Local Guide
The first things to know about Fort Myers.
A quick read before you go deeper. Everyday life, eating out, staying social, and the planning piece worth watching. Each one links to a source.
Everyday life
Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve
A flat, shaded walk you can do most mornings. Worth going early before the heat and the crowds build.
Source: Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve (Lee County)
Eating out and guests
The Prawnbroker Restaurant & Fish Market
An easy, unfussy seafood dinner you can fold into a normal week, not just a vacation night out.
Source: The Prawnbroker Restaurant & Fish Market
Staying social
Wa-Ke Hatchee Recreation Center courts
A friendly place to find a game most days. Worth checking the open-play windows and how busy it gets.
Source: Wa-Ke Hatchee Recreation Center pickleball (Lee County)
Worth watching
City services and hurricane season
Hurricane season runs June through November here. Worth knowing your evacuation zone and flood risk before you sign on a house.
Source: City of Fort Myers
Move tools
Thinking about moving to Fort Myers? Run the rough math first.
Use these quick checks to test Fort Myers as a retirement move. They are not the full map; they help you decide what deserves a deeper look.
Tax and Medicare
Check the Fort Myers income picture.
Estimate how Florida treats Social Security, pension income, IRA/401(k) withdrawals, city income tax, and Medicare premium tiers before you build the full journey.
Social Security
Not taxed
Pension
Not taxed
IRA / 401(k)
Not taxed
Mortgage
Test the payment or refi
Compare a current mortgage against a new rate, closing costs, and break-even timing.
Open mortgage checkWeather fit
Warm and sunny
Fort Myers gives retirees a warm-weather lifestyle, but summer heat and storm routines still belong in the plan.
Avg
75°
Sun
265
Rain
112
Snow
0
Things to do
Things to do in Fort Myers
Parks, trails, classes, and easy outings for an ordinary week.
Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve (Lee County)
Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve
A Lee County wetland with a boardwalk loop that winds through cypress and past gators and wading birds. Open 7 am to 7:30 pm, with guided walks in the cooler months.
Why it matters
A flat, shaded walk you can do most mornings. Worth going early before the heat and the crowds build.
Lakes Regional Park (Lee County)
Lakes Regional Park
A big county park built around old lakes, with paved trails, a little train, kayak rentals and a botanical garden. Easy to spend a whole morning here.
Why it matters
Good for a regular walk or bike ride close to home, and a simple place to take the grandkids.
Edison and Ford Winter Estates
Edison and Ford Winter Estates
The winter homes of Thomas Edison and Henry Ford sit on more than 20 acres of botanical gardens along McGregor Boulevard. There is a museum and Edison's old lab too.
Why it matters
The one place you will bring every out-of-town guest, so it is worth a membership if you go more than twice a year.
Browse by activity
Mapped places near Fort Myers. Tap a category to open the full list with directions.
Where to eat
Where to eat
Local spots for an easy dinner or a visit from family. Rough prices included.
The Prawnbroker Restaurant & Fish Market
The Prawnbroker Restaurant & Fish Market
A McGregor Boulevard seafood spot that locals have leaned on for years. There is a fish market attached, so the catch is fresh, and the happy hour runs every day.
Approx. price
$$
Why it matters
An easy, unfussy seafood dinner you can fold into a normal week, not just a vacation night out.
Ford's Garage Fort Myers
Ford's Garage
A burger and craft beer joint on First Street downtown with a vintage gas-station theme. The Estate Burger runs around 18 to 20 dollars, and there is a long beer list.
Approx. price
$$
Why it matters
A reliable downtown stop when family visits and you want burgers and beer without a fuss.
Fancy's Southern Cafe (via Krista Fogelsong downtown picks)
Fancy's Southern Cafe
Southern comfort food that shows up on local downtown lists. The chicken and waffles get the most love, and the meatloaf is the homestyle pick.
Approx. price
$$
Why it matters
Good for a slow weekend lunch when you want comfort food and a relaxed table.
