocodile as well as a special exhibit for its rare albino alligators.
Some other special alligators at the park include Chance the Snapper, an American alligator that became famous after it had been captured in the Humboldt Park lagoon in Chicago, Illinois in 2019 and Scajaquada Jack, a Caiman alligator who gained fame after he was captured by animal control in Scajaquada Creek in Buffalo, New York in 2001.
In addition to the alligators, the farm also features birds, reptiles, Komodo dragons, lemurs, sloths and other animals.
If you want to visit the St. Augustine Alligator Farm and would like to save money on tickets, check out the following article on St. Augustine Alligator Farm discount tickets.
Gatorland:
Address: 14501 S Orange Blossom Trl, Orlando, FL
Website: www.gatorland.com
Established in 1949, Gatorland is a 110-acre theme park and wildlife preserve in Orlando.
The park features over 2,000 American alligators and also has the largest collection of rare white alligators, also known as leucistic alligators, in its White Gator Swamp and over 60 baby alligators in its Baby Gator Marsh.
The park also has a number of American crocodiles including a special crocodile named Bonecrusher, who weighs in at about 1,080 pounds.
In addition to the alligators and crocodiles, the park also has birds, wild cats, snakes, tortoises and zebras.
If you would like to visit Gatorland and want to save money on tickets, check out this article on Gatorland discount tickets.
Everglades Alligator Farm:
Address: 40351 Southwest 192nd Avenue Homestead, FL
Website: everglades.com
Established in 1985, the Everglades Alligator Farm is South Florida’s oldest alligator farm and is located near the entrance to the Everglades National Park.
The farm features over 2,000 alligators and is the only working alligator farm in South Florida that doesn’t kill or sell its alligators for hides or meat. The farm sells the alligators eggs it breeds to other alligator farms around the state.
The park also features an alligator show, alligator feeding demonstrations and an airboat tour where you can see wild alligators and other animals.
At the end of the alligator show, visitors have the opportunity to hold a baby alligator and take a photo with it.
Everglades Holiday Park:
Address: 21940 Griffin Road, Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Website: www.evergladesholidaypark.com
Established in 1982, the Everglades Holiday Park is an alligator park in South Florida.
The park features a live alligator presentation with the Gator Boys Alligator Rescue Team in the park’s Gator Pit and a 60-minute narrated airboat tour in the Everglades where you have the chance to see wild alligators.
The Gator Boy Rescue live shows are approximately 15 – 25 minutes long and includes live demonstrations, tricks and stunts as well as some interesting facts about the alligators in the Everglades. At the end of the live presentation, visitors can hold a baby alligator and take a photo with it.
Gatorama:
Address: 10665 N. US Hwy 27, Palmdale FL
Website: www.gatorama.com
Established in 1957, Gatorama is an alligator park in Palmdale, FL.
The park has a wide variety of alligators and crocodiles including Orinoco crocodiles, Cuban crocodiles and Saltwater crocodiles as well as an elderly alligator named Grandpa, who first came to the park in the late 1950s and is believed to be the oldest alligator in captivity
The park features live alligator and crocodile feed shows, a baby gator pond, large croc and gator ponds and a nuisance alligator pod where wild alligators that have been removed from unsuitable locations by Florida Fish and Wildlife are held until they acclimate to the park.
In addition to alligators and crocodiles, the park also has a number of other types of animals such as African spur tortoises, reptiles, burmese pythons, Kinkajous, bobcats, Florida panthers and snapping turtles.
Gator Beach:
Address: 20001 Emerald Coast Pkwy, Destin, FL
Website: www.gatorbeach.com
Located at Fudpucker’s Restaurant, Gator Beach is an alligator farm in Destin, FL that is free to visit with a purchase at the restaurant.
The park has over 100 alligators, making it the largest alligator park on the Emerald Coast of Florida. Visitors can even feed the alligators living in the large main pond area of the park with specially formulated gator food sold at the park.
The park features free live gator shows and a Crocodilia Discovery Zone with numerous exhibits including a rare albino alligator exhibit and a baby alligator exhibit.
