Fun & Unique Places to Stay in Florida: Kokomo Farms

The moment you arrive at Kokomo Farms, the peacefulness of your surroundings kicks in and you instantly feel far removed from the hustle-and-bustle of everyday life. In fact, even the drive to the property is relaxing, defined by streets lined with giant live oaks and vast open green spaces. 

Kokomo Farms is a little bit of a lot of things: a working farm, animal sanctuary, and one of the most unique places to stay in Florida. 

The property is surrounded by majestic live oak trees draped in Spanish Moss, and its location couldn’t be better. Situated in the rural north-central Florida town of Live Oak, Kokomo Farms is the perfect jumping-off point to explore the area’s many crystal clear natural springs including Ichetucknee, Ginnie, and Peacock. 

To create your own perfect glamping experience, take your pick of the many accommodation options on offer. You’ll find a wide range of unique places to stay, from a romantic tiny house to a glamorous bell tent and converted vintage trailer — and just about anything in between. 

Kokomo Farms Overview

Kokomo Farms is truly an adventurers’ dream come true — an environmentally-friendly space where guests have the opportunity to interact directly with animals and nature. 

One of the best things about staying at Kokomo Farms is living in harmony with all the rescued animals. Although, hot tubbing under the stars is also pretty amazing! 

Just up the road, there’s access to the Historic Suwannee River, home to several vibrant natural springs where you can swim, dive, and snorkel.

During our visit to Kokomo Farms, we stayed in both the Dreamer’s Escape Romantic Treehouse and the Romantic Tiny House. They’re wildly different, and we loved them both! 

In fact, that’s the main thing that makes Kokomo Farms one of the most unique places to stay in Florida — the vast variety of accommodations.

• Dreamer’s Escape Romantic Treehouse: Authentic treehouse (as in, literally built around/into a giant tree authentic!) with screened-in windows, a clear stargazing roof, and a comfy memory foam bed
• Romantic Tiny House: Colorful converted trailer fitted with a queen bed, kitchenette, air-conditioning, en-suite bathroom, TV, and a private yard (and lots of friendly chicken visitors!)
• Zen Garden Glamping Room on Farm: Private room in the garden with air conditioning and TV, where you can drift off to the sound of the koi pond and waterfall
• Romantic Hanging Netted Bedroom: Quaint porch-side room with a unique Southern-style king bed and giant projector screen (your own personal movie theater!) 
• Cozy and Cute RV on the Farm: Adorable RV set on a more secluded part of the farm with a full kitchen, queen-size bed, and en suite bathroom
• Unhitched at Kokomo Farms: A luxury RV with a private bedroom and additional sleeping accommodations in the living area, large bathroom, TV, and outdoor seating
• Cozy Cottage Hideaway: Tiny house in the woods with a cozy couch and bed, bathroom, mini-fridge, TV, and private front porch with a unique outdoor kitchen
• Artist Eco Cabin: A completely off-grid, solar-powered cabin equipped with an ensuite bathroom, gas BBQ grill, coffee percolator, and front porch, nestled at the back of the property (extra privacy!)

Kokomo Farms’ community outdoor kitchen (and swing!) help make it one of the most unique places to stay in Florida

Kokomo Farms Amenities

• Community hot tub
• Community outdoor kitchen/grilling area
• Tranquil Zen garden with a swing (and a mural wall you can add to!)
• Morning coffee station
• Wi-Fi (note: it worked well on the porch of the main house and the colorful tiny house, but was useless in the treehouse)
• Firepit
• Hammocks

What’s Nearby

Ichetucknee Springs State Park

Kokomo Farms is less than one hour from Ichetucknee Springs, widely considered among the most pristine in Florida. There’s really nothing better than leisurely floating down the Ichetucknee River in a tube or taking a refreshing dip in one of the gorgeous blue-green swimming holes!

You can also rent kayaks and paddle other stretches of the river (tubing is limited to a straight 6-mile run). Experienced swimmers and divers will definitely want to experience the world renowned Blue Hole. Note that you must have cave diving certification!

In the winter and early spring months, Ichetucknee Springs is also a haven for manatees (we saw several in early April)! That’s actually why we planned this trip in the first place!

Kayaking in Ichetucknee Springs State Park

Wes Skiles Peacock Springs State Park

Another incredible natural spring, Peacock is just 15 minutes from Kokomo Farms. That alone cements its status as one of the more unique places to stay in Florida!

Certified divers can explore one of the largest underwater cave systems in the US, home to a network of caves totaling 33,000 feet (and that’s only what’s actually been surveyed)! Swimmers can take a dip in the tranquil, turquoise swimming holes, Peacock Spring and Orange Grove Sink. 

Ginnie Springs

Yup, another spring — this part of Florida is full of them! Ginnie Springs, arguably the most popular in the entire state, is about an hour from Kokomo Farms. 

