My mother has asked me to go with her to visit her sister in Estero early April. My aunt who lives there is near 75, and not a beach person (my mother and I am). Maps show beaches several miles away, and just wondering if you are familiar with this area, traffic, etc,...I also found an outfit for kayaking called Estero river something, and thought this would be something for me to do when they afternoon nap. Thanks for any tips!

Estero is a small community or area -- there's no real town to speak of between Ft. Myers and Bonita Springs. It is rapidly disappearing as that entire area is gradually becoming golf and gated communities. To get to the beach you need to go north and around to Ft. Myers Beach, or go south and around to Bonita Beach.
I've never done it but the Estero River kayaking should be great -- it used to be total wilderness but I suppose these days you will see a lot more "civilization along the river". Traffic in the area is pretty bad in April, because to go anywhere you need to get on 41, the main "slow" road between Naples and Ft. Myers.

I am not Patrick, but I wanted to also tell you that from the Estero area you could take Alico Road to the outlets (near the Interstate) and the other direction Summerlin Rd. will take you all the way to Sanibel, which has charming beaches and shops and restaurants.

You'll have to travel 41 and it will take you forever to get anywhere. Just be ready for lots of traffic.

This is also near a fairly new university, Florida Ulf Coast University, which might have an event or two worth attending (art show? athletic event? theatre department play?).

Just some FYI ideas. Have fun.

Thanks to both of you for the info...in time, about how long would it take to drive to Sanibel?? Would love to do that for an afternoon. The farthest south I've been on the gulf coast is Venice, which was just beautiful. Also, the outlets sound like a quick getaway, too!

Depends on the traffic. I'd plan for 30-45 minutes, though it's not nearly that long mileage wise. There are also outlets that direction too, but they are not nearly as good as the Miramar outlets off the Interstate. Take a plastic bag with you to Sanibel. When you go to the beach there, go all the way to the end of the island, to Blind Pass (the area between Sanibel and Captiva), and that is where you will find the easiest parking, best beach, and best shells. And bring your camera! Plenty of nice lunch and dinner places too! Be forewarned, however: $6 toll bridge to get onto the island!

Hi, I'm going to Estero too, in March. I've been to the area before (Ft. Myers, Naples & Sanibel) and it's very nice. A nice thing you might want to do with your mom & aunt is visit either Henry Ford's Winter Home or Thomas Edison's Winter Home (they are next door to each other in Ft. Myers). I've been to Thomas Edison's and it was a nice tour of home, laboratory & grounds.

My husband and I are meeting relatives to watch the Twins in Spring Training. If you are a Boston Red Sox fan I understand they do their Spring Training in Ft. Myers as well.

Sanibel is a wonderful island, though I haven't been there since (Wilma?) hit. Once you get over the toll bridge watch for signs for the public beach. They have an awesome public beach, though you'll pay a few bucks for parking. I have always seen dolphins there and Sanibel is known for their world-class shelling. Broken shells are all over the beach so bring something to protect your feet. Hope you have a wonderful time.

Nessie, I'm not sure how you even found this post, but luugis was looking for information to go to Estero in April of 2005 -- that was two years ago, so I suspect that trip is over.

hey neopatrick,
luugis' trip may be over, but others (like me) are still interested in the advise!

Of course, but it just makes sense to me that anyone looking for Estero information who does a search would find this old post, and anyone with new information about Estero would start a new thread. Estero is not even the same community it was two years ago! Nessie seemed to be directly giving specific advice to a two year old question.
But no problem. I suspect she didn't realize the post was that old.