Gulf Coast

[Enright78]

Going in April 2004 and thinking to do a couple of nights on Gulf Coast to see Busch again (not been since 1996!)
Last time we went to the Gulf we picked the only two rainy days in the year and it was horrible (in July!!).
DH will take some persuading to do this again!! Ammo please and recommendations for nice (easy to find) hotels for the ovenight stay. On the beach would be nice, but the prime aim is to go to Busch. thanks

 

[WDWfan uk]

Fiona, why not take a day trip to Busch from Orlando? Your husband might agree to that - if you don't want to drive there and back, there is a shuttle bus from Sea World which will take you there and back.

I sympathise with you getting rain on your Gulf trip - Janice had a whole week of appalling rain when they stayed at Naples and spent that week driving inland for places of interest.

 

[WDWfan uk]

...... for those who want more details on the shuttle to Busch Gardens, I've cut and pasted this from the Busch Gardens website :-

Transportation
The Busch Gardens Shuttle Express offers daily round trip transportation from Orlando to Busch Gardens Tampa Bay. The cost is only $5.00 USD per person, round trip. This service is always FREE with a purchase of a 5-Park Orlando Flexticket. For Reservations/Information, please call 1-800-221-1339.

If you still want to drive, it takes approximately one hour from Orlando in the I4 (provided there are no hold ups on the road).

 

[allie5]

There are loads of Gulf side Hotels to choose from....at Clearwater, then the Sheraton Sandkey is nice or slightly cheaper but still on the beach is The Dolphin.

St Petes has the fab Tradewinds resort, or Don Cesars Palace (You CANT miss this...its huge and pink!!!!!).

We prefer to stay at Sarasota, as its lovely and quiet. I can reccomend The Half Moon Beach Club or Helmsley Sandcastle, both right on the Beach at Lido Key.

If your hubby is into boats, then the most fun thing to do is to hire a speedboat for a few hours (not cheap at £100 for half a day) but its a total blast. Or there are tons of organised boat trips....I quite like the Sea Screamer at Clearwater, or the Sunset Cruise out of Sarasota harbor, which takes you round the very large waterfront properties. There are also Jet skis, Wave Runners and Parasailing available at most places.

The last time we did Busch Gardens was 96, and we are returning this year, but only as a day trip from Orlando. WE tend to do about 2 -3 day trips to the Gulf throughout our stay, if we are based in Orlando.

Have fun!
Allie

 

[currycook]

We live on the Gulf coast. It's very easy to just drive over to anywhere in the greater Tampa Bay area for a day. (From Sarasota in the south to Clearwater in the north). We drive often to Disney. WDW is on the Tampa side of Orlando so you do not have to go through any of the Orlando traffic and it's only an hour to 1.5 hour drive to just about any location in the Tampa Bay area of the gulf coast. Its also very easy to get a motel/hotel for just one or two nights. Of course this is all assuming that you have access to an auto on your trip. When it comes to beaches IMHO the gulf coast has the best beaches in Floirda. Tell your DH to give the gulf coast another try. Summer is our raining season, but what that usually means is the day starts out clear. Then there is an afternoon thunder storm which may last only an hour or two at the most. (Tampa Bay is the capitol of lighting in the USA with more lighting strikes than any other area, that is why our Hockey team is called the Lighting) Then it clears back up after the storm. Hope this helps you in some way.