Pat

Planning on two weeks, early October. Either South Seas Plantation on Captiva or the Sanibel Inn (or Sanibel Moorings??). We have been to Sanibel once and stayed at private condo, this time we bring two kids (3 and 1) with us. Opinions???
{thanks}

Sharon

South Seas has a structured children's program which means you can have some free time if you want. Sanibel Inn I believe is part of the same group, Mariner Properties and so, while it might not have the amenities of South Seas, I believe you can use the facilities there as you are a guest of one of their other properties.

Sharon

South Seas has a structured children's program which means you can have some free time if you want. Sanibel Inn I believe is part of the same group, Mariner Properties and so, while it might not have the amenities of South Seas, I believe you can use the facilities there as you are a guest of one of their other properties.

Craig

You can't go wrong either way with Sanibel Inn or South Seas (I prefer South Seas with small children). Let me also suggest the 'Tween Waters Inn on Captiva. It is lovely, but doesn't have the children drop off programs, which you may or may not need.

While you are there - take the kids on a ferry boat ride to Cabbage Key, where you can eat a "cheeseburger in paradise" - Jimmy Buffet coined the song there. The boat ride to Cabbage Key is great for kids, and hopefully you'll catch a glimpse of a dolphin, manatee or other sea life.

Wendy

Pat, We stayed at the Sanibel Inn last November with our two children(5 and 10) and loved it. We stayed in a two bedroom condo with a screened in porch. We ate breakfast in the condo (so much easier with kids), prepared picnic lunches most days, and ate dinner out. There are some childrens programs available at Sanibel Inn as well as Sundial (which is a few minutes away). We only used the Kids Night Out once at the Sundial resort while my husband and I did a "grown-up dinner". The kids had fun and we had a nice break. Other than the programs run by the resort, which South Seas does have more to offer, I think Sanibel is the better island with kids. First of all there are no bike trails on Captiva and Sanibel is covered with easy flat trails. You can rent bikes with baby wagons attatched or tandem bikes with a child attatchment on the back. Ride to the lighthouse and stop at Pinocchios for an icecream break. I found that there were more kid pleasing restaurants on Sanibel as well. The Hungry Heron, Cheeburger Cheeburger, McT's. There are two supermarkets on Sanibel. I don't know if there are any on Captiva. We did drive to South Seas Plantation twice to catch the Captiva Cruises. Your three year old would love the dolphin cruise or the wild life encounter cruise. Our family is still talking about the shelling cruise to North Captiva. We were very glad that we followed a friends advice and stayed at the Sanibel Inn . It was perfect for us and we can't wait to go back. Have a great trip.

jo

Just returned from South Seas -for the 20th year. There are programs for kids (out of diapers). There's a tram that runs the length of the resort that our children loved to ride on. You can push strollers on a path along the road or jog or walk -as you choose. There are pools at the end of the resort and pools for the various units. There is a grocery store on the resort and across the street so you can cook in your condo or try the various restaurants on the resort and nearby.