Beach part of trip?

[tdelano]

I am making the last bit of arrangements for our upcoming Dec trip to Orlando. We have the time for a day or so at a nearby beach.. we had considered going to the Space center but I am not sure that my kids would be interested enough to make it cost effective.. they would love to swim but we can't plan on that for sure do do weather...I want them to experience the beach (we are from Ok ) I am wondering if there is a close beach that has lots of sea shells to find so that would be a fun adventure? I would appreciate any suggestions on beach activites for Dec. and a good close location!
THANKS!

 

[cleo]

For shelling, you definitely want to go to the Gulf side. The further south, the better. St. Petersburg and Clearwater are nearby options (apx 1 1/2 hour), but if you can make it a bit further down, Sanibel is wonderful, with lovely beaches, warmer water, and more shelling. It's about 175 miles from Orlando, which means a much longer drive, but worth it if you do have the time.

If not, certainly a day at St. Petes or Clearwater would be a treat.

 

[Wolfelaw]

My eight year old son loves Sanibel Island -- he would just as soon skip WDW and spend the whole time there. We went in December a few years ago, and the gulf was totally swimmable; this was definitely not the case on the ocean side, where we also spent a few days -- too too cold. The shelling is fantastic in Sanibel, again totally not the case on the ocean side -- mostly icky broken white shells there.
What the ocean side does have is very big waves, which are cool and beautiful to watch for hours on end -- around Sanibel, at least when I've been there, it's kind of like a big giant bathtub.

 

[tdelano]

Wolfelaw.. do you remember the outside temp when you were swimming in Dec.? Just curious.. I wish I knew if we would be able to swim this Dec. it would really make planning easier!! Thanks!

 

[WDWisTheBest]

As Wolfelaw said, Sanibel is a great place to visit and the Gulf water temperature would probably be slightly warmer than the ocean temperature. But, the ocean is the ocean, not to demean the gulf side, and there are waves. Cocoa Beach, to the east of WDW, is closer than the gulf side. Swimming (or maybe just running in the water) is possible in the ocean, with the water temperature around 70 on average.

Kids almost always enjoy the many facets of space travel and the displays in the visitor complex at the Space center. It is very interesting to visit for all ages.

Both coasts have things to do for the family. Could you fit in driving to both? Cocoa Beach is less than 1 1/2 hour from WDW taking the Beeline (SR528). Saint Pete Beach and Clearwater Beach are a little bit longer driving time from WDW.

Whatever you decide to do, enjoy.

 

[MalcolmC]

I'd have to vote for Clearwater too.

Both Cocoa Beach and Clearwater take exactly the same travelling time from Hampton Lakes, but Clearwater is a beautiful white sand beach and the water is considerably WARMER than the Atlantic.

After several years of "we must go", my DW dragged me down to Sanibel and Captiva Islands last year and we were both very, very disappointed with it. When we eventually got there!!!

We certainly don't think it's worth driving all that way. Mind you, it did rain most of the time we were on the islands

 

[hercamore]

Hi,

next time you are at a good bookstore, check out the book called "Florida Beaches". It is a very informative and helpful book on the beaches in Florida giving each beach a star rating and a little descript.


It was well worth to me to buy tis book when we did the beaches of the Panhandle the last two summers.

We've never been to the Tampa area beaches, but would love to sometime.

herc.

 

[jeffreyml]

We always head to Maderia Beach. It usually takes 1-11/2 to get there from Disney. There is also a great shopping area and pier called John's Pass that you can walk to from the beach. They have fishing charters, Dolphin cruises, shelling cruises and a Pirate cruise.

Here is alink to the current and average water temps for the area.Water Temps

I wish we were going this Dec. I guess will have to wait for spring...

 

[kabauer]

We just did seven nights along the Gulf Coast in July. Enjoyed the beaches tremendously. my favorite was Fort DeSoto State Park just outside of St. Petersburg, I think it is actually in Tierra Verde. 110 mi from Disney.

We went to several gulf coast beaches on our trip and liked Fort DeSoto the best. Although Marco Island was stunning after a while all the shells on the ocean floor got to be a little uncomfortable on my daughters feet.

It has a concession stand, showers, parking, a nice picnic area, a playground and several other nice extras. There are two beaches in the state park, we went to the beach on the right side after you enter the park.

Hope you enjoy your trip.

 

[sln88]

We just got back from a short trip to the beach(tacked on to a WDW trip). We stayed on Treasure Island. There is a huge beach in front of the hotels(could mean a long walk if you need a bathroom break!). We went to John's pass and did the pirate ship. The boys(6 and 9) loved it. If you want to go to that, go to their website and print their coupons. I can give you more details if you want.

My kids loved looking for shells on the beach, but what they found was mostly either very small or broken. It did not look like swimming water to me(I was expecting the clear blue water of the carribbean).

 

[Bonnie40]

I would recommend Venice Beach for your family. It is on the Gulf side, just south of Sarasota. It's just shy of a 2 hour drive from Disney. What makes it unique is that along with the shells, you can find fossilized sharks teeth washed up along the shore. My kids just love it there. It's a quiet community with a public beach and free parking.