Pickleball and rec
Pickleball in Fort Myers
Where to play, drop in, and meet people. Court times, fees, and how busy it gets.
Wa-Ke Hatchee Recreation Center pickleball (Lee County)
Wa-Ke Hatchee Recreation Center courts
A Lee County rec center near Gladiolus Drive with organized open-play pickleball, right next to the popular dog park. There are set time windows for play.
Why it matters
A friendly place to find a game most days. Worth checking the open-play windows and how busy it gets.
Ace Pickleball Club Fort Myers
Ace Pickleball Club
A dedicated indoor pickleball facility in Fort Myers with open play, leagues and memberships. Indoor courts mean you keep playing through the rain and the August heat.
Why it matters
If you play year-round, an indoor club is worth pricing against the free public courts before you commit.
Brooks Park public pickleball courts
Brooks Park public courts
Brooks Park shows up on the local list of free outdoor pickleball courts around Lee County. Players say early morning and early evening are the good times to catch a game.
Why it matters
Free outdoor courts are an easy way to try the game before paying for a club. Worth going at off-peak times for an open court.
Senior help and discounts
Help and discounts for Fort Myers seniors
Programs, classes, free city services, seasonal help, and useful local deals.
Senior Friendship Centers, Lee County
Senior Friendship Centers, Lee County
A Lee County nonprofit focused on older adults, with shared meals, social activities, volunteering and caregiver support. A simple way to meet people after a move.
Why it matters
When you are new in town, this is a low-key place to find company and a routine, not just services.
What’s coming up
What’s coming up in Fort Myers
Local events worth putting on the calendar. Check the host page for dates and parking before you go.
Fort Myers Farmers Market (City of Fort Myers)
Saturdays, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Fort Myers Farmers Market
When
A Saturday market from 9 am to 1 pm on First Street, in the heart of downtown's Culinary District. Southwest Florida growers and makers set up booths along the street.
Why it matters
An easy weekly habit for produce and a walk downtown. The season runs through the cooler winter months.
Music Walk (City of Fort Myers)
Monthly Fridays, 6 to 10 p.m.
Music Walk downtown
When
A monthly downtown music night where local and regional musicians line the River District streets from 6 to 10 pm. The lineup changes from jazz to blues to rock each time.
Why it matters
Another free monthly night out downtown, on a different Friday than Art Walk, so you get two regular evenings.
Caloosahatchee Celtic Festival (City of Fort Myers)
January 24 to 25, 2026
Caloosahatchee Celtic Festival
When
A city-run Celtic heritage festival with music, dancing, vendors and food. It is well attended and run by the City of Fort Myers.
Why it matters
One more named festival on the winter calendar, so you are not relying on a single big event for the season.
Edison Festival of Light
February 21, 2026
7 p.m.
Edison Festival of Light
When
The region's signature February celebration of Thomas Edison, capped by a Grand Parade that lights up downtown at night. It draws big crowds along the route.
Why it matters
The biggest night downtown all winter. Worth planning your parking and arrival early if you want a good spot.
Art Walk, downtown River District
First Friday each month, 6 to 10 p.m.
Art Walk in the River District
When
On the first Friday of the month, the historic downtown River District fills with galleries and artists from 6 to 10 pm. You stroll the brick streets and pop in and out.
Why it matters
A free, easy evening out you can count on every month, and a good way to get to know downtown.
Worth knowing
Worth knowing about the area
City services, neighborhood updates, seasonal notes, and the everyday details that matter.
City of Fort Myers
City services and hurricane season
The City of Fort Myers site is where you handle utilities, permits and the event calendar. It is also where storm updates and sandbag and evacuation news go during hurricane season.
Why it matters
Hurricane season runs June through November here. Worth knowing your evacuation zone and flood risk before you sign on a house.
City decisions
City decisions to watch
Council agendas, hearings, and public meetings that can change access, housing, services, or costs.
