Rec for December on gulf side in Central Florida
 

Son and DIL are in graduate school at Univ of Florida with limited time off over the Christmas/New Years holidays. Would like to rent a beach house/condo in a nice area that is fairly convenient to Gainesville but don't know the geography of Florida very well. What would be the best beach/town area between St Pete/Clearwater and towards Tallahassee to spend Christmas/New Years?

I am popping this up in case there is one person in Florida with a recommendation.

North Florida towards Tallahassee may not be warm enough for the beach in December

Tend more towards St. Pete than Tallahassee. Love St. Pete beaches.

I am familiar with the St Pete area and beaches. I guess when I mentioned a beach house/condo I was not thinking of swimming. I know that area of Florida can be chilly in the winter. Just looking for a nice area to spend the holidays. A community with nice restaurants and some other activity.

The <u>most convenient</u> beach to Gainesville is Crescent Beach, almost due east along State Road 206. It is near St. Augustine which celebrates the holidays with Nights of Lights http://www.nightsoflights.com/visit.html . It really is really festive and well done. Having said that, the ocean water will probably be too cold for swimming and you would have to rely on heated pools. To swim in the ocean, you would have to consider south Florida for sure.