Florida - what to do short break

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Gludy

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I am nipping over to Florida shortly to take a look at the new Malow 72 LR. its a boat I have to see - so I am taking SWMBO and makinga short break of it. Based in Sararseto. Has anyone any advice on the best things to do involved with boats?
 
Sorry - yes based in Sarasota.

The trip is to have a good look at the Marlow - I want to make up my mind on my next boat this year and this boat fascinates me. If its right, then I would probably spend 6 months specing her and then order later this year when resources will allow. It would still take another two years after that before I actually got her.

So the purpose of the trip is that one day but its a shame to go all that way and not take a break so we have booking into a marina complex place for ten days.

What I am after is some good ideas on things to do or advice on what to look for etc. We are not into theme parks etc and I would like something boaty.
 
If you drive north (about 30-40 miles) you come to a key of the coast runs north to a little town called bradenton. There is a fantastic little place called Almand Circle(?) which has some superb restaurants, including the best fish place I have esten in the US calles Crab and Fin - very good Oyster bar.

Will ask SWMBO what the key was called, she'll remember. Anyhoo, lots of inland Mangrove swaps connected to the sea. Hire a little runabout cos there are loads of little beaches and coves with boozers and nosh places. Most come with snorkles etc and are dead cheap for a day or so.

Thank god for the interweb, the area is Anna Maria and Longboat Key - really worth a visit. Bradenton is on US 41. For more info, here is a good start.

Also, Tampa Aquarium is worth a visit, but might be a treck unless you fly into/out of Tampa. If you fly in and drive down, do go via St Peters Burg and over the Sunshine Skyway Bridge - interesting engineering and impressively high.
 
Sarasota is a pleasant and quite sophisticated town so you will not want for good dining, shopping and nightlife. Boaty activity will be governed by the weather; if a "norther" comes through, common at this time of year, boating probably will not be an option. However, if you are between northers you can rent a boat and potter up and down the Intracoastal Waterway. Marina Jacks springs to mind, but I haven't been there for a while. If the weather is right I'd head south to Sanibel and Captiva.
If you are not locked into a single location I'd highly recommend a run across the Everglades to Fort Lauderdale on the east coast - the most boaty place in the USA.
Enjoy!
 
If you are at all interested in aviation then a trip to "The world's greatest aircraft collection" is well worth it, it's just off the I4 between Tampa and Orlando.

You don't say when you are going but check the NASA site to see if there are any rockets going up, if so then you can charter an aircraft to hop across to Melbourne airport, where you rent a car to nip up to the pier at Cape Canaveral to see it go. An aircraft with an instructor will be about $80-$100/hr and you'll probably do 3hrs, still, it's the cheapest place I know of to go flying.

Tampa is quite swish but you will get lost driving to or from there!
Ft Lauderdale is mega boaty and worth a trip

The problem with Florida is that there is such a large amount of absolutely nothing.
 
no expert, but i found the everglades a bit dull boatywise. It is shallow mangrove swamp, exposed tree roots sort of thing, squillions of islands. If you do go make sure you kep aware of where you are somehow, cos it is allthe flippin same. The presence of alligators makes er the trip a bit worrisome.

Oh, and down near the Keys, there are blue bits on the beaches, which are mega-stinging tentacles of jellyfish so don't pick them up.

The Morse Collection of Dali in St Pete's is very good but not in the least bit boaty. AAlso you can buy ded cheap natural sponges in Tampa, and that isn't boaty either. Sorry.
 
the alligators are there for the sole purpose of livening the place up a bit

oh, and there is that weird species over there, they are called "Americans" and are best avoided, they can be identified by the repetition of the following phrases: "business or pleasure", "straight ahead sir", "have a nice day", "can I get you another coke", "fries or vergg, erm, err, verget, erm, vegetables?", "which part of Australia do you come from?", "wow, engerland, I'd love to go but I don't have a passport", "sheesh, gas is $3.60 right now, I think I'll go over there and die because I sure can't afford to fill up the Suburban", "have you ever been to Buckingham Palace?", "sign the screen Mister", "What's yer zip?", "we're not on commission, so just ask", "is everything good for yer?"
 
I live 5mi from Sarasota and keep my boat at Marina Jack, downtown Sarasota.
As already mentioned, lots of restaurants, lots of boats, nice beaches, nice people (in spite of what the bigots say!), plenty of golfing(!), museums, theatres, good place for property investment, especially at the moment. Galati at the N end of Anna Maria Is. sells big boats, including Princess (called Viking over here).
You could rent a boat and potter the ICW, Sarasota Bay etc. Nice trip on ICW from Sarasota to Venice, lunch at Crow's Nest and return either up the Gulf or ICW. PM me if you wish to make contact when you are here!! ( We are expat Brits, if that helps /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif)
 
Hmm, I guess you are already here, somewhere. Well you can't complain about the weather, can you. Lovely low 80s and cool evenings. Sorry I missed you.
 
My parents celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary next year. As a result they are taking all their children and grandchildren to Florida Disneyland. Apparently we stay very close to same. Disneyland doesn't appeal much to me so what are the boaty alternatives? I gather Florida is close to England in size but I have already insisted on the Space Centre as the thing I want to "do", regardless of distance that SWMBO has to drive to get there!
 
Andrew- Nice parents! The Space Center is about an hour's drive E from Orlando, so not much driving involved and it's a good road.
If you have the time, you could then drive down the E coast to Ft Lauderdale (boating capital of the world!!), across the Everglades and back to Orlando. It's not a day-trip however. Having said all that, I think you would enjoy Epcot, if not Disneyworld.
Miami Boat Show is in Feb.
Don't come in June thru Sept or you'll regret it. The heat and humidity can be debilitating if you are not used to it.
 
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