DavidS

i am flying in from england on 28th march and wish to spend 3 nights in driving distance from tallahassee where my brother has just moved to. He will be at work during office hours so i would like to stay somewhere that my girlfriend and I can enjoy during the day but close enough to drive to visit during the evening (1 or 2 hrs). Could anyone help? All ideas welcomed

Guy18

You would need to tell us what surroundings you like. It's tricky because Tallahassee is a very isolated place. You have two choices if you don't want to be right in Tallahassee--the beach or a SMALL, southern town. Shell Point is the closest beach to Tallahassee if I remember correctly, but I don't know if there are anything else than private homes there. Monticello Florida and Thomasville Georgia are among nearby quaint southern towns with 19th century Main Streets and antique shops. I've been to Thomasville and it's nice. But, honestly, I would choose to stay in Tallahassee itself and do day trips to these places, all of which are very tiny. There may be beds and breakfasts in the rolling countryside surrounding Tallahassee. If that appeals to you, do some websearching, and see what comes up. Hope that helps...

Guy18

P.S. There are natural attractions nearby like springs and state parks, but, again, things that would require a couple of hours to visit--not really places I'd want to stay.

Sunshinesue

The closest decent beach to Tallahassee is St. George Island. It is 1.5 to 2 hours away depending on where in Tallahassee your brother lives. (Shell point and aligator point are closer but the beaches are not nice. There would be no point in staying there.)

There are primarliy houses to rent on St. George but also some condos. The only problem I see is that you will be here during spring break and you probably won't be able to rent a condo for less than a week. There is a nice inn but it is not directly on the gulf.

http://www.stgeorgeinn.com/

There is also a small motel, The Buccaneer Inn, but I would not recommend it.

I will have to go along with Guy and suggest you stay in Tallahassee and take day trips. I also don't think you will enjoy making make that drive back to St. George late at night.

If you do decide to stay in Tallahasee I would be glad to make suggestions for interesting things to do in the area.

LynAK

Stay in Tallahassee. Go to Wakulla Springs. Find out about other springs in the area. Go to St. George for the day or go there and stay overnight in the St. George Inn for one night if you can book a room. It isn't directly on the beach but isn't far at all to the beach, within easy walking distance. The beaches at St. George are beautiful. Visit Apalachicola across the bay from St. George, a very quaint and nice old fashioned coastal town with a lot of artsy stores these days.

Tallahassee is a nice town but doesn't have a lot of typical tourist attractions. There may be some good cultural events or concerts on at the universities...check www.fsu.edu If you are interested in Florida history you can visit the R.A. Gray Museum and the Old Capitol building which are downtown. There is also a modest art and science museum downtown.

The Spring break for colleges here is NOT the week of March 28th. It is earlier (the week of the 13th I think) and the public school Spring break ends on the week just preceding Mar. 28th so I don't think that should be a factor with booking.

DavidS

Thank you so much. Your replies were very welcomed. Sunshinesue, if you could add anything to the other guys that would be fantastic. Thank you again

Sunshinesue

Maybe I should clarify this. I wasn't referring to spring break in Tallahassee but to spring break in general. Spring break for Tallahassee students is irrelevant to the poster's situation. But if he wants to stay at the beach during his visit, spring break can be an issue. The beaches are very crowded from approximately the first of March till the middle of April accomodating spring breakers from many other cities and states. This makes rentals hard to find and the ones that are available are likely to have a one week minimum requirement.

LynAK

Hey Sunshine...you are right about the situation with general Spring Break. I was just thinking about Tallahassee and St. George in particular. St. George has never been a big college student spring break location, except for families who tend to go there during local spring breaks. It is very hard to get a spot there during the week of our local public school break. I don't think they would necessarily have a hard time getting one night at the St. George Inn as it isn't in the price range of most individual college students. Houses at St. George are usually only available by the week though you can sometimes get last minute deals. I would be more inclined to worry about general availablity in Panama City Beach than St. George. Also, if just staying for a night at St. George they would probably be OK at the Buccaneer. Best idea is just to hit some of the websites for St. George. They are pretty sophiticated. I would definitely recommend a drive to St. George even if these folks don't stay overnight. It is really a beautiful beach, though the public section at the East End got damaged last hurricane...but I think the public section is opened again and it is really the pristine wild part of the island, no houses, just dunes and water.

Sunshinesue

Hi David,
Sorry, I didn't see your post before my last post. As far as things to do I think LynAK had some good suggestions. I would definitely go to Wakulla Springs. (The old original Tarzan movies were filmed there.) You can get "up close and personal" with a lot of wildlife, including alligators, on the jungle (boat) cruise. And if the glass bottom boats are running, do that too. You can have lunch in the 1930's lodge.

http://www.floridastateparks.org/wak...gs/default.cfm

http://www.wakullacounty.com/wakulla-5.htm

The Tallahassee Museum of History and Natural Science might be interesting to you. It include a natural habitat zoo, and an 1800's farm. During the time you are here there will be a Nepoleon exhibit also.

http://tallahasseemuseum.org/

If you are into spelunking (huh?) Florida Caverns State Park is an hour west of Tallahassee in Mariana.

http://www.goodearthgraphics.com/showcave/fa.html

You definitely want to spend some time at the coast. St. George is lovely and as LynAK suggested, drive down to the state park on the east end.

However, if you want to see really beautiful, "knock your socks off" beaches and charming beach communities drive to the beaches of South Walton. They are located on a stretch of road, (highway 30A) between Panama City Beach and Destin. The original and most famous of these communities is Seaside, where the Jim Carey movie The Truman Show was filmed. If you have seen that movie, you have seen Seaside.

http://beachesofsouthwalton.com/

http://www.seasidefl.com/

If you want to spend a night I highly recommend the Watercolor Inn. It is on the expensive side but a great and unique experience.

http://www.watercolorinn.com/

About 30 minutes north of Tallahassee is the historic town of Thomasville, Georgia. I don't know that there would be a lot to entertain you in the town but you might enjoy a visit to Pebble Hill Plantation.

http://www.pebblehill.com/

Pebble Hill is actually south of Thomasville so you don't have to go all the way to T'ville to see it.

Well, that is all I can think of at the moment. If you have any questions, feel free to post again.