Lee County Property Appraiser homestead exemption
How property taxes work here
The Lee County Property Appraiser sets your home's assessed value and runs the homestead exemption. A primary home can knock up to 50,000 dollars off the assessed value, with extra breaks for some owners.
Why it matters
The exemption only applies to your primary home, and you have to file for it. Price the real tax bill, not last owner's, before you buy.
Health and Medicare
Health and Medicare
Care, Medicare counseling, caregiver help, transportation, and the local senior support to line up.
SHINE Medicare counseling, Area Agency on Aging for SW Florida
Free Medicare help through SHINE
SHINE gives free, unbiased Medicare counseling through the Area Agency on Aging for Southwest Florida, at 2830 Winkler Avenue in Fort Myers. You can reach the Helpline at 866-413-5337.
Why it matters
A no-cost, no-sales-pitch place to sort out Medicare plans, which matters most in your first year here and each fall.
Upcoming events in Fort Myers
See all eventsTheater & film
leelibrary · Fort Myers, FL
Magic: The Gathering Meet Up (All Ages)
leelibrary
Magic: The Gathering is a fast‑paced, endlessly creative strategy card game where players become powerful planeswalkers, summon creatures, cast spells, and battle for victory. Whether you’re a seasoned Commander veteran or someone who’s only heard rumors about “the stack,” this meetup is all about connecting with others who love the game — and staying cool while doing it. We’re hosting a relaxed, drop‑in‑and‑play gathering at the library to meet fellow MTG fans here in Southwest Florida. We’v...
Lifelong learning
leelibrary · Fort Myers, FL
First Tuesday on First Street Book Club
leelibrary
Come to the First Tuesday on First Street Book Club. Bring friends, meet new people, discuss books, explore First Street afterwards. Historical Fiction and Narrative non-Fiction: Sometimes fiction seems real and non-fiction reads like a novel...This year both will be discussed. Book Discussion: The Truffle Underground: A Tale of Mystery, Mayhem, and Manipulation in the Shadowy Market of the World's Most Expensive Fungus by Ryan Jacobs (Non-Fiction Selection) Title subject to substitution due...
Classes & arts
leelibrary · Fort Myers, FL
Drawing Florida Wildlife
leelibrary
Learn through step-by-step instructions how to draw Florida's captivating wildlife. Seating is limited. Registration required.
Community & civic
leelibrary · Fort Myers, FL
On The Table Faux Firecracker
leelibrary
Come make a fun paper red, white and blue firecracker to celebrate Amercia250.
Community & civic
leelibrary · Fort Myers, FL
Cape Coral Candidate Forum
leelibrary
Public invited to hear from Cape Coral City Council candidates and other non partisan candidates.
Community & civic
leelibrary · Fort Myers, FL
COFE / Social Security Education
leelibrary
Education of Social Security only. No sales or soliciting in any way
Common questions
What people ask before retiring in Fort Myers
Short answers to the questions most people ask first. The full source trail sits in the guide above and the sources panel below.
Is Fort Myers, FL a good place to retire?
Plenty of people do retire here, so it is a real option worth a look. What matters is whether the home costs, the health and senior support, the things to do, and the family side all fit your life. Not just how it ranks on a list somewhere.
Source: Fort Myers Parks, Recreation and Special EventsWhat costs should you check before moving to Fort Myers?
Price the month, not the postcard. Keep separate lines for home, property taxes, insurance, utilities, getting around, health, and everyday spending. A low-tax headline can quietly hide a high insurance bill, or the other way around.
Source: City of Fort MyersWhere do you find things to do in Fort Myers?
Start with parks and rec, the local event calendar, the visitor bureau, the senior center, and the restaurants people actually go to. The real question is whether they are close enough, and happen often enough, that you would use them all year. Not just visit once.
Source: Fort Myers Parks, Recreation and Special EventsWhat health and senior support matters in Fort Myers?
Look at Medicare counseling, the nearby hospitals, pharmacies, ways to get around, caregiver help, and one emergency contact. These can decide whether the move works, even when the rest of life looks great on paper.
