St. Petersburg's glory is its beaches and fun beach towns. You can spend a week relaxing in any of them, or make St. Petersburg your home base and head out to a different beach destination every day. Here are a few to get you started.
For a family-friendly vacation right in the center of all the fun, St. Pete Beach is the obvious pick. This is actually four beach areas combined into one resort town with dozens of hotels, inns, restaurants, and a fun shopping strip.
Laid-back, unspoiled, and charming, Gulfport is what Florida natives fondly call a throwback to old Florida. It's also a place where beachfront digs won't break your wallet—and the setting is beautiful, right on Boca Ciega Bay. This is something of an artists' haven, with two art walks a month (first Friday, third Saturday).
With a vibrant culture whose roots are firmly implanted in Cuban and American history, Tampa is buzzing with activity. Throw into the mix a burgeoning downtown area and seaport and you've got the vacation equivalent of a Cosmopolitan cocktail. Cross the causeway into St. Pete and Clearwater and you'll find pristine, untouched beaches, the $125 million Salvador Dali Museum, and excellent places to rest your sun-drenched head-from massive resorts, quaint inns, and B&Bs to all-inclusive spots. Here the vacationer discovers touches of that ever-elusive, pre-neon-lit old Florida so many people long for in these modern times of ours. The New York Times unofficially endorsed this waterfront gem of the west coast of Florida when it said, "Now, in fact, if not law, it's one big metropolitan area, laced together with bridges and freeways—everyone calls it Tampa Bay, and it is a prototypical example of the Sun Belt's explosive growth." Before this explosion, however, Tampa was primarily known for Busch Gardens, the beer-company's homage to thrill rides and exotic animals. Today it's a whole different story; although families looking for amusement will still find it here. But for the more grownup-exclusive crowd, a little dose of Ybor City is as close as you can get to Cuba without breaking federal law.
Photo credit: Centro Ybor in Tampa's historic Ybor City (Visit Florida)
Starting out from just outside Naples in southwest Florida, the 50-mile Tamiami Trail Scenic Highway will take you into the heart of one of America’s last topical wilderness: the Everglades. The wetlands of Big Cypress National Preserve (and adjacent Everglades National Park) protect rare orchids, the endangered Florida panther, and a thriving ecosystem under siege from the demands of agriculture and urbanization.
Gliding along the herringbone brick drive, past palms planted in orderly rows and a gleaming fountain, toward the iconic twin Belvedere towers, one gets the impression that The Breakers has things well in hand. The resort is the perfect spot for guests who want to let down their guard and hand over the reins to someone else for a while. With over a century of practice, The Breakers astutely commands its 140 acres of seaside Palm Beach, a lavish resort exemplifying old-school luxury at its finest.
File this nightly event under: Must See to Understand. And yes, it’s free! Famous within certain circles and a wonderful surprise to tourists who discover it without forewarning, Key West’s sunset party in Mallory Square is one of America’s greatest street theater experiences. The level of talent spans the spectrum, from “Wow, isn’t that guy in Cirque du Soleil?” to “Wow, I can’t believe that guy would make such a fool out of himself in public.” There are jugglers and acrobats and musicians and performance artists… as well as crafters and vendors, hawkers and hagglers, and hordes of European tourists who are typically more wowed by the sunset than the human spectacles playing out from every direction. (Street theater is not uncommon in Europe, after all.)
The preferred part-time home of people with surnames like Trump, Kennedy, and Vanderbilts, Palm Beach has a high society pedigree that’s both enticing and intimidating. However, Palm Beach County is bigger than Rhode Island, and has a lot of diverse, colorful communities—not all of which require an AMEX Black to appreciate.
West Palm Beach is a walkable city with views of the water and the island of Palm Beach. Clematis Street is loaded with restaurants, shops, boutiques, bars. It’s charming, picturesque, and a great jumping-off point from which to explore other places in the county, especially its exclusive little neighbor just offshore.
With 50 miles of beautiful beaches and more than 100 islands, the beaches of Fort Myers and nearby Sanibel Island spoil people for choice. If you’re a first-time visitor, you may have a hard time knowing where to start, so let us help you with this mini-guide to five quintessential beach experiences you can have in this idyllic southwest Florida destination.
Fort Myers Beach is actually on Estero Island. Accommodations here skew more affordable and family-friendly than on neighboring islands. There’s a wide array of motorized water-sport offerings including jet skiing, parasailing, and—definitely not something you see everywhere—jet-ski dolphin tours. The hub is Times Square. This is the shopping/dining/entertainment district, adjacent to the walkable pier. Further down, Lover’s Key State Park spans over 100 acres and 2½ miles of beautiful Gulf of Mexico beachfront. Travel Channel once named it Florida’s most romantic beach, though some locals suspect that has a lot to do with the name.
Florida's Paradise Coast is not just known for its Gulf of Mexico beaches—though those are beautiful indeed. It’s also an arts community, a wildlife haven, a last bastion of old Florida, and a base camp from which to explore the Everglades.
Marco Island is right on the edge of the Everglades, 20 minutes south of Naples City. Its tropical-island beauty, white-sand beaches, and water sports naturally create a laidback vibe that recalls Hawaii or the nicer parts of the Caribbean. But it does have unique flavor. For example, wave-runner tours don’t just stay within the Gulf of Mexico... instead, participants find themselves wending slowly through mangrove estuaries, spotting spoonbills and egrets, and waving to local fishermen in tiny boats.
Try these three coastal havens for an easy-on-the-wallet beach escape.
Atlantic City, New Jersey You don’t have to gamble away your life savings to enjoy a getaway at this classic Mid-Atlantic tourist destination. Hit the buffets at some of the nicer casino hotels early in the day for the best bargain (without a bellyache), or visit the famous pizza stands along the boardwalk and enjoy the free ocean views.
Here are some tips to help you make the most of your Disney vacation:
Meet and Greets - Upon entering the park, resist the urge to walk with the crowds up Main Street, USA. Instead, take the Walt Disney World Railroad to the back of the park straight to Toon Town. Be first in line to meet and greet the princesses and fairies.
- Character Breakfasts in the resorts offer a great way to get pictures with the characters without wasting precious time standing in lines at the parks
Star in a Show - Storytime with Belle (Magic Kingdom): Arrive early and sit up front. Before the show starts, find one of the assistants and let them know that your child would love to help Belle tell her story
- Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular (Hollywood Studios): Stand up and wave frantically when the casting director asks for extras to volunteer. Making noise helps, too.
