Outdoors can beat mall crawl
It’s a jungle out there — and we’re not just talking about the mall on Black Friday.
Growing numbers of people are choosing to spend the day after Thanksgiving in the great outdoors.
“Black Friday for us is traditionally a very busy day,” said Rick Doucette, director of sales at Everglades Holiday Park, where the parking lots and airboats were full Friday.
“It’s actually amazing to me how many people come out here and tell me, ‘Hey, I live five minutes away and I’ve been here 35 years and I’ve never even been to the Everglades,’” said Tim Schwartzman, general manager at Sawgrass Recreation Park.
Visitors can take airboat tours of the Everglades to see alligators, turtles, fish and birds native to the area; they can get up close with the gators and other reptiles during show-and-tell sessions.
Andy Franchi and Pia Giannetti, visiting from Argentina, said there’s a certain tranquillity in nature that is somewhat scarce on Black Friday.
“Since the day was so nice we figured there’s no way we’re spending it in a shopping mall,” Franchi said.
Thanksgiving is also the unofficial start of the winter tourism season in South Florida, so visitors are joining the crowds going back to nature.
“We decided to come here instead of going shopping,” said Elaine Housen, visit- ing from London.
Each park was expecting and 2,000 visitors Friday.
At Gumbo Limbo Nature Center in Boca Raton, park ranger Mike Traner cruised through the packed parking lot on a golf cart. He expected about 900 people to visit the park Friday.
“They all love it,” Traner said during one of the few breaks he got in the afternoon. “If you come to Boca, this is the place to come to.”
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“There’s a lot of research that shows that what really makes you happy is to spend money on experiences, not on products,” he said. “So I’d rather spend my money on kitesurfing.”
Staff writers Barbara Corbellini and Skyler Swisher contributed to port.
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wkroustan@tribpub.com or 954-356-4303