Getting Around

Florida is surprisingly compact, and easy to get around by car: crossing between the east and west coasts takes a couple of hours, and one of the longest trips - between the western extremity of the Panhandle and Miami - can be done in a day. Public transportation , on the other hand, requires adroit advance planning. Greyhound buses link all major towns and cities, with both Miami and Orlando well served; but many rural areas and some of the most enjoyable sections of the coast are not covered.

Florida's railroads were built to service boomtowns in the Twenties, and consequently some rural nooks are well-linked. Amtrak runs west from Jacksonville via New Orleans all the way to LA, while connections with New York are good. However, in some areas Amtrak buses have replaced the trains; these can be very expensive, so check in advance. Passengers with cars can use the daily Auto Train from Lorton, Virginia (just south of Washington, DC), to Sanford, north of Orlando. The southeast coast boasts an elevated TriRail system that ferries commuters between Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Boca Raton and Palm Beach.

Although inadvisable in the cities, cycling is a great way to see large parts of Florida - miles of cycle paths follow the coast, and long-distance bike trails cross the state's interior. Forget hitching : always dangerous (especially for women), it's illegal in Miami (where you'd be lucky to live to regret it) and on the outskirts of many other cities.