Where to eat and drink?
Amy’s on the Avenue
This restaurant, boutique and sweets shop is your all-in-one stop. The menu is light yet filling, including a pressed bacon, basil and tomato sandwich that pairs wonderfully with the caramel latte. Inside you will find a multitude of handmade gifts and desserts such as the wildly popular and locally made truffles.
Ellie Schiller Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park
Cattle Dog Coffee Roasters
Located right downtown is this house- turned-coffee shop. It is open from breakfast to early dinner, providing offerings like croissant breakfast sandwiches and flatbreads alongside your afternoon pick-me-up.
Seagrass Waterfront
This waterfront restaurant is worth the drive to nearby Homosassa. If seafood, like their red fish offerings, isn’t your pick, they also make delicious burgers, tacos and ribs. They carry local brews and can mix up some unique cocktails sure to complement any meal.
What else should I do?
There are lots of businesses where you can rent paddling equipment for your day out on the water, including Manatee Paddle and Hunter Springs Kayaks.
Swimming at Three Sisters Springs boasts crystal clear water, allowing you to easily see manatees, native fish and natural sand boils. These three springs feed out to Kings Bay and provide a safe space for manatees. You can only access the springs by water, however. Otherwise, you can take a stroll on the boardwalk and watch from above.
You can visit Ellie Schiller Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park to see more manatees in this protected area along with panthers, a hippopotamus, many species of birds and experience the famous “Fish Bowl,” where you can be surrounded by hundreds of fish.
Chasing the sunset will lead you to Fort Island Beach. This quaint Gulf beach offers a fishing pier, picnic area and a sunset drum and music gathering on the second Sunday of each month.
Visiting the Crystal River Archaeological State Park will give you a glimpse into the indigenous people who once inhabited the area. Walk up the mounds and learn more by reading the plaques scattered throughout the Native American burial grounds.
There are always plenty of events going on around town, such as art festivals, manatee appreciation events and fishing competitions. You can find an up-to-date calendar at discovercrystalriverfl.com/ events
When to visit?
Crystal River has events going on year-round, but there are better times to visit depending on what you want to do. Manatee season runs from November to April and scalloping season runs from July to early September.
