Anyone stayed on the gulf coast?

[snickerboo]

We're thinking of a last minute trip to Florida. Dh is suggesting somewhere other than Orlando. We wouldn't go to Disney for more than a day of we stayed on the gulf. Anyone have any recommendations for accomodations on the gulf coast? I've found some condos and villas but they're not as nice or as cheap as the Orlando ones!

 

[Alderbrook]

Can't recommend any hotels as we always stay in my inlaws timeshare, but we LOVE Treasure Island. We flew into Tampa & rented a car & loved it. We stayed on the Gulf coast a lot when I was a child, my parents always stayed near Clearwater. The Gulf is actually my favourite. The white sand beaches are awesome.

 

[MainStreetMouse]

We have a timeshare in Naples, FL. We love it there. Sunsets are beautiful.

 

[capitalmom]

I've found some condos and villas but they're not as nice or as cheap as the Orlando ones!

Funny - we had the same problem when booking our trip in January. During our last trip to WDW, we stayed at the Floridays Orlando Resort in a beautiful 2BR unit and that kind of set the bar for value and quality. After a week-long cruise in Jan, we wanted to extend our stay for a week but Superbowl prices made the Miami area a no-go, so after much searching we settled on a condo in Fort Myers Beach. We rented through a property manager called Lahaina Island Accommodations (just google them), and the unit we rented was Bella Lago 321 - a large 2BR plus den, which had lots of space for us, our 2 kids and my parents. It was new, clean and modern. It wasn't beachfront but had a nice pool area, and there was free beach access at the nearby Holiday Inn (less than a 5 min walk). I'd highly reccomend the unit, and the property manager in general. There were grocery stores and good restaurants nearby. My only complaint was that it was a bit far from the outlet malls and other major shopping (which I like to partake in when travelling south of the border ). It was about a 20 to 30 minute drive to get anywhere, but if you just want a quiet relaxing beach vacation, it was terrific.

 

[dennise]

Accommodations are always more on the Gulf than in Orlando. We really like Treasure Island as well. We don't get a condo, just a hotel that has a microwave and fridge, coffe maker. We are staying at Treasure Bay hotel and Marina this year. Usually stay at the Thunderbird or Bilmar. Beautiful beach and lots to do in a short distance.

 

[minnie56]

We used to own here...

http://www.thegulfbeachresort.com/index.html


Haven't stayed there in sometime but it was a great buidling built by Canadian developers..right on the sand and in a perfect location. Only 19 apts...recommend gulf front.

 

[snickerboo]

Thanks for the suggestions everyone! Looking into those now

 

[Sue M]

We stayed in a hotel in St. Pete Beach, Sirata Beach Resort. We liked it, rooms a good size, had fridge in room, so we had breakfast in room, and ate dinner out. Crabby Bills was a fun place to go, and walking distance.
We went in Aug 08, and booked thru Hotwire. Just looked for beachfront hotels, and got a pretty good rate. I checked the hotel web site after I finished booking with Hotwire
Sometimes we add a few days before WDW or Universal on either the Gulf or Atlantic Coast.

 

[OntFamily]

I second the compliment on Treasure Island. While we have been there in about three years, we did rent from the below agency, four or five times.

http://www.capalborental.com/condos/landsend.html