Anna Maria Island/ Bradenton Beach help?

[tonyhughes2003]

Hi guys,

We have managed to secure a lovely house on Bradenton beach, Sarasota for 3 nights during our stay (picture below)

In the description it states its on Anna Maria Island in Sarasota?? Have any o fyou guys been down there and are there any must see/do tips for us?

your help would be appreciated.:cool:

[essexmick]

i have seen programmes on it, like on a house in florida, it looks real nice there. the house looks a cracker BTW :)

[Diane]

We took a drive down to Anna Maria Island in 2003, but we didn't stay for very long.

The beach is lovely and the water is warm, shallow and clear. We stopped close to the pier and watched the pelicans diving for fish. Across the road from here we stopped in to a nice little cafe (completely forgotten its name) and had absolutely HUGE ice cream cones (ask for a small cone or you will need a bowl to put it all in, it'll melt before you can eat it all!) - mmm, delicious :tounge:

The cafe had a map of the world on the wall, we added a drawing pin to show where we came from, wonder if its still there :D

What we saw of the area we liked very much, and I can recommend Sarasota too, all the beaches along that stretch are fabulous :p: We saw dolphin playing in the surf.

The house you've rented looks gorgeous, I'm sure you'll have a wonderful time.

Diane :D

[tonyhughes2003]

Thanks Diane and Mick....It sounds like a nice place to stay. We just want to chill out for a few days really. Yeh, the house is lovely, way too expensive:cry: but its a one off anyway. I just hope the weather stays nice.

[tonyhughes2003]

The house has some great views from the rooms. It even has an elevator...:omg: It says you can rent a boat and moor it up at your own private jetty. Has anyone ever done this? Any ideas of cost?

[lisas]

Just have to say that the house looks fantastic

[KK_Cat]

Anna Maria Island sounds like a place I'd like to stay sometime, would make a really cool address for me :D

Anne-Marie (or as my mum would write it Anna-Maria)

[tonyhughes2003]

Originally posted by lisas
Just have to say that the house looks fantastic

Thanks Lisa

The view from the living room is awsome too!:cool: :cool:

[TinkTatoo]

Wow - it looks lovely

[Diane]

Oooh Tony, that house really is lovely...make sure you take lots of piccies to show us when you get back.


Diane :D

[minniemouse]

I love Anna Maria, we usually rent a house that is on the beach. There is nothing like falling asleep to the sound of the surf and waking up to it. It's a very quiet and uncommercialised place, which suits us. If all you want is rest and relaxation, where the kids (if you have any) can play safely and beautiful sunrises and breathtaking sunsets then you can't go far wrong.

A walk along the beach to Bean point where you can see the sunshine skyway bridge is lovely. Take the free trolly bus from one end of the island to the other, stopping off along the way, if you don't want to drive. I can thoroughly recommend a meal at The Sandbar Restaurant which is on the beach, so you can watch the sunset while eating.

St Armands Shopping circle is worth a visit, just south of Longboat Key, (a bit of a surreal place I always think, shops and restaurants, some quite exclusive, arranged around what I can only describe as a britsh style traffic roundabout.....without the give way system I usually find!) and there is Myakka State Park a short drive away, where they do airboat rides (though we've never got that far-can't bear to leave the beach!). Also the Designer outlet at Ellenton just off the I75, if you're into shopping.

Try www.flagulfislands.com , or the Anna Maria Chamber of Commerce website for info and links.

www.starmandscircleassoc.com for St Armands shopping.

[Polly]

Hi
I have stayed at Anna Maria Island twice and it is a beautiful place. The beaches are great we spend a lot of time collecting shells - the waters edge can sometimes be uncomfortable to paddle.

There are some really nice restaurants the Beach Cafe does the best Key Lime Pie I have ever tasted.

I know you will love it.

Polly

[essexmick]

Originally posted by tonyhughes2003
Thanks Lisa

The view from the living room is awsome too!:cool: :cool:

looks great inside too, and right on the beach how cool tony :D

[tonyhughes2003]

Thanks everyone for all the tips and comments. We really can`t wait. I`m gonna live the life of a movie star for a couple of days.:cool2: :cool2: :cool2: :D

[steven1105]

Looks stunning, would love to go to Bradenton, my namesake town in USA. Make sure you take loads of pics and a full trip report will be required.lol.

Steve

[tonyhughes2003]

Originally posted by steven1105
Looks stunning, would love to go to Bradenton, my namesake town in USA. Make sure you take loads of pics and a full trip report will be required.lol.

Steve

Don`t worry Steve. I`ll be taking loads of pictures. I`ll have to live off the memories for a couple of years. LOL Can`t afford to do it again.

[Mike]

:thumb: Cool pad, Tony!:D

All the stuff we got up to at Siesta Key is do-able from Anna Marie Island... some will appeal, some not, due to the distance. We drove the length of AMI in 2003 and it's bonny.

Try and get down to the Broken Egg on SK just once for breakfast or lunch!:D

:mike:

[tonyhughes2003]

Originally posted by MikeJones
Try and get down to the Broken Egg on SK just once for breakfast or lunch!:D

:mike:

Don`t worry Mike, thats top of the to do list.:wink

[Mike]

Good man!:D I expect a photo, Tony!;)

[SusieK]

We're going to Ana Maria Island for a week after doing 2 weeks in Orlando this October. Last year we finished off our holiday in Clearwater but on a frend's recommendation we drove through to Ana Maria for the day and loved it so this year we have booked the whole week there. So any recommendations on things to see/do/eat/shop would be much appreciated.

By the way the little cafe opposite the pier is Mama Los.

[venusangels]

hi Tony can u provide me with the link to renting that house at Bradenton gather its expensive but looks gorgeous

[tonyhughes2003]

Originally posted by venusangels
hi Tony can u provide me with the link to renting that house at Bradenton gather its expensive but looks gorgeous

Hi,

This is the link to the page I booked the house through... http://annamaria.com/default.asp?PID=7

The house was a bit more aged and worn than the internet pictures suggest but it was still fantastic. The 4 days spent down there were the best part of our 3 week trip. Great weather, great location, great everything. :cool: :cool:

[tonyhughes2003]

Originally posted by SusieK
We're going to Ana Maria Island for a week after doing 2 weeks in Orlando this October. Last year we finished off our holiday in Clearwater but on a frend's recommendation we drove through to Ana Maria for the day and loved it so this year we have booked the whole week there. So any recommendations on things to see/do/eat/shop would be much appreciated.

By the way the little cafe opposite the pier is Mama Los.

What part of Anna Maria Island are you staying on Suzie? We were in Bradenton Beach ouselves.

[SusieK]

Originally posted by tonyhughes2003
Hi,

This is the link to the page I booked the house through... http://annamaria.com/default.asp?PID=7

The house was a bit more aged and worn than the internet pictures suggest but it was still fantastic. The 4 days spent down there were the best part of our 3 week trip. Great weather, great location, great everything. :cool: :cool:

Hi Tony! Glad to hear you had a great time in Anna Maria Island. We are staying at Palm Tree Villas, Holmes Beach. It's nowhere near as grand as the place you stayed in but it's close to the beach and has air conditioning and a small pool for those times when we drag ourselves away form the beautiful beach. I'd love to hear all about your stay - will you be doing a trip report?

[tonyhughes2003]

Originally posted by SusieK
Hi Tony! Glad to hear you had a great time in Anna Maria Island. We are staying at Palm Tree Villas, Holmes Beach.

Here's a picture of Holmes Beach Suzie.

[SusieK]

Looks fabulous. Thanks for the photo Tony.