Things to Do in Naples: The Pier, the Zoo, the Garden, and the Golf
This site's Naples hub already covers the wealth-concentration identity, Hurricane Ian's toll, and the 2026 insurance and SB 4-D condo-law picture -- none of that is repeated here. This page does the other job a things-to-do page owes a reader: what's actually open, what's actually closed, and what's real behind the "Golf Capital of the World" branding. The single most important fact on this page is one many visitor guides get stale on -- the Naples Pier is currently closed for a multi-year rebuild, not open for a stroll -- so that's addressed first, plainly, before anything else.
The Naples Pier Is Currently Closed for a Rebuild -- Not Open to Walk Out On
As of this page's most recent check against the City of Naples' own Naples Pier Rebuild Project page (naplesgov.com), the pier is closed to the public for construction, not open. The city broke ground on January 6, 2026, following Hurricane Ian's damage to the previous structure, and the rebuild is expected to take approximately 18 months from that start date -- meaning a realistic return to an open pier likely falls sometime in mid-to-late 2027, an inference from the stated timeline rather than a specific announced reopening date. Demolition of the old pier was completed April 13, 2026, and 59 concrete pilings from the old structure were deployed to an artificial reef on April 24, 2026, per the same city source. The construction contract was awarded to Shoreline Foundation Inc. for $23.5 million in October 2024, with final federal permits received in October 2025 and FEMA funding approval following in December 2025.
With direct pier access closed, the city maintains alternate beach access through bypasses at Broad Avenue South and 13th Avenue South, and the pier's parking lot has limited public access (its western third only), with restrooms available at those alternative beach-access points during construction. This page cannot confirm the pier's original construction date or the specific prior storms that damaged and required rebuilding it historically before Hurricane Ian -- that deeper history should come directly from the City of Naples or the Naples Historical Society. Confirm current status directly at naplesgov.com before planning a visit around the pier itself, since an 18-month construction window is exactly the kind of estimate that can shift.
Naples Zoo at Caribbean Gardens: A Botanical Garden Before It Was Ever a Zoo
Naples Zoo at Caribbean Gardens carries "Caribbean Gardens" in its full name for a real historical reason -- it wasn't built from scratch as a zoo. The site traces to 1919, when Dr. Henry Nehrling, a Central Florida naturalist, bought the property as a botanical garden to protect tropical plants over winter, developing it over roughly two decades into a collection of more than 3,000 plant species. After a dormant period, Julius Fleischmann of the Fleischmann Yeast Company acquired the land in 1951 and restored the gardens, adding trails, plantings, and the first animals. The modern zoo era began in 1969, when Larry and Nancy Tetzlaff -- known publicly as "Jungle Larry" and "Safari Jane" -- leased the property and built it into a wildlife attraction around their own animal collection from international travels, establishing the conservation-and-education identity the zoo still markets today.
The zoo was directly affected by Hurricane Ian in September 2022 -- it closed for 17 days and reopened to the public on October 14, 2022, per the zoo's own announcement at the time and contemporaneous local reporting. It remains a currently operating attraction; a Yelp listing for the zoo was tagged "Updated July 2026" as of this research pass. This page could not independently confirm current acreage, exhibit specifics, or a current annual-visitor figure -- confirm hours, admission, and current exhibits directly at napleszoo.org before visiting.
Naples Botanical Garden: A Separate, Younger, 170-Acre Institution
Naples Botanical Garden is a distinct institution from the Zoo's own on-site gardens above -- a separate, more recently developed 170-acre property roughly three miles from downtown Naples, per the Garden's own site. It traces to 1993, when local plant enthusiasts founded the organization, which gained nonprofit status in 1994. A major turning point came in 2000, when Harvey Kapnick Jr. donated $5 million toward purchasing the 170-acre site; a master plan was completed in 2006, construction began in 2008, and the first gardens opened to the public in November 2009 -- making this a genuinely 21st-century institution rather than a long-standing one, distinct in both age and origin from the Zoo's 1919-rooted grounds a few miles away.
This page could not independently confirm a current annual-visitor figure or a full list of the Garden's individual named collections -- confirm current hours, admission, and what's in bloom directly at naplesgarden.org before planning a visit.
Fifth Avenue South and Third Street South: Old Naples’ Two Shopping Spines
Fifth Avenue South and Third Street South are real, distinct, currently operating upscale commercial districts in downtown Old Naples, each maintaining its own dedicated promotional site (fifthavenuesouth.com and thirdstreetsouth.com) -- they aren't interchangeable labels for the same strip. Both are walkable, boutique-and-fine-dining corridors rather than generic strip-mall retail, consistent with the "Florida prices" framing local visitor guides use to signal the upscale positioning directly.
Third Street South specifically brands itself the "Birthplace of Naples," tying it to the Old Naples historic core -- a real, documented historic district (the Naples Historic District, per Wikipedia), not an invented marketing label. Fifth Avenue South carries more of a modern shopping-and-dining identity without that same founding-era framing. This page could not confirm a current tenant roster or exact founding and redevelopment dates for either corridor -- treat both as genuinely real, currently active districts, and check each site directly for current shops, restaurants, and any scheduled street events.