Source: City of Fort MyersWhat should your family ask before you move to Fort Myers?
Talk through driving, airport access, local services, who to call in an emergency, care backup, home upkeep, and how often someone would be needed. The point is to see the move as a real support plan, not just a nice address.
Source: City of Fort MyersRetirement Life Score
A quick read on the life you would actually live.
Fort Myers scored across eight things that decide whether a move feels good: monthly affordability, home costs, restaurants and outings, activities, parks, health and senior support, weather, and getting around. The full numbers are below.
Fort Myers Retirement Life Score
65
Workable, verify carefully / 65-74
Activities is the strongest daily-life fit. Weather is the piece to verify before treating the move as settled.
A city has useful strengths, but the guide is showing meaningful cost, access, weather, or evidence gaps.
Strongest fit: Activities & social calendar
Verify first: Weather comfort
Everyday affordability
Counts a lot70/100
How the ordinary monthly life could feel once taxes, insurance, fees, utilities, meals, and errands are in view.
What’s good: Lower-tax signals, visible discounts or free programs, ordinary-cost dining and errands, and practical transportation backup.
What to check: High housing pressure, insurance or storm costs, HOA or assessment friction, resort pricing, and thin cost evidence.
Price the month, not the postcard.
How this factor is scored
Signals checked: Ace Pickleball Club · Watch: Fort Myers Parks, Recreation and Special Events · FL has no state income tax
Evidence weighed: Tax, housing, insurance, senior-service, transportation, and local deal sources.
Weight in the total: High weight
Home, taxes & insurance
Counts a lot45/100
Property taxes, assessments, homeowners insurance, storm exposure, maintenance, and local housing friction.
What’s good: Clear assessor or property-appraiser sources, homestead or senior relief signals, and plain-language housing-cost context.
What to check: Coastal or wildfire exposure, insurance pressure, high home prices, amenity fees, HOA or district assessments, and missing local tax sources.
Separate the house from the lifestyle.
How this factor is scored
Signals checked: City services and hurricane season · Watch: City of Fort Myers
Evidence weighed: County assessor, property appraiser, tax collector, insurance, emergency management, and housing sources.
Weight in the total: High weight
Restaurants & outings
72/100
Restaurants, coffee, arts, downtown meals, family visits, and low-friction places to go without over-planning.
What’s good: Specific restaurants, coffee shops, arts districts, downtown routines, visitor-hosting ideas, and source links that feel repeatable.
What to check: Only generic visitor copy, heavy seasonal crowds, hard parking, expensive dining signals, or no specific local outing ideas.
Look for repeatable evenings, not only famous spots.
How this factor is scored
Signals checked: The Prawnbroker Restaurant & Fish Market · Watch: Fort Myers Parks, Recreation and Special Events
Evidence weighed: Restaurant sites, tourism boards, chambers, downtown groups, event venues, and local dining guides.
Weight in the total: Supporting weight
Activities & social calendar
87/100
Events, clubs, classes, pickleball, senior programs, volunteer options, and the weekly social rhythm.
What’s good: Dated events, parks and rec classes, senior-center programming, clubs, pickleball options, volunteer leads, and repeatable weekly activities.
What to check: Undated or stale calendars, few senior-friendly programs, heat or traffic timing issues, and no clear way to register or show up.
Make sure the week has more than errands.
How this factor is scored
Signals checked: Edison and Ford Winter Estates · Watch: City of Fort Myers
Evidence weighed: City calendars, recreation departments, senior centers, libraries, clubs, parks districts, and community event pages.
Weight in the total: Core weight
Parks & outdoor life
59/100
Parks, trails, beaches, gardens, preserves, water access, golf, and everyday outdoor routines.
What’s good: Specific parks, trails, beaches, gardens, water access, golf, outdoor classes, and low-friction places to be outside often.
What to check: Extreme heat, smoke, flooding, storm seasons, winter driving, crowding, parking friction, or thin park-level detail.
Check whether outdoor life works in the season you will actually live there.
