We have been priced out of vacatoning in the Caribbean and are now considering Marco Island Fla. We will be traveling mid-Feb. 05 with 3 adults 2 14-year olds and a 10 year old. Besides the beaches, what activities are there on the island. Is it too quiet for teenager girls?

Any comments/reccomendations are appreciated.

Thanks for your help.

Marco Island is fairly sedate. If you're looking for an adult quiet get-away, that's Marco. But the teens will like beaches such as Daytona, Panama City, St. Pete Beach, Ft. Lauderdale, and South Beach. We live in Tampa and my 15-year-old and his friends like St. Pete Beach or Treasure Island.

I don't know what kind of shape Panama City is after the latest hurricane but if it's ok, I'd skip it and consider Destin or Sandestin instead. Panama City is a Spring Break hangout these days, not my first choice in towns...Ft Laud or maybe Boca Raton...haven't been to St. Pete in ages but liked it when I went there last. How's Clearwater these days, Tandoori Girl? Should they think consider that?

I've consulted the expert for this opinion. My 15-year-old. He prefers St. Pete. I think Clearwater is a bit older crowd. He went not too long ago with some others his age and reported back that he preferred St. Pete Beach.

I went to Clearwater recently and stayed on the north end which is where everyone used to go before all those high-rises were built. It is still a great beach and I'd recommend it to anyone for its white, white sand. But once again, the 15-y.o. will give it a thumbs down.

I suppose others would frown on my suggestion to take the kids to South Beach. In fact, Fayzie, I think I'll withdraw that suggestion. It might be a bit too much what with all the adults behaving badly.

Thanks for the responses. What would you reccomend in St. Pete besides the beach? Is it an area that 2 teenage girls would be safe in if they wanted to be out on their own? Thanks again!

Fayzie, you're getting good advice here from TGirl, and my teens (we live on Treasure Island) like to go to the Tradewinds and play volleyball on the beach. It is centrally located on St. Pete Beach's main drag, Gulf Boulevard, which is quite safe for walking. There's minigolf, a shopping center, restaurants, etc all along here. Family oriented too.

P.S. Have you checked out all inclusive resorts in Playa del Carmen, Mexico? Our friends talked us into going, it was bargain-priced compared to the Caribbean, and there was plenty to do, the teens loved it. We went over Thanksgiving.

Joan,

We did look into Playa del Carmen. I think becuase Feg. is the "peak season", even there the prices were high. But now you've got me curious about going over Thanksgiving. How long did you stay? How was the weather? I was shying away from the AI resorts, since we like to explore different restaurants on our own. Overall. how would you compare St. PEte and Playa del Carmen?

And thank you Joan and Tandoori girl for all the very helpful info.

The girls will like the beach. There are shops along the beach. There are video arcades (with boys!). There is Tyrone Square Mall nearby and some other malls. There is the Shake Shop, that great candy store in Madiera Beach, Larry's Ice Cream. You can roller-blade behind the Thunderbird in Treasure Island. There's a great bead shop on Corey Avenue. They can rent bikes. They can hop on the beach trolley and go see the birds at the Suncoast Seabird Sanctuary. They can go into downtown St. Pete to the shops at BayWalk.

Whew. I'm tired.

Fayzie, we stayed for a week, and the weather was beautiful. As far as the differences: they didn't even recognize Thanksgiving or have turkey on the menu at the very European resort where we stayed. (We were booked at the Reef Club Playacar but were "walked" upon arrival to another resort) So the differences are: weather warmer, especially in Feb, Mexican culture vs US, alcohol permitted for teens over 15 (this was not an issue for us - the kids did not drink more than one weak drink). The "town" was not as safe-feeling as St. Pete Beach is. But we spent so little, we did not mind going out and spending again on restaurants, especially during our daytime walks into town for cerveza and burritos!