So I booked a week in Sanibel...

[BeenHereB4]

And I have never been there. Now what do I NEED to know??

We are staying at the Blue Dolphin which I know is a bit away from the heavy beach traffic and resorts. Can anyone tell me if we MUST have a car? Or can we get by on bicycle and foot?

Anyplace I shouldn't miss out on?

We will have a kitchen in our cottage and they do a continental breakfast (muffins only I think), but I don't want to cook ALL the time and the kids love going out for ice cream and snacks,etc. I'd love any must see/do advice!!

Thanks so much, I'm so excited!!

Oh, we are going August 22nd (I know it's late and I think the height of storm season, but it's when my DH can take off work with little consequence and the kids are between summer camp and school).

 

[BeenHereB4]

BTW, it's a surprise so shhhh.... don't tell my DH or the kids. I think I'm going to find a way to "wrap" it up and give it to them for Valentines Day or Easter. Maybe a big box of shells and sand?

 

[jodifla]

You definitely need a car. Really, everywhere in Fla that's the case.

The Bubble Room (restaurant) is great. Don't miss that.

 

[DawnCt1]

You definitely need a car. Really, everywhere in Fla that's the case.

The Bubble Room (restaurant) is great. Don't miss that.

I second needing a car. The Bubble Room IS an experience; great is not the word I would use, but I would go for the "experience" and less for the food.
We liked the Green Flash. We rented bikes and rode through the bird sanctuary; Ding Darling's Wild Life Refuge. Go when they are giving a tour. Well worth having it narrated.

 

[BeenHereB4]

Cool, thank you - a car it is then.

I'm going to have to look into The Bubble Room - sounds interesting.

Edited to add - just looked at the Bubble Room website - even the site annoys me so I'm not sure about that one. LOL

 

[hentob]

Cool, thank you - a car it is then.

I'm going to have to look into The Bubble Room - sounds interesting.

Edited to add - just looked at the Bubble Room website - even the site annoys me so I'm not sure about that one. LOL

The Bubble Room was once a fun place It is now ridiculously priced and full of itself

 

[DawnCt1]

The Bubble Room was once a fun place It is now ridiculously priced and full of itself

I would go and get a slice of cake for take out. The pieces are big and will last in the hotel for a day or two.

 

[gottaluvPluto]

Bring water shoes for everyone. We cut our feet so many times on broken shells.

 

[tegdig]

Fantastic breakfast and ambiance at the Lighthouse Restaurant....near the Sanibel Lighthouse end of the Island....and the Island Cow is a fun lunch or dinner. Yummy chocolate covered strawberries at the candy store in the shops of Periwinkle Way. You definately will want a car. I will be visiting there in just a couple of weeks...can't wait. One of our favorite places. My daughter even named her cat Sanibel....Go across the causeway to Sanibel in the early morning hours and you will usually see many dolphins...last time we were there, way too many to even count. The sunsets are amazing. You and your family will surely have a wonderful time. Yes, that is the height of hurricane season, but what are the odds, huh? I am sure you will be fine. You will still see evidence of hurricane Charlie in many places, but Sanibel is doing a good job of returning.

 

[BeenHereB4]

Thanks everyone! I'm feverishly taking notes and will visit all the places mentioned (some by bike and some in our rental car ). I was originally looking to plan a trip to Mexico, but when I saw the difference in airfare, etc., Sanibel won - for this year at least.

And I just got some water shoes for the kids from Lands End clearance so I'll put those in the gift box too, thank you.

I'd love to see some pics from the PP who is heading there shortly.

 

[freckles and boo]

I agree that you need a car. The island is six miles long. Another good thing about getting a car is that you can head down to Naples to the zoo/botanic garden or to the Everglades. I absolutely LOVE Sanibel for a low-key vacation but if you want to get out and do anything else you will have to have a car. You should also look into taking a dolphin or sunset cruise.

 

[kirbydog48]

We went last February and are returning this April. Absolutely get a car. It's very dark at night. We enjoyed the Sanibel Thrilller boat ride, rented bikes at Bill's, enjoyed eating at Island Cow, Lazy Flamingo, breakfast at Amy's Over Easy, Blue Giraffe. Ice cream at Pinnochio's. There's also a DQ. There are two decent markets on island for snack's, etc. Check out the tripadvisor forums; there's one specifically for Sanibel. It's a beautiful place!!