How this factor is scored
Signals checked: Edison and Ford Winter Estates · Watch: City of Fort Myers
Evidence weighed: Parks departments, park districts, conservancies, recreation sources, tourism sources, and trail or beach authorities.
Weight in the total: Supporting weight
Health & support access
Counts a lot87/100
Medicare help, aging agencies, caregiver backup, transportation support, pharmacies, and local service depth.
What’s good: Area Agency on Aging, SHIP or SHINE counseling, senior services, caregiver support, transportation help, and credible health-resource depth.
What to check: Weak care-radius evidence, no benefits counseling source, unclear transportation backup, or hints that specialist access requires long drives.
Do not let a fun town hide a weak care radius.
How this factor is scored
Signals checked: Edison and Ford Winter Estates · Watch: City of Fort Myers
Evidence weighed: Area Agencies on Aging, county health and human services, senior services, Medicare counseling, transit, and hospital or clinic sources.
Weight in the total: High weight
Weather comfort
35/100
Heat, storms, flooding, smoke, winter, seasonal swings, and how much resilience planning the move demands.
What’s good: Evidence that outdoor life works in ordinary seasons, plus clear planning sources for heat, storms, winter, smoke, or emergency readiness.
What to check: Sustained heat, hurricane or flood exposure, wildfire or smoke risk, winter driving, evacuation complexity, and missing resilience sources.
Plan the hard season, not the best week.
How this factor is scored
Signals checked: Edison and Ford Winter Estates · Watch: City of Fort Myers · 75F annual average, 265 sunny days
Evidence weighed: Emergency management, weather-resilience, utility, health, parks, insurance, and local government sources.
Weight in the total: Core weight
Getting around & family visits
71/100
Driving, parking, airport access, golf-cart life, visitor logistics, medical trips, and family backup.
What’s good: Airport or transit access, shuttle or senior transportation, walkable routines, golf-cart usefulness, and simple family-visit logistics.
What to check: Traffic, parking scarcity, seasonal congestion, night-driving issues, long medical trips, or no car-light backup.
Test the drive on an ordinary Tuesday.
How this factor is scored
Signals checked: Ford's Garage · Watch: City of Fort Myers
Evidence weighed: Transit agencies, airports, city transportation pages, senior services, tourism access pages, and guide items with location detail.
Weight in the total: Supporting weight
How we keep this current
Sources for Fort Myers
A mix of city pages, community calendars, senior services, council agendas, official tourism, restaurant sites, and registration pages. Every claim above links to where it came from.
See the 25 sources behind this guideEvery claim above links to where it came from.ShowHide
official / weekly
City of Fort Myers
The city site for resident services, departments, and local notices.
official / weekly
Fort Myers Parks, Recreation and Special Events
City parks and recreation, with facilities, programs, and the events calendar.
institutional / weekly
Visit Fort Myers
Where to find restaurants, beaches, events, and things to do with visiting family.
official / weekly
Lee County Property Appraiser
Look up a home and check its property taxes before you buy.
official / weekly
Florida SHINE
Free Medicare counseling from the state, for you or someone you help.
official / weekly
LeeTran
County transit, for when you want a way around that does not depend on driving.
official / weekly
Florida Department of Financial Services
The state office for home insurance questions and consumer help on the coast.
community / weekly
The Prawnbroker Restaurant & Fish Market
Long-running McGregor Blvd seafood spot with an attached fish market and a daily happy hour.
community / weekly
Ford's Garage Fort Myers
Burger and craft beer joint on First Street downtown; gas-station theme, Estate Burger around $18 to $20.
community / weekly
Fancy's Southern Cafe (via Krista Fogelsong downtown picks)
Southern comfort food named in a local downtown roundup; chicken and waffles and meatloaf called out.
institutional / weekly
Edison and Ford Winter Estates
Historic homes, 20-plus acres of botanical gardens, museum and lab on McGregor Blvd.