Alligator & Wildlife Discovery Center:
Address: 12973 Village Blvd. Suites A-J, Madeira Beach, FL
Website: kissagator.com
Established in 2011, the Alligator & Wildlife Discovery Center is an exotic pet rescue center whose goal is to provide humane, professional care for pet surrenders and orphaned native wildlife that cannot be safely returned to the wild.
The 10,000-square-foot center has more than 250 animals including alligators, lizards, amphibians, small mammals, turtles and tortoises, fresh and saltwater marine life.
The center features hands-on exhibits where you can interact with these animals one-on-one. These exhibits include an alligator room, an aquarium room, a lizard room, a sloth room and a mammal room.
Croc Encounters:
Address: 8703 Bowles Road, Tampa, FL
Website: www.crocencounters.com
Established in 2005, Croc Encounters is a family-run alligator park in Tampa, FL.
The park has various types of crocodilians, including American alligators, American crocodiles, Broad-snouted Caiman, Cuban crocodile, Morelet’s crocodile and Nile crocodiles.
In addition, the park also has various of other types of animals such as snakes, lizards, tortoises, turtles and amphibians.
The park offers 1.5 to 2 hour guided tours of its park which includes an up-close look at the alligators, crocodiles and other animals in the park, feeding demos and feeding opportunities, photo opportunities and some hands-on activities.
Orange Hill Gator Farm:
Address: 3172 Orange Hill Road, Chipley, FL
Website: www.orangehillgators.com
Established over 20 years ago, Orange Hill Gator Farm is an alligator farm near Panama City Beach.
The farm has close to 200 American alligators, including baby alligators, but also has a number of other animals as well including lizards, turtles, pygmy goats, tortoises, rabbits, potbelly pigs and even coyotes.
This two-acre farm has a large breeding pond where some of its adult alligators live and breed and it also has a number of nuisance alligators, which are wild alligators that have been deemed a public nuisance and removed by Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission after turning up in people’s swimming pools, garages and etc.
The farm offers 2 to 2.5 hour long private guided tours of the alligator farm and also has a petting zoo where you can interactive with some of the animals.
Wooten’s Animal Sanctuary & Alligator Park:
Address: 32330 Tamiami Trail East, Ochopee, FL 34141
Website: www.wootenseverglades.com
Wooten’s Animal Sanctuary and Alligator Park is an animal sanctuary and alligator park in Ochopee.
The park is home to over 100 American alligators, including baby alligators, as well as a number of other animals, such as tigers, lions, turtles and otters.
The park offers tours of its animal sanctuary, live alligator shows as well as airboat tours and swamp buggy rides of the local swamps.
Wild Florida:
Address: 3301 Lake Cypress Rd, Kenansville, FL
Website: wildfloridairboats.com
Established in 2010, Wild Florida is a drive-thru safari park that also features an alligator park, airboat rides and live exotic animal shows.
The gator park features over 200 native and exotic animals, including American alligators and two rare albino alligators, named Snowflake and Blizzard.
The park also offers live alligator shows and, for an extra fee, a Gator Encounter where visitors can feed alligators and an Albino Alligator Training Encounter, which visitors can interact with the park’s two albino alligators.
Sources:
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Villegas, Brianda. “Wildlife center in Madeira Beach rescues hundreds of native, exotic animals.” WFLA, 2 Mar. 2022, wfla.com/news/around-town/wildlife-center-in-madeira-beach-rescues-hundreds-of-native-exotic-animals/
Estrada, Sheila Mullane. “‘More than a sideshow’: Alligator & Wildlife Discovery Center celebrates 10 years, looks ahead.” 9 Dec. 2021, tbnweekly.com/beach_beacon/article_25cced36-590c-11ec-bdf7-a7effa971e56.html
Belcher, Charley. “Croc Encounters has been home to unwanted reptiles for 15 years.” Fox 13, 5 Aug. 2020, fox13news.com/news/croc-encounters-has-been-home-to-unwanted-reptiles-for-15-years
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Kummer, Lauren. “11 Places to see alligators in Southwest Florida.” Naples Daily News, 5 April. 2017, naplesnews.com/story/life/2017/04/05/11-places-see-alligators-southwest-florida/99773542/
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