Things to do in Naples between rounds: beaches, nature, ballgames and rainy days

The best things to do in Naples between rounds are simple: a Gulf beach, the pier at sunset, dinner on Fifth Avenue or Third Street, and a boardwalk through the mangroves or a cypress swamp. In February and March, add a spring-training game in Fort Myers. For rainy afternoons, there is Topgolf, a car museum and a handful of indoor attractions.

This guide is built for golfers and their partners: what to do on a rest day, where to go when storms stop play, and which events are worth a ticket. Places come from our extras file, pinned from OpenStreetMap on November 3, 2026. Opening days, hours and prices were not individually re-checked for November 2026, so confirm before you go, especially on the islands, which are still recovering from the 2022 and 2024 storms.

Quick facts

• Free classic: Naples Pier at 12th Ave S, the sunset spot.
• Walkable downtown: Fifth Avenue South and Third Street South, about 10 minutes apart on foot.
• Best wildlife walk: Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, about 45 minutes from downtown Naples.
• Rainy-day golf: Topgolf Fort Myers, open to 1 am on Friday and Saturday.
• Spring training: Red Sox and Twins in Fort Myers from February 19, 2027.
• Tour golf to watch: three ticketed events at Tiburon.

Things to do in Naples at a glance

Beaches near the courses

Naples' beach is the Gulf, and the best-known stretches are a short drive from the North Naples courses. Clam Pass Park is reached by a boardwalk through mangroves from Seagate Drive near Waterside Shops. Delnor-Wiggins Pass State Park, on the barrier island off 111th Avenue North, fills early on season weekends and charges a state park entry fee. Further north, Barefoot Beach Preserve at the south end of Bonita Beach is undeveloped, and Lovers Key State Park between Bonita Beach and Fort Myers Beach adds kayak trails.

On Fort Myers Beach, the pier at Times Square is still the focal point, but the island is rebuilding after Ian, so expect construction. Before a beach-heavy trip, check FWC's red tide map; its October 2026 reports showed no bloom off Lee or Collier.

Nature walks and wildlife

Southwest Florida's best non-golf days are often outdoors and early, before the afternoon heat:

• Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary: the Audubon boardwalk loop through old-growth cypress off Immokalee Road, roughly 45 minutes from downtown Naples, and the best wildlife walk on our board.
• Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve: a county boardwalk in Fort Myers, just north of Hammond Stadium; easy to pair with a Twins game.
• Lee County Manatee Park: off SR 80 east of Fort Myers, where manatees gather in cold weather. Go on a chilly winter morning.
• Koreshan State Historic Site: an 1890s settlement on the Estero River with paddling, minutes from Coconut Point.
• J.N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge: a one-way drive through mangroves on Sanibel, best for birding in winter. Check its opening days.

Spring training and ballgames

From February 19, 2027, two major league teams play in Fort Myers. JetBlue Park, the Red Sox spring home with a Fenway-style field, is on Daniels Parkway by RSW, and the Twins play at Hammond Stadium on Six Mile Cypress Parkway. Game days back up the roads around both, so tee off early and drive over after lunch. For winter nights, Hertz Arena in Estero is home to the Florida Everblades of the ECHL, a familiar outing for Canadian and Midwest snowbirds.

Golf things to do in Naples off the course

Not every golf day has to be 18 holes:

• Topgolf Fort Myers: hitting bays, food and drink at 2021 Topgolf Way by I-75. Hours per topgolf.com on November 3, 2026: Monday to Thursday 10 am to 11 pm, Friday 10 am to 1 am, Saturday 9 am to 1 am, Sunday 10 am to 11 pm. The standard rainy-afternoon fallback for a buddies group.
• PGA TOUR Superstores: one at 2135 Tamiami Trail N in Naples and one at Coconut Point in Estero.
• The Leaf at Saltleaf: a walking par-3 nine next to Saltleaf Golf Preserve in Bonita Springs, a relaxed family or warm-up nine. See the Leaf course guide.
• Watch the pros: the CME Group Tour Championship (November 19-22, 2026) and the Grant Thornton Invitational (December 11-13, 2026) on Tiburon's Gold, and the Chubb Classic (February 11-14, 2027 per ticket listings) on Tiburon's Black. All are ticketed. Our Naples golf events guide has the full calendar.

Rainy-day ideas

Summer storms usually arrive after lunch, and winter cold fronts bring the odd grey day. Indoor options from our extras file:

• Revs Institute, a collection of historic racing and sports cars east of downtown Naples. Opening days and booking rules were not verified, so check first.
• Artis-Naples, with the Baker Museum and the Naples Philharmonic's concert hall, busiest in winter.
• Naples Depot Museum, a small history museum in the old railroad depot near Tin City.
• IMAG History & Science Center and Calusa Nature Center and Planetarium in Fort Myers, both good with grandkids.
• Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum on Sanibel.
• Shopping: Waterside Shops, Coconut Point, Miromar Outlets and Gulf Coast Town Center.
• Barbara B. Mann Performing Arts Hall in Fort Myers for touring shows, and the Seminole Casino Hotel Immokalee, roughly an hour northeast of Naples.

Day trips and family days

Sanibel is about 72 minutes from downtown Naples on free-flow estimates, over a causeway with a westbound toll of $6 by transponder or $9 by plate. Combine the lighthouse beach, the refuge and a round at The Dunes, the island's best public course; our Sanibel golf guide covers both island courses.

Ave Maria, east of Naples, pairs a round at Panther Run with lunch in the town square; the course is about 55 minutes from downtown Naples.

For grandparent trips, Valencia Golf & Country Club lets juniors 15 and under play free with a paying adult; the Valencia course guide has its booking window.

Fitting it into a trip

Most groups do best with golf in the morning and one off-course plan each afternoon. Our Naples golf trip itinerary shows four days that leave room for a beach and a ballgame, and the Fort Myers buddies golf trip guide covers big-group nights out. For dinner after golf, see where to eat in Naples. If you are comparing towns, our things to do in Palm Springs guide covers the desert.

Plan it on the map

Open the Naples golf map to see every course and stay with drive times from downtown Naples, so you can match rest-day plans to your base. The $30 plan builds the trip day by day, leaving afternoons open for the beach, the ballpark or Topgolf.