Things to do in Naples, Florida on a rainy day
People move to Naples for the weather, and then the first summer afternoon the sky goes black at two o’clock they call me and ask what they are supposed to do. The answer is: not much, because it will be over in an hour. But sometimes it sets in for the day, and when it does, there is more to do indoors here than visitors expect. This is the list I give clients, friends and anyone staying in one of my rentals.
A quick note on the rain itself. From June through September, Naples gets an afternoon thunderstorm most days. It is loud, it is brief, and the roads flood for twenty minutes and then drain. The dry season, November through April, is the reason the town fills up. Plan around that and a rainy day is rarely a lost one.
1. Artis—Naples and The Baker Museum
Pelican Bay
The Baker Museum at Artis—Naples is the best indoor afternoon in town: three floors of modern and contemporary art, rotating exhibitions, and the Chihuly glass. The Naples Philharmonic plays in the same complex, so check the calendar for a matinee. Website
2. Naples Zoo at Caribbean Gardens
Goodlette-Frank Road
This one surprises people. The zoo is built into a historic botanical garden, so most of the paths are under a tree canopy, and a steady rain thins the crowd. The animals are often more active when it is cool and wet. Bring an umbrella and go anyway. Website
3. Naples Botanical Garden
Bayshore Drive
The garden is mostly outdoors, but the Kapnick Hall, the visitor center and the Fogg Café are good places to wait out a shower, and a light rain on a Florida garden is worth seeing. Check the website for indoor events and the conservatory schedule. Website
4. Golisano Children’s Museum of Naples
North Collier Regional Park
If you have kids, this is the answer. C’MON is two floors of hands-on exhibits built for the ages of two to ten, and it is a short drive from most of North Naples. Website
5. Tin City and the Naples waterfront
US 41 at the Gordon River
Tin City is a covered collection of shops and restaurants in old waterfront warehouses on the Gordon River. You can walk the whole thing under a roof, eat lunch looking at the boats, and the rain usually clears by the time you finish. Website
6. Mercato and Waterside Shops
North Naples and Pelican Bay
Mercato has a Silverspot Cinema with reclining seats and a full menu, plus shops and restaurants close enough to run between. Waterside Shops is open-air but covered, with Saks and Nordstrom at either end. Website
7. Naples Depot Museum and Collier Museum
Downtown and Government Center
The Naples Depot is the restored 1927 Seaboard Air Line rail station, with exhibits on how people got to Southwest Florida before the roads. The Collier Museum at Government Center covers the county from the Calusa to the present. Both are free. Website
8. Revs Institute
Horseshoe Drive
One of the best automobile collections in the country, with more than 100 significant cars from 1896 to 1995. Open Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, reservations required, and it is entirely indoors. Website
9. Fifth Avenue South and Third Street South
Old Naples
Most of the shops and restaurants along Fifth Avenue South have awnings and arcades, so a rainy afternoon of lunch, a gallery or two and a coffee works fine. Third Street South is quieter and a block from the beach, for when the sky clears. Website
10. A cooking class or a long lunch
Naples
Several restaurants and kitchen shops in Naples run afternoon cooking classes, and a rainy day is the one time nobody is in a hurry. Ask your server where they go on their day off. The answer is usually better than any list.
What this has to do with real estate
More than you would think. When buyers ask me about a neighborhood, part of the answer is what is within ten minutes of it on a day you cannot use the beach or the pool. Pelican Bay has Artis—Naples and Waterside Shops. Old Naples has Fifth Avenue, Third Street and Tin City. North Naples has Mercato and the children’s museum. Bayshore has the Botanical Garden and, for that matter, the house I developed there.
Rain also tells you things about a property. If you are looking at a house or condo during the wet season, go back during a storm. Watch where the water goes in the street and the yard, look at the gutters and the lanai drains, and check the garage floor. Twenty minutes in a downpour will tell you more about drainage than any inspection report. More on that in how I work with buyers.
Hours, prices and schedules change, so check each website before you go. If you are new to Naples and want a local’s read on a neighborhood, send me a note.
Common questions
How often does it rain in Naples, Florida?
Naples has a wet season from roughly June through September, when afternoon thunderstorms are common but usually pass within an hour or two. The dry season from November through April has far less rain, which is why it is peak season.
What is there to do in Naples with kids when it rains?
The Golisano Children’s Museum of Naples, the Naples Zoo, Silverspot Cinema at Mercato and the Naples Depot Museum are the usual choices. The zoo is mostly under tree cover and the museum is fully indoors.
Is the Naples Zoo open in the rain?
Yes. The zoo stays open in ordinary rain and only closes for lightning or severe weather. Most of the paths are shaded by the historic garden, and the animals are often more active when it is cool.
Are there free indoor things to do in Naples?
The Naples Depot Museum and the Collier Museum at Government Center are free. Fifth Avenue South, Tin City and Waterside Shops cost nothing to walk, and the Baker Museum has free admission days during the year.