It’s all in the name

The name of the destination marketing organisation is ‘The Beaches of Fort Myers and Sanibel’. I am quite used to grandiose titles that try to give the potential visitor a taste of what to expect and sometimes they get it right and sometimes they don’t. Many adopt titles like ‘visit’, ‘enjoy’ or ‘experience’ whilst others remain true to the traditions of the 80s and stick with ‘tourist board’ or CVB (Convention and Visitor Bureau). In the case of BFMS, as I will now refer to it, well to coin a phrase ‘It does exactly what it says on the tin’.

The beaches of this area are quite outstanding and in the many years of globetrotting I would say they are difficult to beat. Not just one type of beach either, no not here. Here we have small pebbled beaches, sandy beaches that appear to go on for miles, beaches that are the pure white of discarded coral, beaches made of shells and, of course, beaches that are a mixture of all four. It really is beach heaven!

a shellfie from a Sanibel beach

But you need more than beaches to satisfy the modern tourist – don’t you? Well, no fear on that front either, for the area has more attractions than you could shake a stick at and I am pleased to say most involve the natural surroundings, be it kayaking, walking, riding, cycling or just plain old swimming.

The geography of the area is a little difficult to get your head around, with various inlets, island , causeways and towns. For the first couple of nights I stayed on Sanibel Island, which is a small community all of its own from where you can drive or cycle, long walk, to Captiva. For the most part, whatever mode of transport you take you have the ocean right next to you with lots of small independent hotels, coffee shops restaurants and touristy type outlets.

Whilst there, make sure you go to the Mucky Duck for dinner. You will probably have to put your name on the waiting list but it’s worth it, not just for the food but the ambience of the place is spot on. Located on the beach, if you get the right table you can dine while you watch the sun go down. The sunsets here are quite spectacular and if you are lucky you may even catch the elusive Green Flash – that split second when, if the conditions are right, you see a small puff of green light the very instant the sun drops below the horizon.

From almost anywhere you can visit Cabbage Key, a small island away from everything. It’s about eight miles north and, despite the temptation of the Gulf waters and plentiful supply of goose fat, I decided to take a boat, not swim it! Captiva cruises run regular pleasure trips and along the way you will be very unlucky not to encounter a school of dolphins. No matter how many times you see them there, it’s always a thrill and it’s always accompanied by about a trillion digital pictures as you try to capture the perfect Flipper moment.

One of the trillion flipper pics

Once you reach the island you can go on short walks, but the real high is to enjoy the local cuisine , frozen key lime pie and a glass of something to unwind the day. The hostelry has it walls covered from ceiling to floor in dollar bills that visitors sign and pin on the wall. When the weight of them is about to bring down the roof they remove and give to charity – nice.

Having done the beaches and the exercise it was time for something more relaxing, so what better to do than visit a rum factory. Florida produces its own rum from its own sugar and water …it’s a true farm to bottle project and a successful one at that. Wicked Dolphin rum runs (easy to write, difficult to say) tours of its small but growing premises on most days and it’s a fascinating process and story. If you want to bag some bargains, check out the Miromar outlets, an American outlet mall that’s easy to find, park, walk around and get a cup of coffee without having to queue for ages.

If you included all that the area has to offer then the name of the tourism organisation would be very long indeed – BWKCGFRCKSFMS ( The Beaches walking kayaking cycling green flashing rum cabbage key shopping of Fort Myers and Sanibel). So, probably best to just focus on the beaches…