Just got back from Florida.Went to Sista Key and the beach is one of the prettiest I have been to. Also went to Pompomo Beach. Really liked it to.

I’m looking for a nice family vacation spot in Florida. Somewhat secluded or at least out of the crosshairs of Destin/Gulf Shores/Panama City Beach type of areas. Reasonably priced and preferably as close to the beach as possible.

 

Any suggestions?

 

We're going to Perdido Key here at the end of the month, based on suggestions of some BGPers.

We're going to Perdido Key here at the end of the month, based on suggestions of some BGPers.

 

Yeah I know we have some well versed travelers on here. Seaside Beach has my eye already.

I might go to the Florida keys in June.

Rent a house or condo in any of the following:

 

St Pete Beach / Treasure Island

 

Anna Maria Island

 

Siesta Key

 

HomeAway: Vacation Rentals, Beach Houses, Cabins & More

Sanibel Island was pretty good for a spring break 4 years ago. Variety of condos. Beaches were uncrowded.

 

Bit of a long drive from here. You can fly into Ft. Meyers or Tampa if you get a rental car. Could even fly into Ft. Lauderdale and cut across 'the alley' if flights are cheaper there.

Sorry. I don't vacation in Florida.

Out of Lexington. Allegiant flies to:

 

Clearwater - An UBER to St Pete Beach from there is $26. No need to rent a car in SPB. There's a free taxi service from John's Pass to Pass-a-Grille all you do is tip. There is also tons of places you can just walk to.

 

Punta Gorda - Roughly 1/2 way between Siesta Key and Fort Myers. You'll want to rent a car. Anna Maria Island is about 1/2 way between Punta Gorda and Clearwater airport, so if you were to choose Anna Maria, it wouldn't matter which airport you choose.

 

Fort Lauderdale - Can't tell you much. I don't go to that side very often.

 

Orlando - Not a Disney guy and too far from the beach for me.

 

Summertime is a slower season in all of these areas except Orlando. Condo/house rentals will be cheaper at that time of the year.

 

 

Side note. If you go to the airport to buy your tickets for Allegiant. They will be roughly $30 cheaper per ticket.

 

They charge a convenience fee to book on line and also a credit card fee. They don't charge either at the airport.

 

Here's the but, they only sell tickets for about 30 minutes each day at the airport, and it changes every month. It's on my way home, and I buy tickets there every month so I always have a picture of their calendar. If you want to go that route PM me and I'll send you the calendar. When you buy 4 or 5 tickets at a time like I do, the savings is worth it.

Edited March 7, 20188 yr by coldweatherfan

Out of Lexington. Allegiant flies to:

 

Clearwater - An UBER to St Pete Beach from there is $26. No need to rent a car in SPB. There's a free taxi service from John's Pass to Pass-a-Grille all you do is tip. There's is also tons of places you can just walk to.

 

Punta Gorda - Roughly 1/2 way between Siesta Key and Fort Myers. You'll want to rent a car. Anna Maria Island is about 1/2 way between Punta Gorda and Clearwater airport, so if you were to choose Anna Maria wouldn't matter which airport you choose.

 

Fort Lauderdale - Can't tell you much. I don't go to that side very often.

 

Orlando - Not a Disney guy and too far from the beach for me.

 

Summertime is a slower season in all of these areas except Orlando. Condo/house rentals will be cheaper at that time of the year.

 

 

Side note. If you go to the airport to buy your tickets for Allegiant. They will be roughly $30 cheaper per ticket.

 

They charge a convenience fee to book on line and also a credit card fee. They don't charge either at the airport.

 

Also they only sell tickets for about 30 minutes each day at the airport, and it changes every month. It's on my way home, and I buy tickets there every month so I always have a picture of their calendar. If you want to go that route PM me and I'll send you the calendar. When you buy 4 or 5 tickets at a time like I do, the savings is worth it.

 

Thanks for the info on Allegiant. I will try that next time I fly to Florida

Thanks for the info on Allegiant. I will try that next time I fly to Florida

 

They fly out of Cinci and Louisville too.

 

LEX to Clearwater is a 1 hour and 45 minute flight. That's a whole bunch better than driving 14 hours.

 

For whatever strange reason though, LEX always seems to be a little cheaper.

We are going to give the Tampa/St. Pete/Clearwater area a try this summer. Busch Gardens, Florida Aquarium are on the to-do list.

Looking forward to it.

 

Busch Gardens will take a day. Adventure Island will take another.

