Fabio

We will be spending 3 nights in Sarasota, 1 in Venice and 2 in Fort Myers next week.

Need some advices and suggestions for visiting these spots

car parking ? where ?
Chairs and umbrellas rentals ?

thanks a lot !

Fabio

oops above questions are related to the beaches not to the places where we overnight !

garyt22

Most of the public beaches have limited parking, but cars are in and out and if you are patient or willing to walk, you will have little trouble... plus its off season

We find it much cheaper to purchase a sand umbrella and a couple of folding chairs at the start of our trip and bring them to the beach... walmart, costco, walgreens, all have them... that way we can select our spot on any beach, especially when the cost is the same as one day rentals...

at the end of the Vacation we just offer them to another family on the beach or leave them with the hotel...

Fabio

that's a great idea ! We definitely won't fly that stuff back to EU at the end.

pantanal

Those are all great areas with great beaches. Sanibel and Siesta Key are better known, but Stump Pass is great, too. The best way to see Stump Pass, IMO, is to walk the trail (there's only one) from the parking lot along the bay side and through the maritime forest to the end of the sandy spit, with great views of the bay meeting the ocean and of the island (Boca Grande?) in the distance. Then walk back to the parking lot along the beach, stopping where you like. Lots of driftwood and not many people...a very natural, undeveloped area to visit.

JoJoSiestaKey

Siesta Key is the nicest beach of the bunch and honestly, one of the best in the world.

Park at the Public Beach parking lot and right as you enter the beach you'll see someone renting chairs and umbrellas. You can also buy drinks and food at the pavilion.

You'll love Siesta!!

Fabio

thank you!! just landed yesterday in Miami from Europe now first day out of Sarasota. Our trip starts ! thanks again.

wintersp

From Ft Myers, please do go over to Sanibel for a visit. Check out the Dingling nature preserve and check out the beaches.

emalloy

In Venice, there is a beach near the fishing pier, just past the small airport that has lots of fossil shark teeth in the sand along the shore. Fun to spend a little time looking for them.

In Ft. Myers, go to the Edison home/labs. They do tours and have very interesting plants on the grounds.

Fabio

Hi !

Just back home, everything was perfect, including the weather ! It was actually better than here in Europe/Italy. It looks rainy season moved over here in July and August this year !
Bought beach umbrella and beach chair at Walmart in Sarasota as suggested. Went to Siesta Key beach, fabulous white sand, then Lido beach in Sarasota, then Sanibel Island from Fort Myers, The Everglades, Key West, Miami Beach and Fort Lauderdale. Every place was different and we had a great time. Thanks a lot for your suggestions.