My wife and I are thinking about flying down to Florida from May 10-15th. We want a relaxed laid-back atmosphere where we can just relax on the beach. One thing that worries me are the Spring-Breakers. I want to steer clear from that scene. Also, I want to try and keep the expenses to a minimum.

Any recommendations for a place on the beach for $100 or less, close enough for a cab into the city, quiet, etc?

Thanks for any help.

Spring break generally coincides with the weeks surrounding Easter/Passover. Since Easter is early this year, May should be "safe" from Spring Breakers. I can't really recommend a specific hotel since I live and have family in Florida, but the Gulf coast is usually a liitle lower priced (food, gas, restaurants etc.) than South Florida. I would look into the Clearwater area. There are lots of little beach towns along the west coast that have good, inexpensive places to eat and many have free or cheap nightly entertainment. My parents live in that area and I always have fun when visiting over there. (I'm in my early 40's, parents are in their mid 60's). Enjoy your trip!

Hopefully by May most of the Spring Breakers will be gone, they are usually up here from March and April. Definetly the north west part of FL is cheaper than south FL. Clearwater is good suggestion, but may I also recommend the Apalachicola area? Panama City will still be too crowded prob for your tastes (and is really a "tacky tourist trap" - and I live here!) in early May, Destin/Sandestin tend to be priceier and are slightly crowded, but there is more to do. Seaside is definetly too expensive, but good to see for the day. Hotels are cheap in the Mexico Beach, Port St Joe, Cape San Blas (which was voted number one beach in the world two years running by the "beach Dr") area. Apalach tends to be a little more expensive (don't ask me why) but you can prob find something for your price range. go to mexicobeach.com and you can link to stuff on most of those places.

Let me try to summarize (these are my personal generalizations):
1) Pensacola-Destin area - great, expansive, brilliant-white sand beaches. Very family oriented area. Nothing overly "chi-chi" as far as lodging and restaurants.
2) St.Pete/Clearwater-Sarasota area - also very nice beaches. The weekends bring some horrible traffic. Some upper scale resorts, restaurants and shopping.
3) Palm Beach (Atlantic side) and Naples (gulf side) - very chi-chi. Lots of money. Lots of resorts. Lots of great shopping and eating to be had.
4) Miami (south Beach) - also chi-chi. Nightlife. Retro. Neon. Women in thongs. Europeans. Great restaurants. Expensive lodging.
5) The Keys - very laid back. Good eats and lodging in Key West. More for the outdoorsy type or those who want to get away. Also popular with young people who like to drink lots of beer and whose idea of good eating is going to a place called "Crabbie Dicks."
6) Jacksonville-St Augustine - history in St Augustine, but really not much else in area to warrant a trip.
Have fun.

Ft. Lauderdale is also a nice place to just get away, nice beach variety of hotels directly accross the street from the beach. Lots of places to eat both within walking distance or a short cab ride. Pleant of info on the web.

My absolute favorite is Sanibel Island, fly into Ft. Myers and a short drive out to the island. It has been our favorite retreat for relaxation for years. I prefer May and October. Good luck.

If you still find "spring-breakers" in early to mid-May they must have gooten so intoxicated that they forgot to return to school and flunked out! Most U.S. colleges wind up the academic year around late April with final exams in early May and commencement cermonies in mid-May. Very few exceptions to this other than the few schools who have adopted year-round schedule but they are samall in number.

Hi Peter. We stayed in Destin last spring and thought it was wonderful; in fact we're going back this September. We were there around Mother's Day last year (mid-May) and found the weather absoultely perfect; 80's in the day; 60's/70's at night. A great website is VRBO.com (vacation rentals by owners) -- you won't believe all the lisings for condos and houses; not just Florida, but all over the world! I contacted an owner -- no hitches whatsoever. Our condo was a 2-bedroom/2bath/ wonderfully furnished. There was also a sleeper sofa in the living room. (Around $500 for the week.) Our daily game plan (and it was truly a plan!): breakfast/lunch as a "fend for yourselves" (we'd stocked up at a local grocery), afternoons of sunbathing/reading on the beach (or golf), and a nice place to eat each evening. (We were six adults.) Call us corny, but we had a ball: every evening was "movie night," as each person brought a favorite movie (couldn't tell ahead of time what it was), then we gave clues so the others could guess what "tonight's" movie would be. The ladies also chose a book to read (weeks beforehand) and had our own little "beach book club" - it was such fun. The men in our group tried different golf courses every other day (and in Destin, there are many! some very pricey by the way). I'd been to Grand Cayman twice the year before and could not believe my eyes when I saw the beach/water at Destin! I kept saying, "This water is so clear; the sand is like powder (really, like powder) -- and the cost is sooo much less than the Caymans. Another website is Southernresorts.com -- there's a beach house we toured while we were there (to perhaps rent this September),the Beach Peach; it was beautiful -- a little big for two though. Anyway, didn't mean to ramble, but wanted to let you know what a nice area Destin is. Hope this helps.

Peter,

"Spring Breakers" are out of school for the summer mid may. You may have a crowd of recent grads celebrating, but not "spring breakers". College spring break is early/mid march.

have a good trip.

Peter:

Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, FL. 5 miles north of Ft. Lauderdale. The beach is substantially less crowded than Ft. L. No motel can be higher than three stories. Stay at Coral Key (coralkeyinn.com) in 1 BD suite, w/full kitchen, about $70-74 a night off season (when you are going). It's easy walking distance to a small mall w/grocery store and Eckerd Drug in it. You may want to try staying at Blue Seas Courtyard (blueseascourtyard.com) that is about 2 blocks from Coral Key. I prefer Coral Key because it is right across El Mar Drive from an Ocean access path. Blue Seas has rooms decorated beautifully in Peruvian decor. Not much more expensive and the 1 BDs there are huge.

Peter--
I'll let you in on my secret place, which has been discovered by a few Northerners and a few aware Europeans. It's a small stretch of land with white sand beach along the Gulf just outside of St. Petersburg, name of Pass-a-Grille Beach. Lot of history there, actually a National Historic District, with old homes that have somehow survived. Beaches are never very crowded, and Pass-a-Grille has lots of small hotels and inns, with lots of peaceful lounging and relaxing that time of year. Also it has an internationally known restaurant right on the beach--the Hurricane restaurant--that you might want to try. The view from their rooftop bar is fantastic. You fly into Tampa or into St. Pete-Clearwater airport and (preferably)rent a car to come over. Pass-a-Grille is actually the southern tip of St. Pete Beach, but it's an area that only those in the know usually go to. I think it's ideal for the kind of place you want to go, and you don't even have to reserve a hotel or guest house ahead of time. Also nearby is one of the world's top beaches, at Fort DeSoto Park.

Treasure Island, Florida!!!!
fly into Tampa/St. Petersburg. rent a car, short drive.
It's a hidden secret... beautiful, white, sandy beaches. Quiet, serene.

Florida's a big State. Where exactly are you going? Spring Break is over during your possible visit time. Do some homework on one of the online travel agencies.

Hi,
Has anyone rented by owner through
VRBO.com? I was wondering how it all works - money, key, making sure its legit.
Thanks!

I would agree with everyone here who said Destin is a beautiful place to stay. The spring breakers will be long gone (I was just there a few weeks ago and it was mostly families). I would get in touch with Southern Resorts (www.southernresorts.com) or try the Destin home page (www.destin.com). As for Panama City, it's too rednecky (sorry for the guy who lives there) and Seaside is too pricey-but you may want to take a day trip there from Destin (only takes @ 30 minutes to get there).
You might also want to consider Key West. Have fun wherever you decide to go!