Calling Florida (or traveling) CP Members
 

Trip Advisor says St. Pete has some of the best beaches in America. From KC, there are a ton of nonstop flights to Tampa Bay for under 300 dollars round trip.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/TravelersChoice-Beaches

If we were to head there for 4-5 days, are there good restaurants, and would you have any suggestions on places to stay. Since the airfare is cheap, I can splurge a little on things like accommodations and dining. Keep in mind that the sole purpose of this vacation is to lay around and pretty much do nothing for 4 days. (I know I can do that at home, but the wife insists on a nice beach).

What say you?

The Don Ceasar. Nuff said

Don't go there. Haven't you seen all of the news reports? Kooks coming out of the woodwork!

Siesta Key has the nicest white sand beach in the US. It's right next to Sarasota. Find a condo rental for a week FRBO. If you fly into Orlando you can get to the East Coast beaches. Cocoa Beach down to Jupiter has real nice beaches.

No, but maybe I should look that kind of stuff up. (can't tell if serious).....

That place looks amazing. Thanks!!:clap:

Sorry. I guess you've missed gblowfish's almost daily weird Florida threads?

http://www.chiefsplanet.com/BB/showthread.php?t=269227

It's legendary around here. If you're looking to be pampered on St. Pete beach, there is no better destination

I spend a week there every winter. (Nice to have friends with condo's)

Ask a local for Willy's bar. Beer and a great burger for $10. Your only a stranger once.

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Try not to get eaten by a bath salt user.
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I recommend the Glades but I also enjoy reptiles.

I disagree with this part of your statement.

I've only been to Clearwater. It was nice.

Get this man some Lemon Blueberry Revea.

Ohhh and yes, I am originally from Florida, and I agree with FlaChief58.

ROFL

I will be down in Key West and Marathon next month, but after the daily heads up threads from George I may pack the Glock. :evil:

Come visit and spend lots of $$.

Look for Crocs! Sometimes hard to spot in the keys in the colder months but they are pretty wicked. It is pretty amazing how much the population has grown back in the past 15 years.

Additionally, (this was mentioned to me by a pal) if you see any pythons whilst running about, take pics. A few guys I know are trying to determine how many pythons have made there way that far south.

Heh, If I see a python, it may very well end up as a pair of boots. :)

I will be looking for three things down there, beer, sun and large fish on the end of my line.

Yeah, that's not going to be a problem in the Keys ;)

I had a great and productive time fishing off the KW. I'll try to look up the guides if you haven't already picked one for Deep sea Fishing.

Additiionally, this time of year, you have a pretty good chance to see manatees (Dec-Feb). Hope you do. They're pretty ****ing cool IMO.


In other news, if you kill the python you can get a reward. I can't recall whether it is solely permited to the Glades or not.

I will only be in Key West for the first night and the last night, the rest will be Marathon. I had some great captains a few months ago when I was down there at Hawks Cay http://www.hawkscay.com/ so I'm set, but thanks. As far as key West, I just need to go hang at Captain Tony's for a few hours to de-stress. :thumb:

Sounds solid. Take pics and post them for the rest of us that are stuck in this cold weather bullshit.

Will do.

It might just sound like pure bitching but it was like 10 degrees when I went out to my car today.

Missouri has a nearly 60 dg day just a few weeks ago and is now cold as hell. I loath this state from Oct-Feb. LMAO

At $300 a night it should be pampering. Much better alternatives.

So far, it hasn't been a bad winter around here by our standards.

http://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick...0&unit=0&lg=en

The lack of snow + ice has been the only thing I've enjoyed. However, I'm an absolute pussy when it comes to cold weather.

I've been living in St. Pete for 2.5 years now. The beaches are some of the best beaches in the world. No BS. Dr. Beach, trip advisor, Conde Nast etc. all say that. Not just in the USA but the whole stinking world. White powder sand and good days some waves. I'll help you out.

What time of the year you coming down? How long do you have? You can get round trip flights on Alligiant Air into St. Petersburg from around $250.

I've been posting pics and descriptions of my trips to the area beaches for the folks back home on Facebook.

I was bitching when it got down to 62 degrees the other day.

