Florida
 

I posted another message about going to Hawaii or Mexico - I think that we have decided to cut the budget and stick to Florida. I have been looking at rentals through vrbo: http://www.vrbo.com/209599; http://www.vrbo.com/12875;http://www.vrbo.com/76147
One is in Marco Island, One is in Fort Myers and one is in Naples. We are planning on going the first part of January for our 25th anniversary. We love the beach, but don't lay on the beach for hours on end. More prefer to walk on the beach or hike. We like good restaurants and things to keep us busy throughout the day. Any ideas on which of these would be the best bet? The farthest south in Florida that I have been is Treasure Island. We went there on our honeymoon 25 years ago and it was freezing - literally. We thought farther south might be a better option, so we are not familiar with any of the three towns. Thanks -

The first part of January will be anywhere from really chilly to freezing in Florida. It won't be a warm trip.

I lived in Tampa for 30 years and can recall cold days in January but also days in the 70s. Marco Island, Naples, and Ft. Myers are much more south than Tampa where most cold fronts start to fizzle out so I would be surprised if it was freezing in any of those places.

Can somebody else from the Marco Island, Naples area give me some feedback on the weather in January? I had, perhaps, the mistaken notion that it was usually in the 70's that times of year that far south in the state.

I think Naples is your best bet. We've been to southern Florida for many Christmases now and always are in shorts and swimming in the ocean.

yellowrose
You can check out Florida temps here: http://www.weatherbase.com/weather/w...357&refer=

Looks like your looking at 60's

Hi

We're not as far south as Naples - we're at Sarasota Longboat Key and the weather here in January is usually very nice and in the low 70's. Occasionally it can get up into the 80's and down in the 60's. That doesn't happen often but it can happen. We had one year when the weather was just downright cool and others when it was beautiful.

26 out of 30 days we wear shorts and walk through the water along the shoreline. Bet you can't do that up north.

"The first part of January will be anywhere from really chilly to freezing in Florida. It won't be a warm trip."

HUH? The person posting that is clearly not familiar with SOUTHWEST Florida, but may be speaking of much further north.

The average high for Naples for January 1 to 10th is 76 degrees. The average low for the same period is 54.
Last year in Naples on New Year's Day the actual high was 81. The low was 54.

There is no guarantee, but NORMALLY you can expect daytime temps in our area in early January to be in the pleasant 70s.

I'm a little confused by your post, though as both the first two rentals are in Marco and the third is in Ft. Myers Beach. I didn't see one in Naples.

Ft. Myers Beach is more "casual" than Marco -- some would say, more ticky-tacky. It's not a place known for "good restaurants". But to me Marco, while a large residential area, really doesn't have much to do -- you can drive to attractions in Naples or Ft. Myers or to the Everglades, some of which is quite close.

Have you looked for places in Bonita or Vanderbilt Beach (Bonita) which somehow seems would suit what you are talking about more?

Jaya, you missed by a mile. Where do you go, Panhandle??

Thanks for clarifying a little bit on the weather - that one post had me scared. I had looked had some of the past temperatures and it looked like most of the time it would be fairly warm. We live in northern WI, so even the 60's would be warm. We had snow today already! I'm sorry I didn't get the Naples vrbo on the other posting. http://www.vrbo.com/57189 This says olde Naples - I'm assuming this is around Naples? I will look some more on Bonita and Vanderbilt beach. There are so many listings on vrbo. A lot of them are in condos and I haven't figured out if this would be an o.k. thing - or if a private home would be better. Are the condos fairly quiet for the most part? are they similar to hotel rooms? Sorry if this seems like an ignorant question but I have never been in a condo. Thanks for your help.

Interesting listing, but Olde Naples is the same as "downtown Naples" generally regarded as south of Central Avenue between the Gulf and the Gordon River. The linked house is NOT in Olde Naples as I know it. (Although Olde Naples is PRIME real estate, so a lot of people try to capitalize on that terminology.) Perhaps from the description it is somewhere east of the Gordon River -- but in any case, it does appear to be relatively close to downtown, so more convenient to the many great downtown Naples restaurants than anything else mentioned so far.

Condos are generally apartment buildings -- especially those on the beach. Some may be more like private "villas" or townhouses". It depends on what you want -- elevator and interior hallways (like a hotel) or a private house.
There is no reason to think that a house is any quieter than a condo -- in fact many condos will "demand" more quiet than some houses where you could have very noisy neighbors.

Gosh, I have been looking at rentals tonight. I can't believe how many there are. It looks like there are a lot of condos that have beach views and within walking distance to the beaches. That would be nice. As I find some more listings of interest I will post them and get some more feedback. If any of you have recommendations for certain condos over others would appreciate it. We want to stay in the area of $1,200 or less for lodging. Thanks

You should just start sending the vrbo inquiries. Many, many condos in that area have a month minimum, sometimes a three month minimum. I assume you are going for a week? A lot of them will also be booked up. I would just start sending the e-mails with your dates to see what is available before you get your heart set on something that is not.

I sent a bunch of inquiries out today. The one that looks most interesting is on Bonita Beach: http://www.vrbo.com/3988. Anybody familiar with this area? The owner called me and described the area. Sounds like it is close enough to Naples for shopping etc. She said that the winter is usually very mild there. I'm sure there are times when it gets cold - we'll take that chance!

yellowrose, I won't kid you -- it's a good half hour to 45 minutes drive to "downtown" Naples in season. But still a better drive than from Marco. Bonita Beach is a great area -- mostly small residential. You can walk the beach for miles and it won't be crowded like at the major hotels or resorts elsewhere.

Besides, there is much that is not very far. The whole Coconut Point shopping area with a lot of good restaurants is quite close, as well as the various places scattered north of Naples to Bonita, including those at or across from Bonita Bay.

I'd choose that place in a hearbeat over either Ft. Myers Beach or Marco Island -- just a personal choice on my part.

We (meaning NeoPatrick and myself) were not kidding you when we said that most days in January are quite pleasant especially around Naples.

I also would go with Bonita Springs rather than Marco or Fort Myers for the same reasons Patrick has given.

Enjoy your time and your anniversary!

Have you considered Captiva?

Fantastic beach, cute restaurants, pretty far south, lots of rentals on or near the gulf, sunsets are great. My parents live in Naples and we love the downtown area, but Captiva to me has more of a Bahamas type feel to it, and there are some good restaurants on Sanibel as well. We took a day sale to Cabbage Key that was phenomenal.

Hi,

I lived in South Fort Myers for 15 years. One Dec it was cold, my first Dec, rotating the power cold. Killed some palm trees cold. That is rare. It is weather.

Most Januarys are wonderful mid 70's.

Bonita Beach gets my vote. Don't go any further north.

Traffic was/is horrible during the snow bird season.

Karin

ps, the Fort Myers one is close to a nude beach? I can't place it.

Hi. We have been wintering in Naples for the past 3 years and have found the weather just great.

Actually it has been warmer in January than some weeks in February as it seems there is usually a cold snap around mid-February that lasts for a few days.

I would agree with Patrick and LN that from your selections my choice would be Bonita. We weren't impressed with Marco - seems to be all high rise condos and hotels.

Have a great trip.

So you all seem to think that Bonita will be south far enough - (if the weather is normal for that time of year) for nice weather. That's good to hear and I am hearing a lot of votes for Bonita. I have heard one vote for Captive and I will check that out tonight. In 1983 during our honeymoon - we went to Disney World on Christmas day. Since we were from the north and had left Michigan at -35, we had our coats with us. A lot of people were buying beach towels and wrapping them around their bodies for warmth. My husband and I were quite comfortable in our winter wear, but we didn't get to appreciate the nice warm weather that I know FL can experience in the winter. I'm checking on some more rentals tonight - I can't believe how many there are to choose from! Thanks for all of your input. I really do appreciate it

It is amazing the temperature differences that can occur between Orlando and the Naples latitude. They are only like a three hour drive, but can mean the difference between 60 and 70.

Just to tell you how undependable the weather is, I've often told people late October is a great time to come -- usually the summer rains have ended, there is little chance of a hurricane, and the weather can be glorious, yet the crowds haven't returned. But last night we hit an all time record low in Naples for the month of October --48. It was >DAMNED< cold for us. It's beautiful, sunny and clear today, but still pretty cool for this time of year. Right now it's only 69 which might be the high for the day. But his won't last -- it's supposed to hit 80 by the weekend.

How about Southeast Florida? Ft. Lauderdale & the area just north of Ft. Lauderdale....Highland Beach/Boca Raton/Delray Beach or West Palm Beach/Palm Beach/Singer Island/Palm Beach Shores.
You can also check tug2.net for rentals. Check the TUG Classifieds section & also the "Last Minute Rentals" in the Forums section under TUG Bulletin Board.

NeoPatrick - I hope that you have warmed up there - we warmed up here in WI and the little goblins didn't have to wear coats tonight. Still haven't booked the room in Bonita Beach - but have almost decided on the duplex one across the street from the beach. I think it would be a great week. Thanks for all your input.

Bonita Beach will be fine.

Get a good map and/or a GPS and you will be able to figure out how to get almost everywhere without getting on to 41.

This will be meaningless to you now, but believe me, you will thank me for telling you that you can indeed get from BB to Naples center by a combination of attractive streets. They will not be faster than 41, but there will be plenty to look at.

When you need to shop or eat quick food, you can take 41.

Thank you for your help. We do have a GPS and will make sure to bring it along. We live in a small college town and enjoy it in the summer when the college students are gone as they swell our small town population by over 100%! Sounds the same way down there when the winter people are there!

So did you pick one?

I'm disappointed as I'm not sure we are going to be able to go on our trip. My mother lives with us now and she is getting more frail. I'm not sure we are going to be able to leave her or find good alternatives for a week. So I'm bummed. I'm a social worker at a nursing home, so have a lot of resources, but nothing is coming together yet. I still liked the duplex on Hickory Street in Bonita Beach the best.