Golf: The "Golf Capital of the World" Claim, Honestly Sourced
Naples and Collier County are very widely and repeatedly marketed as the "Golf Capital of the World" -- this framing turns up across many independent sources, including GolfPass' own coverage of Naples golf and Paradise Coast's official tourism golf page, not just a single marketing source repeating itself. Golf-course density is treated as a real, defining pillar of the area's identity alongside its wealth-concentration reputation covered on this site's Naples hub.
What this page cannot do honestly is attach a specific, independently verified current golf-course count to that branding. Multiple real-estate and lifestyle blogs reference a course count for Collier County, and informally repeated figures in that space commonly run from the 80s up past 90 courses, but none of those figures were confirmed against a primary source (a golf association or National Golf Foundation count) this pass -- so no specific number is stated here as settled fact. If an exact course count matters to your decision, confirm it directly with the National Golf Foundation or a Collier County golf-industry association rather than relying on any single blog's figure, including this one's absence of one.
Gulf Beaches: Public Parks, Not One Continuous Strip
Naples' beachfront is organized as a series of named, separately run public parks rather than one continuous public strip -- a real, practical distinction for anyone planning a beach day here. Lowdermilk Park, run by the City of Naples per its own parks-and-recreation site, sits along the Gulf near downtown and is a commonly used public beach-and-picnic park. Farther north, Clam Pass Park is run by Collier County Parks and Recreation and is distinct for its mangrove-preserve boardwalk connecting the parking area to the beach itself, with Vanderbilt Beach further north still, in the North Naples area covered on this site's neighborhoods guide.
This page did not independently re-verify current specific amenities (tram operation, exact boardwalk length, parking fees) for these individual parks this pass -- confirm current hours, parking rules, and any tram or shuttle service directly with naplesgov.com or collierparks.com before planning a visit, since beach-park operating details are exactly the kind of thing that changes without national news coverage.
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Get a Free Agent Referral →Independent research. No ads. No sponsored listings. The Naples Pier's current closed status, its January 6, 2026 construction start, roughly 18-month timeline, April 13, 2026 demolition completion, April 24, 2026 piling-to-reef deployment, $23.5 million construction contract (awarded to Shoreline Foundation Inc. in October 2024), October 2025 federal permitting, December 2025 FEMA funding approval, and Broad Avenue South/13th Avenue South alternate beach-access bypasses are drawn directly from the City of Naples' own Naples Pier Rebuild Project page (naplesgov.com); the pier's original construction date and specific pre-Ian rebuild history were not confirmed this pass. Naples Zoo at Caribbean Gardens' 1919 founding by Dr. Henry Nehrling as a botanical garden, its 1951 acquisition and restoration by Julius Fleischmann, and its 1969 transformation into a wildlife attraction by Larry and Nancy Tetzlaff ("Jungle Larry" and "Safari Jane") are drawn from Gulfshore Life's retrospective on the zoo's history; its 17-day Hurricane Ian closure and October 14, 2022 reopening are drawn from the zoo's own contemporaneous announcement and corroborating local reporting (Fox 4, Yahoo/AP); its current operating status is corroborated by a Yelp listing tagged "Updated July 2026" as of this research pass. Naples Botanical Garden's 170-acre size, 1993 founding, 1994 nonprofit status, Harvey Kapnick Jr.'s 2000 $5 million donation toward the property purchase, its 2006 master plan, 2008 construction start, and November 2009 public opening are drawn from the Garden's own "About the Garden" page (naplesgarden.org). Fifth Avenue South's and Third Street South's status as distinct, currently operating commercial districts, and Third Street South's own "Birthplace of Naples" branding tied to the Naples Historic District, are drawn from each district's own site (fifthavenuesouth.com, thirdstreetsouth.com) and Wikipedia's Naples Historic District entry; current tenant rosters and exact founding dates were not confirmed. The "Golf Capital of the World" branding is corroborated across multiple independent sources (GolfPass, Paradise Coast's official tourism site, and multiple local real-estate blogs), but no specific, independently verified current golf-course count for Collier County was confirmed this pass, despite informally repeated figures in the 80s-to-90-plus range circulating on real-estate and lifestyle sites -- do not treat any single-source course count as settled without checking the National Golf Foundation or a Collier County golf-industry association directly. Lowdermilk Park's operation by the City of Naples and Clam Pass Park's operation by Collier County Parks and Recreation are corroborated by each agency's own site (naplesgov.com, collierparks.com); specific current amenities, tram service, and parking rules for either park were not independently re-verified this pass. This page does not catalog every attraction, tour operator, restaurant, or event in this market. Hours, admission, construction timelines, and operating status all change -- confirm current details directly with the City of Naples, Collier County Parks and Recreation, Naples Zoo, Naples Botanical Garden, or the relevant business before planning a visit around a specific stop. Nothing on this page is legal, financial, or real estate advice.