hi fodorites,

i'd like to take a family vacation to florida in april 2016 and am looking for some recommendations on destination and accommodations. here are some details:

- beachfront (like ON the beach - not across the street, not down the way, etc.)
- 2 bedrooms, kitchen required (veranda/lanai would be nice)
- hubby, myself, 4 year old and 18 month old will be in tow (toddler will still have one nap a day and a fairly early bedtime)
- prefer gulf versus atlantic
- will rent a car
- max one hour from major airport (with non-stop flight from toronto)
- don't need nightlife, not doing disney or any major attractions - just want to let the kids have fun on the beach and chill out as a family
- we'll likely do breakfast and lunch at the condo and hit family friendly/casual restaurants for an early-ish dinner (i.e. 5 pm)
- one week timeframe
- accommodations budget - approx $2000 for the week

i've found ocean's reach condo (http://www.oceansreach.com/) on sanibel island and so far that is my #1 pick but i thought i'd throw this out there to other fodorites to see what else i could consider.

thanks so much for your help!

Well, where in Florida do the non-stop flights from Toronto go?

If Ocean's Reach is under 2G for a week, book it. You won't find anything that nice nearby for that price. Some places that are $3500 a week are sold out already for April.

You'll want a screened porch as March/April can be annoyingly invaded by mosquitoes.

ISO means ?

They come here, to Fort Lauderdale is where those N/S flights from YYZ go, amongst other places.

The house near ours is for rent and it is oceanfront on Fort Lauderdale beach (not the part with all the hotels and the Connie Francis shrine). If you want i can find out how much a rental costs. Place even has an oceanfront pool.

Clark, we do not HAVE mosquitoes here. You must be thinking of some redneck beach in Florida.

hi all,

thanks so much for your replies.

- ISO means "in search of"
- generally, non-stop flights head to tampa, ft myers, ft lauderdale, miami, orlando. options like destin aren't non-stop.

dukey - thanks for the offer but i think i'd prefer the gulf side, esp with the little ones.

clark - is $2k unreasonable? ocean's reach is actually $1700.

tks!!

Check out St Pete Beach. It would be an hour drive from Tampa http://www.vrbo.com/vacation-rentals.../st-pete-beach

Sorry Dukey, but Sanibel Island is plagued with mosquitoes. Why do you think they put screened porches on condos?

I guess they were gone last time we were there, Clark

Well, now that we finally KNOW which side of the state you prefer it is helpful. Guess you forgot that at the beginning.

Dukey, From the OP:

"- prefer gulf versus atlantic"

Ilaki,

Check out Sunset Vistas in Treasure Island (Near Tampa).

http://www.providentresorts.com/suns...hfront-suites/

Has everything you want and more. We have been here several times and really like it.

hi gmoney,

thanks for the recommendation.

have you been to sanibel as well? would you be able to provide a comparison of the two destinations?

Here are a couple of discussions for you:

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic...d_Florida.html

http://www.fodors.com/community/unit...rco-island.cfm

lilaki,

Sorry I have not been to Sanibel so can't compare. I have been to Marco Island and liked that very much as well. With kids I would probably recommend TI over MI as there are probably more kids activities and MI just seemed more adult oriented. Also Sunset Vistas has a regular pool and a separate kids pool. Some things I like about SV.

- Reserved covered parking space.
- Great little ice cream shop practically on property.
- Pool bar.
- Very close to John's pass entertainment/restaurant complex.
- Small restaurant good for breakfast/lunch.

clark - thank you for the links. very helpful.

gmoney - thanks for the info re: SV. ice cream is a HUGE draw with my 4 year old.

one of the things that drew me to sanibel is the shelling. we're not 'lie around on the beach' people ... my oldest loves the beach but he's always on the go looking at shells, looking for stuff in the water, digging in the sand, etc. also, being close enough to make a bathroom run back at the condo is an appealing feature with two little ones.

although ... the comments re: mosquitoes on sanibel are definitely concerning. so looks like i have more research to do.

tks!!

<Sorry Dukey, but Sanibel Island is plagued with mosquitoes. Why do you think they put screened porches on condos?>
Huh??

"They" put screen porches on condos in a lot of places, and all over the state of Florida, for one, because mosquitoes are common here and not unusually bad on Sanibel and only Sanibel. IME as a mosquito magnet, I don't notice them as much on the Atlantic side beaches, my theory being that the stiffer winds disrupt their mojo.

For years my parents spent part of winter at the Sand Dollar in Indian Shores. Simple, clean, quiet, nice pool, balconies, BBQ grills, picnic area, reasonable, not far from Tampa airport, and direct on beach. Thing I liked most when we visited was it had it's own private fishing pier. Best of all I don't recall any mosquito issues.
http://www.jcresorts.us/GetClubPrope...vent?fac=27105

I have been to Sanibel many times as it is one of my favorite places. It is very laid back. Much of the island is a nature preserve and there are restrictions on building so there are no high-rises and most of the properties are set back from the beach but still "on" the beach. We rent through VRBO, Royal Shell and SBLVacations. You shouldn't have any trouble finding a 2 bedroom condo in your price range. A couple of the larger resorts have children's activities. A car is a necessity as shopping and restaurants are generally not within walking distance of the beach.