Better be careful posting vacation pics. Not sure we want that happening in our community
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My last time in Marathon we did a half day fishing charter aboard the Main Attraction (http://www.mainattraction.org/marath...rter-boats.php). It was a good day. ;)

Nice! :thumb:

Watch away.

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Make it a one way and you'll be glad you did.

That is how I hope to end up :)

If you are willing to live 15 minutes from the beach and or 5 minutes from the water, the cost of living is the same as Missouri.

Yep, Marathon is a best value in the keys. Most bang for your buck.

Hey I resent that remark, mine usually hits furniture. All kidding aside I live in the West Palm, Palm Beach Gardens, Jupiter area. In my humble opinion the nicest beaches in Florida are up by Pensacola. There is a thin sliver of land called Santa Rosa Sound where the beaches are gorgeous with white sand and sea oats. There are many nice hotels in the area that are very reasonable but the beaches are unbelievable. I spent two weeks camping there in the 80's and have returned many times. One other plus for that area is because it is so close to Alabama and Georgia the people are not like the east coast a**holes here in my area, they are much more mid west types. The east coasters are quite rude and really a pain in the bullocks. Just my opinion. Hope this helps.

Thanks BRC, the info would be much appreciated. We are flexible on timing. I was thinking late April until the end of May or so. Probably for about 4-5 nights. Is the area good too or is it strictly a beach destination? I'm fine with the latter, but the more options, the better.

Can't I just fly into Tampa and take a cab in? Maps say it's only about 28 miles.

That sounds horrible. How do people manage in that kind of situation?!!! LMAO

The beaches are why people come to St. Pete. They do have Bush Gardens here. It's a huge park. Orlando, Disney, Universal, Sea World about an hour away.

Siesta Key is the #1 beach in the world. Thats a day trip to sarasota.

You can stay on St. Pete Beach pretty cheap before schools get out.

Clearwater beach is another top beach on everyones list.

Ft. Desoto beach is also on a lot of beach lists as the #1 beach in the USA. It's a state park only $5 to get in.

We love PASS-A-GRILLE beach also. It's where the locals go, park right by the beach and go.

Thats 4 days at the beach right there.

There is always something going on at the beaches, festivals etc. Go to the tampabay.com/thingstodo and see whats happening on the 4-5 days you are looking to visit.

Yes Ft. Desota is very nice beach, I also like Clearwater beach and Honeymoon Island is fun, you can take ferry out to Caladesi Beach.

I'm relocating to Jacksonville in March. Should I be worried about all the stuff I've read about Florida on here? Or are the beaches and scenery in general worth living amongst bath salt zombies?

On a more relevant note, I visited St. Pete years back and recall the beaches being spectacular. Not saying the beaches to the east where I'll soon be residing aren't nice, but there's just something about soft, white sand under your feet and betwixt your toes...

The beaches in Jax are like walking on concrete. This type of shoreline goes from Jax down past Daytona. It hurts to walk on with bare feet. Cocoa Beach and south has soft sand.

The beaches in the Clearwater-St. Pete area are Awesome. I grew up on the east coast in South FL and I like the beaches on the west coast much better.

There are plenty of other things to do in Tampa/St Pete if you don't want to spend all day at the beach. BRC mentioned Busch Gardens - it's a great theme park in Tampa. Near Busch Gardens is a Yuengling Brewery that offers tours. Not too far from either is a Big Cat Rescue that's pretty cool and offers a nice tour.

In St. Pete there are some really great museums if you're into art. The Salvador Dali museum is Awesome. There's also the Morean Arts Center that has a Chihuly exhibit, glass studio & hot shop, and a center for clay. There are several small galleries along central avenue in St. Pete. You could always drive 45mins south to Sarasota and check out the Ringling Bros Museum, mansion, and gardens which is actually pretty interesting.

Depending upon when you visit you can catch a Bucs, Rays, or Lightning game. During spring training the Orioles, Pirates, Phillies, Blue Jays, and Yankees are all within the area. There are plenty of bars/restaurants in downtown St. Pete, the Hyde Park area in Tampa, or along the beaches (St. Pete or Clearwater).

I'm 10 minutes from Siesta Key currently ranked number one beach in the US AGAIN I believe

And deservedly so.:thumb: