Spring Break- Naples, FL area HELP PLEASE

[mchames]

DH decided just last week that we should go somewhere for spring break.... a great idea until I realized that everyone else has spring break the first week of April too. We wanted some place warm and within driving distance from Atlanta that would not break the bank... a tall order, I know.

After much searching I was able to get a reservation on priceline for the Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Resort in Bonita Springs, FL. Is anyone familiar with this resort? How about the area? Dh would like to go fishing. Any suggestions on fishing charters out of Naples or Marcos Island? Any reccomendations on things to do?

I ususally research vacations before booking them.... but well we're winging it this time!

Mary

 

[FINFAN]

I love Naples, my folks live there! You can try FUNANDSUN.COM, they have a listing of day trips/excursions for the area, and Tin City has some rentals there. Another nice one is day star charters, and A&B Charters, they offer a variety of boating/fishing. Bonita is North of Naples a bit, but not too bad. Spend a day at the Naples beach by the pier, you have bathrooms there and can grab a hot dog. It's close to walk to shops . You need to feed a parking meter, so bring those quarters! I would set time aside to eat at the Dock, nice place, laid back, and there is a Joe Crabshack on the bay just the other side of the Naples airport...my kids like to eat there becasue they can see the planes coming in to land just above the trees. Can't see the landing strip, but still fun. There a Chee'burger Chee'burger on 5th avenue now....at least the last visit I made it was there. Carribean Gardens is o.k., not sure what the rates are up to these days, but it's close by. Watch for Red Tide, not sure if it is back or not. Upscale shopping is at 3rd and 5th Avenues ( TOTALLY drop the $$$ and grab a bite or at least a drink at Tommy Bahama's) and the Waterside shops are very nice. If you have time I would head over to Sanibel for the day, toll for the bridge, but you can enjoy the Island life for a bit. Regular mal is Coastland, your usual mall. Bring a garden spade or hand trowel to dig into the sand to place your umbrella, the winds can try and ift them right out of the sand. We usually see dolphins swimming, like to park about 10th street and walk to the pier. Not sure if you have kids or not, guessing yes since you are working around Spring Break... be ready for crowds and traffic, and bring some fun beach inflatables!
Have a great time, Naples is very pretty and clean, but the secret is out, so be prepared!


Pam

 

[Niagara2]

That area is right at Estero and a HUGH new shopping mall opened a few months ago called Coconut Pointe right across the street. You will appreciate it if you are a shopper. Some nice restaurants there too. The Hyatt is a very beautiful hotel and has a timeshare attached with a lazy river. They have a boat to take you to a nice private beach.
You are as close if not closer to Fort Myers Beach than Naples. So try both. There is all kinds of water sports and fishing available. We always rent a pontoon for the day and watch dolphins.
You will need to drive to Naples which takes about 30 minutes or more in season. Bonita Beach is about 10 minutes away, Fort Myers around 20 unless you get caught in traffic. Sanibel and Captiva is a must if in the area.
Good choice, even though not directly on beach you are on the Estero river.
Enjoy.

 

[tkd lisa]

My mom lives in Estero. And yes, I agree you'll be closer to Ft. Myers Beach than Naples. Bonita Beach itself is very nice though. There are a couple of public beach accesses there. My mom really likes Ding Darling State Park, and Barefoot Beach.

I took my son kayayking on the Estero River. We rented from Estero River outfitters, which is just north of Corkscrew Rd on US 41. They were really nice! There's also a nice outlet mall (not cheap, but nice) at Corkscrew Rd. and I-75. And a fairly typical flea market at Bonita Beach Rd. and I-75 for those cheap souveneirs.

It's a fairly easy drive up to Sanibel Island for the day too. I really enjoyed our Segway tour there. Do a search on Billy's Bikes Sanibel Island and it should come up. The owner himself gave our tour, which included lots of nature stuff. I posted a little trip report on it back in mid-September if you want more details.

I actually went on my honeymoon to Marco Island about 18 years ago, and we took a fishing charter out of there. I have no idea if the guys' still in business but it was A-Bear charters, and he was really nice. When we vacationed at my mom's back in 2000, we just rented a boat from a marina on Bonita Beach and went fishing ourselves. We didn't catch anything, but it was a lot cheaper than a charter.

 

[mchames]

Thanks everybody!

Yes, we will be travelling with kids, DD7 and DD9. We'll be there for 4 nights-Sunday to Thursday. We're splitting the drive with overnights at my parents in Ocala on either end... so we should have most of a full day on both Sunday and Thursday.

If you don't mind, here's a few more questions:

Is the Naples Zoo worth a visit?

What is Red Tide? (I've heard this phrase used before, but for the life of me
I don't know what it is.)

Any other good local restaurants that you can recommend?

 

[mchames]

Just bumping up for the weekend crowd!

Thanks.
Mary