official / weekly
Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve (Lee County)
County wetland preserve with a 1.2-mile boardwalk loop; 7 am to 7:30 pm, guided walks in season.
official / weekly
Lakes Regional Park (Lee County)
Large county park with paved trails, a train, kayak rentals and a botanical garden.
community / weekly
Wa-Ke Hatchee Recreation Center pickleball (Lee County)
Rec center near Gladiolus Dr with organized open-play pickleball windows next to the dog park.
community / weekly
Ace Pickleball Club Fort Myers
Dedicated indoor pickleball facility with open play, memberships and events.
local-media / weekly
Brooks Park public pickleball courts
News-Press roundup of Lee County public courts; Brooks Park listed among free outdoor options.
institutional / weekly
Senior Friendship Centers, Lee County
Lee County nonprofit offering meals, social activities, volunteering and caregiver support for older adults.
institutional / weekly
Edison Festival of Light
Annual February festival capped by the Grand Parade through downtown; one of the region's biggest events.
official / weekly
Fort Myers Farmers Market (City of Fort Myers)
Saturday market 9 am to 1 pm on First Street in the downtown Culinary District.
community / weekly
Art Walk, downtown River District
First Friday evening art event through the historic downtown River District, 6 to 10 pm.
official / weekly
Music Walk (City of Fort Myers)
Monthly downtown music night, 6 to 10 pm, with live musicians along the River District streets.
official / weekly
Caloosahatchee Celtic Festival (City of Fort Myers)
City-run Celtic heritage festival with music, vendors and food.
official / weekly
City of Fort Myers
Official city site for services, calendar and storm and hurricane-season updates.
official / weekly
Lee County Property Appraiser homestead exemption
County office explaining the homestead exemption and how assessed value is set for the tax bill.
institutional / weekly
SHINE Medicare counseling, Area Agency on Aging for SW Florida
Free, unbiased Medicare counseling at 2830 Winkler Ave in Fort Myers; Helpline 866-413-5337.
Activities & recreation in Fort Myers
What there is to do here, with the sources.
The things people retire for, in Fort Myers. Each links to the full activity guide and the states that fit it.
Lee County Parks operates public pickleball courts at Veterans Park, Rutenberg Park, and other facilities throughout the county; the Fort Myers Pickleball Club and Sun Lakes Pickleball groups organize open play and competitive leagues for players of all levels. Fort Myers' community centers and recreation facilities have added outdoor and indoor pickleball courts in response to growing participation over the past several years.
Lee County Parks and RecreationThe Area Agency on Aging for Southwest Florida (AAASWFL), a nonprofit covering Lee, Collier, Charlotte, and four other counties, provides a helpline at 866-413-5337, connects seniors to elder care and meals services, and hosts health and wellness exercise programs. Lee County Human Services operates senior centers in Fort Myers and across the county with free daily activities, case management, and the Medicaid waiver enrollment pathway.
Area Agency on Aging for Southwest FloridaThe Barbara B. Mann Performing Arts Hall at Florida SouthWestern State College (13350 FSW Pkwy) is the region's major touring Broadway and concert venue, presenting national productions throughout the season. The Southwest Florida Symphony, Alliance for the Arts, and the Sidney and Berne Davis Art Center in downtown Fort Myers support a year-round calendar of orchestra concerts, galleries, and live performances.
Area Agency on Aging for Southwest FloridaThe Caloosahatchee River and Pine Island Sound are accessible from multiple public boat ramps maintained by Lee County Parks, with year-round fishing for redfish, snook, and tarpon common in the backwater flats. Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve (7791 Penzance Blvd), managed by Lee County, includes a 1.2-mile boardwalk through a cypress wetland frequented by anglers casting from the structure for bass and bluegill.
Published local price
Florida resident annual freshwater fishing license (age 64+ Silver Sportsman combo available at $13.50/yr)
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) · as of 2025Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve's 1.2-mile paved boardwalk is flat and shaded, making it suitable for most mobility levels; Lee County parks staff lead free interpretive walks on a regular schedule. Corkscrew Regional Ecosystem Watershed and Babcock Ranch Preserve add longer natural-area trails within a 30-to-40-minute drive for those seeking more extensive forested hiking.
