Greater Fort Lauderdale: Enjoy Fitness and Fun in the Sun All Year Long
Bountiful parks, beautiful waterways and pristine beaches bring plenty of great outdoor activities in Fort Lauderdale and its surrounding communities.
Spending time outside is considered a key component of maintaining a healthy, active lifestyle. That can be difficult to do in many places, as extreme temperatures or the lack of easily accessible natural settings often keep people confined indoors.
Such is not the case in Greater Fort Lauderdale, where the combination of consistently delightful weather (an average median temperature of 76 degrees), 23 miles of beaches and a wide array of parks and natural areas provide plenty of opportunities for fun (and exercise) in the sun.
“You can leave your office for an hour and walk along the beach and dip your toes in the water or go to a park and experience the beauty of the area, says Stacy Ritter, president and CEO of the Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau. “It provides a sense of peace and relaxation, even in the middle of a workday.”
In This Article
Parks Aplenty
While the surf and sand might be the top draw, outdoor recreation extends well beyond the beach through Broward County’s extensive parks system, with a total of more than 50 regional parks, neighborhood parks and natural areas across approximately 6,500 acres.
“From the seagrass to the sawgrass, our parks cover the entire county,” says Dan West, Broward County Parks & Recreation Division director. “No matter where you are in Broward County, there is a park just a few minutes away.”
Among the local favorites are Boulevard Gardens Community Center, Dillard Green Space, Everglades Holiday Park, Franklin Park, Lafayette Hart Park, Lewis-Chisom Park, Reverend Samuel Delevoe Memorial Park, and Roosevelt Gardens Park.
These areas provide access to all sorts of outdoor recreation activities, including water parks, campgrounds, a target range, a stadium, a skate park, an observatory, mountain bike trails, an educational farm with stables and a velodrome.
“People love being in nature, and for our residents, that’s right out their front door,” West says. “The most important components to our regional parks are easy access and being within walking or biking distance. We have a lot of parks like that, with trails and pathways that are very accessible for walkers, hikers and bikers.”
Wonderful Waterways
In addition to the obvious presence of the Atlantic Ocean, Greater Fort Lauderdale also offers recreational opportunities along the Intracoastal Waterway and farther inland on the rivers and streams closer to the Everglades.
“The water culture surrounds us, whether you live along the ocean or in the western part of the county,” Ritter says. “You can smell the ocean from a mile away. You can see water from almost anywhere you are in the county. Everyone here enjoys some aspect of the water culture.”
Kate Goldman is one of those people. A 20-year resident of Greater Fort Lauderdale, Goldman took up paddleboarding seven years ago and spends as much time as possible enjoying the area’s water recreation.
“There’s so much to do related to water activities,” Goldman says. “And it’s not just the ocean, but also all the waterways. They’re phenomenal – very safe, clean and accessible. There’s a big paddleboard community here. You can pretty much launch your paddleboard from any location along any of the waterways, including the intracostal. All my circle of friends and colleagues take advantage of being outdoors as much as we can.”
Bountiful and Beautiful Beaches
Then there are the beaches, which unquestionably are the main attraction in Greater Fort Lauderdale. There is a sandy scene fit for nearly every age and activity, from famous Fort Lauderdale Beach with its younger crowd, to the quieter vibe of Deerfield Beach, to snorkeling off Pompano Beach, to the 2.2-mile pedestrian promenade along Hollywood Beach.
“My kids were raised here in shorts and flip-flops,” Ritter says. “Greater Fort Lauderdale is a place where you can be outdoors year-round, and you want to be.”
Improvements on the Way
While nature supplies the sun, sand and surf, officials throughout Greater Fort Lauderdale are providing new sports and entertainment venues and facilities to give area residents even more ways to stay active and healthy as well as connect with other members of the community.
The region’s balmy temperatures don’t prevent cold-weather fun, thanks to the creation of the Baptist Health IcePlex. The new facility is part of the revitalization of the historic War Memorial Auditorium, which was built in 1950 in Fort Lauderdale’s 93-acre Holiday Park.
The IcePlex features two NHL-regulation-size ice rinks. In addition to community use (public skating, youth and adult hockey leagues, figure skating programs), the rinks will also be utilized by the NHL’s Florida Panthers as a practice facility, complete with stadium seating so fans can watch. The 144,000-square-foot venue will eventually include spaces for dining, concerts and community programs.
Meanwhile, Pompano Beach is transforming a former Elks Club site into a $12 million Youth Sports Complex. There are four lighted sports fields spread out across the 10-acre site – two with natural grass and two with artificial turf – that can be used for soccer, flag football, lacrosse and other sports.
The complex includes a 4,000-square-foot clubhouse for offices, equipment storage, concessions and restrooms. There also is an outdoor porch area where spectators and athletes can gather as well as an open space with a soccer kick wall.
Yes, There’s Even Pickleball
Add this to your list of fun outdoor activities in Fort Lauderdale: Pickleball. According to a report by the Sports & Fitness Industry Association, pickleball has been the fastest-growing sport in the country each of the past three years, with the number of participants nearly doubling last year to approximately 9 million.
Greater Fort Lauderdale is responding by adding new pickleball courts. Coral Springs, for example, is creating eight new courts in Riverside Park, increasing the city’s total to 26. Overall, there are nearly 100 courts throughout the Fort Lauderdale metropolitan area.
“I’ve been playing pickleball for more than eight years, and the growth of the sport has gone to places I never imagined,” says professional pickleball player Steve Kennedy, who founded the South Florida Pickleball Academy in Davie. “They’re adding courts everywhere to try to meet the demand.”
Kennedy is involved in one of the biggest pickleball projects in the region, a new facility at Snyder Park in Fort Lauderdale that will include more than 40 courts.
“The City of Fort Lauderdale has really been behind pickleball,” Kennedy says. “The entire area has stepped forward and made pickleball a priority through the parks system.
Get to Know Greater Fort Lauderdale
Want to learn more about living and working in Fort Lauderdale, FL? Check out the latest edition of Livability Greater Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
