3 Best Sights in Homestead, The Everglades

South Florida locals count down the days until the seasonal opening (from November to April) of this Homestead bakery and U-pick strawberry farm, owned and operated by the Knaus family since 1956. Line up early for a box of legendary, gooey cinnamon rolls and a milkshake, and walk it off by picking a bag of fresh strawberries and tomatoes to take home.  The Farm Store is cash only.

Driven by unrequited love, Latvian immigrant Ed Leedskalnin (1887–1951) fashioned this attraction along Dixie Highway in the early 1900s out of massive slabs of coral rock, a feat he likened to building the pyramids. You can learn how he populated this fantasy world on his property with an imaginary wife and three children, studied astronomy, and created a simple home and elaborate courtyard without formal engineering education and with mostly handmade tools. Highlights of this National Register of Historic Places site, originally named Rock Gate, include a working sundial, a banquet table shaped like Florida, and other quirky coral sculptures. Fun fact: Billy Idol wrote, recorded, and shot the video for his song “Sweet Sixteen” on the grounds of Coral Castle as a tribute to Ed. Candidly, among locals, it's known as a tourist trap.

Homestead's tropical bounty is transformed into wine at this flourishing enterprise that started producing wines with lychee, mango, guava, and other local fruits as a way to eliminate waste from family groves each year. Over the course of a few decades, the winery expanded to include a tasting room, a full-service restaurant, and a lush plaza picnic area landscaped in coral rock, tropical plants, and waterfalls. It's also home to popular beer brand Miami Brewing Company.