Best time to go
The station operates year-round, but hours vary by season. Check current gate hours before you set off so you know when the entrance is operating.
Overview
About Shark Valley Entrance Station
Why stop
- Park passes and ranger information are available at the entrance.
Map
Where it is
Loading the Everglades map
Full mapPlan your stop
Before you go
Best time to go
4 active Everglades alerts
- CautionRoadwork delays on U.S. 41/Tamiami TrailMentions Tamiami Trail, referenced in this guideOngoing roadwork along the park’s northern boundary on U.S. Highway 41/Tamiami Trail may cause delays of up to 15 minutes.Official details
- ClosureEast Everglades Day Use Area closedThe East Everglades Day Use Area is closed to all public use from SW 168 Street westbound to SW 237 Avenue, including the entire roadway of SW 237 Avenue.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Everglades Tour Guide
Your drive to Shark Valley Entrance Station, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Everglades National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Everglades audio tourRecorded for this place
Shark Valley: Choose the Tram or a Bike0:00 / 0:34
“You're coming up on the Shark Valley entrance, where private cars stay at the parking lot.”
Plays as you drive up to Shark Valley Entrance Station in the Parkwolf Everglades Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Eight Pumas from Texas
- An Alligator Mother Listens
- When Sea Breezes Build Storms
- The Egret That Stirs Its Supper
- 62 audio storiesacross Everglades’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Mountain Lion, West Indian Manatee, Alligator, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 19 trails, 33 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Guide
More about Shark Valley Entrance Station
The entrance boothShark Valley Entrance Station is the fee gate for Everglades National Park's Shark Valley…
Shark Valley Entrance Station is the fee gate for Everglades National Park's Shark Valley District, on U.S. 41, also called Tamiami Trail. Staff sell park passes here. The booth is separate from the nearby Shark Valley Visitor Center, so this is a quick arrival stop rather than the visitor center itself.
A practical stopStop here if you need to buy a pass or have an arrival question.
Stop here if you need to buy a pass or have an arrival question. The station lists staff, maps, a park newspaper, an information kiosk and a first-aid kit. If your pass is already sorted, there's little to plan around beyond getting through the gate.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Everglades
15 sightingsMountain LionMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
1,429 sightingsWest Indian ManateeMost seen around 9 AMSighting map
4,397 sightingsAlligatorMost seen around 5 PMSighting map
1,672 sightingsCrocodileMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
42 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
15 sightingsBobcatMost seen around 7 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Everglades. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