The crystal-clear, bright blue water at Ginnie Springs is absolutely stunning, and perfect for snorkeling or paddling. However, we do want to warn you that Ginnie has a well-earned reputation for being the “party spring.”

All those gorgeous pictures you see floating around online, where someone’s cruising on their paddleboard without another soul in sight? Lies. 

When we went, it was exactly like stepping into college spring break in Mexico. Truthfully, we didn’t even stay. We did a walk-through before paying and within 10 minutes, everyone in our group was ready to go. 

Keep in mind that was just our personal experience, and you may love Ginnie Springs. We were specifically seeking out a tranquil, relaxing scene where we could quietly float the river for hours, like Ichetucknee. Ginnie does not offer that, but you may be looking for that party environment. 

Crowds at Ginnie Springs

Hike along the Suwannee River

Less than 20 minutes from Kokomo Farms, you’ll find Suwannee River State Park, home to one of the best hikes in the area — Balanced Rock Trail. This 3.2-mile loop follows the Suwannee River, passing several natural sinkholes and gorgeous green scenery. 

Things to Know About Kokomo Farms

Live Oak, and the farm itself, is a fairly remote, rural area. The closest airports are Tallahassee (1.5 hours), Jacksonville (1.5 hours), and smaller Gainesville (just over one hour). We flew into Tallahassee and stocked up on groceries at Publix before making the drive. 

It’s also a working farm and animal sanctuary, where guests have the opportunity to interact with some of the animals. That could include grooming the horses or feeding the chickens. 

Some of the animals roam freely and can be noisy at times, but it offers a refreshing change of pace. Chatting with other guests and looking at reviews, many find it almost soothing. It’s definitely among the things that makes this one of the more unique places to stay in Florida!

Kokomo Farms has a shared “glampers’ bathroom,” which is really two private bathrooms with showers. Some accommodations have their own bathrooms, so if you’d prefer your own, book the Romantic Tiny House, Eco Cabin, Cozy Cottage, or the Tiny House RV. 

Kokomo Farms’ shared bathrooms

It actually gets very cold in this part of Florida. It’s far inland, so there is no coast to warm things up, but it’s still Florida, so it’s very, very humid. All the time. Even in the winter.

Cold temperatures and humidity are not a pleasant combo, so unless you’re visiting in the dead of summer, bring warm layers for the evenings. 

Florida is home to lots of critters. It’s easy to forget because Live Oak isn’t on the coast, in the mountains, or in the desert, but there’s still all sorts of wildlife to look out for: snakes, alligators, ticks, and even black bears.

The inside of the Dreamers’ Escape Treehouse

Packing List for Unique Places to Stay in Florida

Whether you’re “roughing it” in a treehouse or cozying up in a tiny house, you aren’t staying in a traditional hotel. With that in mind, there are some things you should bring to make sure you’ll be comfortable and have everything you need.

• Bug spray — we’re big fans of this DEET-free variety, and it’s small enough for carry-ons!
• Wireless power bank for keeping devices charged
• Headlamp — we’ve used the Petzl Tactikka for years and we’re still obsessed!
• Water bottle — the Stanley Quick Flip GO bottle is amazing for travel!
• Soft cooler
• Packable blanket
• Lightweight microfiber towel
• Backpacking-style cooking kit (don’t forget your stove and a fuel source!)
• A travel-ready French press, for the caffeine addicts (you never know what the coffee setup is going to be!)
• Extra swimsuit, because things take forever to dry in Florida
• Water shoes, if you plan to visit the springs

Best Time to Stay at Kokomo Farms

Kokomo Farms is open all year. If you don’t mind the heat, early summer is an excellent time to visit. If you prefer cooler temps and less humidity, or have your heart set on seeing manatees, visit Live Oak in the winter or early spring. We visited the first week of April and it was perfect.

The peak of summer (July and August) and early fall aren’t necessarily bad, but you should carefully consider a trip during these times.

Although Live Oak is inland, hurricane season can bring heavy storms and flooding to the area, and a flooded river means murky, inaccessibe springs. There are also no manatees and (specific to fall) tubing isn’t available.

Getting There

Kokomo Farms is 77 miles from Tallahassee and 95 miles from Jacksonville. The smaller airport in Gainesville, home of the University of Florida, is 67 miles. You can easily fly into any of them and get a rental car, and you’ll be at one of the most peaceful, unique places to stay in Florida in 1-1.5 hours!

Experience one of the Most Unique Places to Stay in Florida

Ready to book your stay at Kokomo Farms and see for yourself why it’s one of the most unique places to stay in Florida? 

You can book through various sites including VRBO, Booking.com, and Airbnb. Recently, Airbnb fees have gone through the roof, so we generally book with one of the other two!

Please let us know if you visit Kokomo Farms and how you like it! And finally, be sure to share this post on Pinterest to help others can discover it!