Things to Do in The Villages

Clear water trickles through the stream at Otter Springs Park & Campground, sourced from the naturally formed Otter Springs that flows at an average temperature of 72 degrees. The cool, clear water continues to flow into the nearby Suwannee River, which fills with canoes and kayaks when conditions are favorable. Many of those explorers make their basecamp on the park’s 636-acre property, where tent campsites provide outdoor respite and more than 100 RV sites supply electricity, water, and sewer systems. The campground also houses air-conditioned cabins equipped with kitchens, bathrooms, and private front porches with rocking chairs for enjoying a cool evening or rocking a cranky parent to sleep. No matter their lodging, campers can stage feasts at a picnic area, clean up at bath and shower facilities, and decamp to a lodge with a dance floor that can accommodate 150 to 200 guests for events such as weddings, retreats, and family reunions. Conveniently located near restaurants, groceries, and convenience stores, Otter Springs Park & Campground is a short drive away from Gainesville’s thriving collegiate atmosphere.

With an inventory of canoes and kayaks—as well as a choice launch point on the banks of the Santa Fe River – Santa Fe Canoe Outpost is a starting point for a wide range of aquatic daytrips. There are adventures of varying length, from the 7-mile downriver trip to Rum Island, to multi-day canoe-camping trips to their furthest destination, 39 miles away.

Under the tutelage of certified scuba instructors, pupils at the family-owned Scuba Monkey Dive Center explore underwater worlds during PADI, open-water, nitrox, and advanced courses. The center's regular dive trips gather together trained divers on jaunts to Venice Beach and Troy Springs, where they get up close with aquatic inhabitants and discarded pet rocks. At the shop, divers can stock up on brand-name equipment for sale and rent, refill tanks with nitrox and air, or hand over broken equipment to ace technicians, who swiftly identify and correct any problems.

Phobooth's team knows photography—its work has been cited in the New York Times, Wired, and Newsweek. So, when staff members set out to develop their photo booth, they upheld high standards, demanding that the booth produce magazine-quality images. Today, they transport their photo booths across the entire state of Florida with no travel fees. After setting up the fully automatic photo booth at parties or corporate events, they welcome guests to pop in and strum fluffy pink guitars while wrapping their friends in feathery boas. The prop box also includes items such as old-fashioned hats or oversize sunglasses, and photos print using an ink that's designed to last the shelf life of mayonnaise—100 years. Phobooth offers three packages: basic, which comes with a disc of all pictures taken; plus, which adds social-networking options; and premium, which includes custom velvet backdrops and screen graphics. A photo-booth attendant delivers and sets up each package and stands by throughout the event.