Marion: Discover springs, nature and culture

Spring runs, green trails and diverse culture give Marion many different facets. At Silver Springs State Park, water and nature take center stage; Fort King and the Appleton Museum of Art offer other starting points for exploration. You can shape your stay around the experiences that interest you most.

Spring runs, water and trails

Silver Springs State Park lies on the Silver River in the Ocala/Marion County area and features one of Florida’s last uninhabited spring runs. The main entrance gives visitors access to boat tours, kayak rentals, hiking trails and the headsprings. If you have water activities in mind for your trip, you’ll find several options here; the hiking trails add the opportunity to spend time on foot.

The network of more than 50 sites maintained by Marion County Parks & Recreation also offers a range of ideas for enjoying the outdoors, including opportunities for boating and swimming, hiking trails and accessible play areas. Relaxed horseback rides along nature trails are also available in Ocala/Marion County. This variety can help you plan your days if you’d like to give different amounts of time to exercise, water and play areas.

The Marjorie Harris Carr Cross Florida Greenway is a 110-mile linear park with more than 300 miles of trails. These two figures give an idea of the park’s scale and its trail network. Together with horseback rides and the parks’ offerings, they provide a range of options for different interests, without requiring any one activity to define your entire stay.

Explore history and art

Fort King’s visitor facilities include a visitor center with information about the history of Fort King and Florida, as well as an archaeology center with artifacts found on site. The Fort King interpretive trail descends to Seep Spring and continues through a ravine. This connects historical and archaeological topics with a specific trail through the landscape.

The Appleton Museum of Art has a permanent collection of more than 24,000 objects. The museum also has a sculpture trail and an outdoor sculpture garden. The collection and the outdoor sculptures offer different ways to engage with art: You can combine this focus with Marion’s nature and history themes or give it a place of its own in your stay.

Regional history also has its notable episodes. The Ma Barker House is associated with the end of Ma Barker and her son Fred: both died in 1935 as a result of an FBI operation. This historical connection adds an event from the more recent past to the themes of Fort King and archaeology.

Festivals and regional traditions

The annual SpringsFest at Silver Springs State Park is dedicated to the protection and restoration of Florida’s springs and waterways. The Ocali Country Days Festival celebrates Marion County’s heritage and takes place annually on the second weekend in November; dates may vary. Activities include blacksmithing and sugarcane syrup-making demonstrations, open-hearth cooking and traditional crafts.

The Festival at Fort King typically takes place on the first weekend in December and features living history demonstrations and a historical reenactment. If a festival is important to your travel plans, check the specific event dates before you arrive. The recurring events have different focuses: SpringsFest is dedicated to the springs and waterways, while the other two festivals highlight history, heritage and crafts.

Another local specialty is The Orange Shop. It has been in operation since 1936; a wide variety of citrus fruits are grown, hand-picked, packed and sold there. The connection between growing and selling makes it a distinctive attraction alongside nature, art and history.

Choose the right focus for your stay

When looking for a vacation rental in Marion, you can first consider what you’d like to shape your days: spring runs and water activities, trails and horseback rides, art or regional history. Ocala/Marion County’s central location near major highways and Florida airports may also factor into your choice of base. A festival can provide another specific reason to visit; keep the listed time frames in mind and check the date for your travel year.

Discover more destinations: Ocala, Silver Springs, Summerfield, Citra, Ocklawaha, Dunnellon, Taylor, Putnam County.

Return to the main travel overview: Florida.