 

The Tampa Aquarium can take good part of a day, especially if you go on the Wild Dolphin Adventure. However, if you plan it right, you can pare an Aquarium visit with a stop at the Tampa Museum of Art and eat in the Channel Side district downtown.

 

You could also take in Tampa's Riverwalk, rent a boat, and travel up the Hillsborough River from the Port of Tampa, stopping at restaurants and shops that are along the banks.

 

Ybor City is worth a look. It's a different place, to be sure. Not everybody's cup of tea.

 

The kiddies love Dinosaur World, at least my grandkiddies did.

 

Too bad you are not down here this week. The Florida Strawberry Festival is going on in Plant City right now. Lots of music, rides, and fair stuff. 50 million ways to prepare the sweetest strawberries in the world, too.

 

If you stay on Gulf Blvd., you have access to beaches from St. Pete Beach up to the Clearwater Beaches, including Madeira, North and South Reddington Beach, Bellair Beach, Treasure Island, and Sand Key.

 

There are dinner cruises from Clearwater Marina, nightly I think. Some go out into international waters and allow gambling. Fishing boat charters are a plenty.

 

Speaking of gambling, there is the Seminole Hard Rock Casino.

 

Ya'll can go see Winter and Hope at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium and Rescue Center.

 

Fort De Soto Park has good camp ground facilities right on the water.

 

Revitalized downtown St. Pete has excellent night life. The Dali Museum is down there, too.

 

A few miles north of Clearwater are the beaches of Dunedin including Caladesi Island State Park and Honeymoon Island.

 

I don't even know where to start to list all of the public golf courses. Too bad I didn't renew my USF football tickets. I always got 2 vouchers for a round on The Claw, USF's own golf course. I have always given them away, since I don't golf.

 

There's a ton of other stuff to do, too. That list is just off the top of my head.

 

Hope that helps you plan a little.

If you never been to the Everglades I recommend going and checking it out it is really cool to see all the wild animals.

Busch Gardens will take a day. Adventure Island will take another.

 

The Tampa Aquarium can take good part of a day, especially if you go on the Wild Dolphin Adventure. However, if you plan it right, you can pare an Aquarium visit with a stop at the Tampa Museum of Art and eat in the Channel Side district downtown.

 

You could also take in Tampa's Riverwalk, rent a boat, and travel up the Hillsborough River from the Port of Tampa, stopping at restaurants and shops that are along the banks.

 

Ybor City is worth a look. It's a different place, to be sure. Not everybody's cup of tea.

 

The kiddies love Dinosaur World, at least my grandkiddies did.

 

Too bad you are not down here this week. The Florida Strawberry Festival is going on in Plant City right now. Lots of music, rides, and fair stuff. 50 million ways to prepare the sweetest strawberries in the world, too.

 

If you stay on Gulf Blvd., you have access to beaches from St. Pete Beach up to the Clearwater Beaches, including Madeira, North and South Reddington Beach, Bellair Beach, Treasure Island, and Sand Key.

 

There are dinner cruises from Clearwater Marina, nightly I think. Some go out into international waters and allow gambling. Fishing boat charters are a plenty.

 

Speaking of gambling, there is the Seminole Hard Rock Casino.

 

Ya'll can go see Winter and Hope at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium and Rescue Center.

 

Fort De Soto Park has good camp ground facilities right on the water.

 

Revitalized downtown St. Pete has excellent night life. The Dali Museum is down there, too.

 

A few miles north of Clearwater are the beaches of Dunedin including Caladesi Island State Park and Honeymoon Island.

 

I don't even know where to start to list all of the public golf courses. Too bad I didn't renew my USF football tickets. I always got 2 vouchers for a round on The Claw, USF's own golf course. I have always given them away, since I don't golf.

 

There's a ton of other stuff to do, too. That list is just off the top of my head.

 

Hope that helps you plan a little.

 

Wow, thank you so much for taking the time to do this!

I appreciate it greatly!

We stayed in Madeira Beach a couple years ago. The only good thing about the place was the crowds as it’s not bad at all. The water was murky and there were a couple people that got stung by stingrays right outside our small building. It’s not a place we would go back to.

We stayed in Madeira Beach a couple years ago. The only good thing about the place was the crowds as it’s not bad at all. The water was murky and there were a couple people that got stung by stingrays right outside our small building. It’s not a place we would go back to.

 

Very seldom is the water murky in that area. You must have just had some bad luck.