 

[BeenHereB4]

Thank you all so much! Love hearing abou the yummy breakfast places. I'm hoping to find something that is a bikeable distance too. For some reason, I'm fantasizing about an early family bike ride to breakfast (yeah, dorky mom fantasy when in reality there will probably be whining involved).

 

[Art 1]

Sanibel is a very nice place. It's nice to go see Captiva Island as well. Check out Thomas Edisnon's house.

 

[lUVTOGO]

One of my favorite places on earth!!! Schnappers sells the best Pizza and Hamburgers on the island!!!! We also like the Island Cow and in Captiva the Mucky Duck!! Overpriced but hey the atmosphere is great and have a couple of drinks while overlooking the beach and the sunset!
Bubble Room has Cokes in a bottle and the kids always remembered that LOL.

We did rent bikes last July but only lasted an hour!! Lots of shopping also! The Pink Flamingo in Captiva also was a good place to grab some wings!

We rented a house in Captiva last summer and it was so relaxing!

 

[shortbun]

Sunset at The Mucky Duck on Captiva. Get there early, it's always crowded. Sunset Beach is a great place for sunset too-it's the beach at the drive over between Sanibel and Captiva. Find some manatees to watch on the inter-island waterway. I've always loved a day on North Captiva; you can arrange for a boat (it's the only way to get there) and take a picnic or eat at the one restaurant. Shelling-some of the best in the world. I would not waste my time crossing the causeway unless it was a horrible, rainy day - there is much relaxing to be done. I second Ding Darling Sanctuary with a tour!!
(watch out for gators!) A friend of mine rode right into one on the bike path in the dark.

 

[BeenHereB4]

This is all great, great info, thank you! And to the PP who suggested the Tripadvisor forums, thank you. What a great forum they have there. And happily, that is where I read about our lodging. It's rated #1 in Sanibel so I'm way excited to just kick back and relax old school style!

And about riding into that gator, Shortbun . Note to self - no bike riding after sunset.

 

[lucas]

Here are a couple of links that might help:

Message forum like DIS (fantastic info):
http://www.voy.com/2078/

Chamber:
http://www.sanibel-captiva.org/

Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge:
http://www.fws.gov/dingdarling/

Sanibel/Capitva restaurant menus:
http://www.cuisine-scene.com/pages/restaurantsancap.html


We love Sanibel and have stayed there many times. You will definitely need a car. And beach shoes, we always wear beach shoes when looking for shells and you have to be careful of stingrays in the water. You learn to do the Sanibel Shuffle in the water's edge to make sure there are no stingrays. Also, you'll be doing the Sanibel Stoop when searching for shells. We've always found lots and lots of shells - some really big ones, too. We enjoyed the Shell Museum (sounds corny but very interesting) and the Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge.

 

[tegdig]

The Mucky Duck, yes, I forgot about the Mucky Duck....love the location of it. There is also a fun Art Gallery on the little side street that leads to the Mucky Duck that we always stop at. You will find lots of photographic books in the stores there also of the Islands. I got one last time that lives on my coffeetable in my porch, keeps me in the Sanibel frame of mind. Also agree with the beach shoes...beach walking here hurts as opposed to the usual sugary white sand beaches further up the Gulf Coast. Not a big fan of the Bubble Room. I think you may want to go to check it out and make your own opinion, some people love it. I gave it a second try, and still was disappointed. Biking for breakfast sounds like just the Sanibel thing to do. Renting bikes a must. Planning it is half of the fun isn't it????? Sounds like you are really doing your homework. It will pay off.

 

[BeenHereB4]

Woohoo - this is ideal for an info junky like me! Thank you for all the info and links.

Tegdig - yes, planning is half the fun. I keep adding to the "box" I'm going to give my family to present the trip to them. Gift certificates to the various eateries mentioned here, I got some Sanibel shells for $2 on ebay lmao: man, you can buy ANYTHING there), water shoes, Sea School ressies for the kids, Thriller reservations, a Sanibel photo book and a Florida travel guide with the Sanibel section bookmarked. I may need a bigger box!

I'm very excited and quite OCD and geeky as you can tell.

Thanks everyone for the great info. It really sounds like such a great place to vacation - can't believe I've waited so long!