
Plus, there’s a wine bar inside if you just want to sip and take in the ambience.įor something a little less formal, head a couple of blocks north to BubbaQues BBQ, also set in an old house on N. The menu is finely prepared Southern comfort food - think bourbon-glazed pork chops and fresh-caught grouper. where you can eat either in the pine-wood dining room, airy courtyard, or wraparound porch. The most-renowned restaurant in town is Vintage on 5th, which like nearly all of the best restaurants here is in wonderfully walkable downtown. Though nobody’s confusing Crystal River with a dining destination, it does have enough good restaurants to fill a few days and won’t leave you with nothing to eat but drive-thru. Perhaps swimming with manatees has inspired you to become your best sea cow self. You probably only need an afternoon to explore Inverness, but it’s a nice change of pace if you want to see more of the area. Or reward yourself with a post-bike-ride beer at Nine State Brewery, where Massachusetts transplants offer a dozen different beers on tap. You’ll also find the best pizza in Citrus County at Motor City Pasta Company, along with an impressive collection of wine.
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Along Courthouse Square, you’ll find the Valerie Theatre, an old Art Deco movie house that now showcases everything from dance companies to local bands. Surrounding the courthouse you’ll find one of the more under-appreciated historic downtowns in the state, with a number of buildings preserved from the early 20th century. Its most prominent feature is the Old Courthouse, the centerpiece of downtown that was also the filming locale of Elvis Presley’s Follow that Dream. If you do opt to bike the Withlacoochee Trail, make a day of it and spend some time in the Citrus County seat of Inverness.
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To get the full Florida experience, make a quick stop at Ferris Groves in Floral City, an orange juice outpost that makes for perfect in-ride refreshment. Rent a bike here, then explore the 46-mile Rails-to-Trails trail, biking under miles of tree canopy, through charming little towns, and past pristine lakes. If you’re looking for a bit of a longer ride, drive about 20 minutes to Inverness, where David’s World Cycle sits right on the edge of the Withlacoochee Trail. The Crystal River Preserve has an easy, seven-mile loop taking you through all of that, and the Nature Coast State Trail and Florida Greenway are both accessible not far from downtown. North Central Florida is full of trials with rolling hills that move through oaks, magnolias, and palmettos, where herons glide across mirror-still lakes and Spanish moss drips to the ground. Though Florida gets plenty of acclaim for its white sandy beaches, few people outside the state are aware of the magical wilderness that lies just a little bit inland. And might even help you catch your dinner. Deep sea fishing isn’t as big here as in other Gulf Coast destinations, but Florida Fishing Adventures can still show you a pretty fantastic day on the water. The rivers leading into town are also fantastic spots for shallow flats fishing, as they all lead out to the Gulf of Mexico and are filled with redfish, sea trout, snook, and tarpon. Manatees also hang out in here from time to time, but even if they don’t, it’s a calming place to unwind during your vacation.

If the padding is more work than you’d planned to put in, Hunter Springs Park is a pleasant waterfront green space with a small beach and roped-off swimming area.
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Three Sisters usually charges a $20 entrance fee if you arrive by land but is free to swim through if you kayak there. Dock up there and swim into the springs where manatees often congregate on cold days, and you can snorkel with far fewer people than you would in the bay. You can take the kayaks or paddleboards over to Three Sister Springs, about a 30-40 minute paddle. The coolest thing to rent is the clear plastic kayak, which allows you to look down into the water in case a manatee decides to swim under you. One of the best things about this town is that it’s completely walkable, and only a few blocks from downtown you’ll find Hunter Springs Kayaks, where you can rent any number of watercraft to get back out into the Bay. That’s because all these activities offer even more ways to see manatees, or at the very least check out some of the wilderness that surrounds Crystal River. While swimming with manatees, you may have noticed kayaks, paddleboards, and fishing boats sharing the crystal-clear waters with you.