Published local price
Florida State Parks daily vehicle entrance fee (2-8 occupants); Individual Annual Entrance Pass $60/yr
Published range: $2 to $6.
Florida State Parks - Myakka River State Park Fees · as of 2025Lee County maintains several public boat ramps along the Caloosahatchee River and San Carlos Bay, with the Fort Myers Beach area and Matlacha Pass offering calm inshore paddling for kayakers. Pine Island Sound, accessible from Cape Coral and Matlacha, is a designated Outstanding Florida Waterway with a network of kayak trails mapped by Lee County and the Florida Paddling Trails Association.
Published local price
Florida annual vessel registration fee, Class 1 (16 to less than 26 feet); range covers Class A-1 through Class 3
Published range: $5.50 to $127.75.
Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FLHSMV) Vessel Registration Fee Chart · as of 2025The City of Fort Myers owns and operates two 18-hole public courses, Fort Myers Country Club and Eastwood Golf Course (4600 Bruce Herd Lane), with PGA instructors on staff and a recently renovated driving range at Eastwood. Eagle Ridge Golf Club and Shell Point Golf Club (open to the public, near Sanibel Causeway) are among a dozen additional public-access courses in the greater Lee County area.
Visit Fort Myers -- Go for the GolfManatee Park (10901 State Road 80) and the Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve maintain native plant demonstration areas and host regular guided walks led by Lee County naturalists. The UF/IFAS Lee County Extension office coordinates the Lee County Master Gardener program with community demonstration gardens, free plant clinics, and educational events throughout the year.
Area Agency on Aging for Southwest FloridaGolf
Golf near Fort Myers
Courses around Fort Myers worth a round, with how to book each one.
- Par
- 70
- Back tees
- 6,675 yds
- Round
- ~4h
- On foot
- Walkable
Ross worked a canal into the strategy of the par-4 third · Donald Ross
A Donald Ross design from 1917, set along the palm-lined stretch of McGregor Boulevard. The city runs it, so morning rates stay friendly and tee times are open to anyone.
Opened 1917 · $$ · Slope 131
- Par
- 72
- Back tees
- 6,772 yds
- Round
- ~4h
- On foot
- Walkable
Quiet par-72 set on preserve land off the road · Robert von Hagge and Bruce Devlin
A par-72 city course laid out by Robert von Hagge and Bruce Devlin, open since 1977. It sits on preserve land away from the road, so most days you get quiet and a lot of green.
Opened 1977 · $$ · Slope 130
Photo: David Balmer
- Par
- 71
- Back tees
- 6,585 yds
- Round
- ~4h
- On foot
- Walkable
Winding water and paspalum greens between Sanibel and the beach · Gordon Lewis
An 18-hole championship course tucked inside the Shell Point community near the Caloosahatchee. It is open to the public seven days a week, with a driving range and a restaurant when you finish.
Opened 2000 · $$$ · Slope 135
- Par
- 72
- Back tees
- 6,538 yds
Lakes come into play on most of the holes · Gordon Lewis
A public layout of about 6,500 yards, framed by pines and water on nearly every hole. The lakes keep it interesting without making the round a grind.
Slope 126
- Par
- 60
- Back tees
- 3,486 yds
- Round
- ~4h
- On foot
- Walkable
Tidy par-60 executive layout with water in play · Arthur Hills
A par-60 executive course you can play on a daily fee, no membership needed. The shorter holes make it an easy walk and a quick eighteen when you want one.
$$
- Par
- 72
- Back tees
- 7,075 yds
- Round
- ~4h
No formal bunkers, just large sandy waste areas · Raymond Floyd
A newer Raymond Floyd course just south in Bonita Springs, run by Troon and built into the pine flatwoods. It is a short drive for a resort-style round when you feel like a change of scenery.
Slope 126