Im trying to plan next summers vacation. We have been going to Myrtle Beach SC for several years and I would like a change. Im thinking Florida.

I would like to have the nicest white sand beach and crystal clear water I can find.

My brief research says the Bradenton/Sarasota area is one of the top rated.

My only real requirements would be beachfront condo or house rental and the least amount of people.

Thanks

Siesta Key. I haven’t been in a looong time, but the beaches are beautiful

The beaches near Bradenton and Sarasota are affected by Red Tide this year.

May I suggest Destin? The panhandle beaches are awesome. The Keys are really nice, too.

FL is busy as shit right now.
With that said, the south west part of FL is very nice, Destin is nice, just over the border, Orange Beach, AL is also worth a look.

Siesta Key is supposed to have the best beach, unfortunately the place is usually packed due to having that title. I spend a week down in the Bradenton area every year and try to find the more local beaches that don't have near the amount of tourists. We typically end up out on Anna Marie Island and end up at Holmes or Coquina. The sand is fine like powder and is unlike anything I've seen on the Atlantic side. I've generally come to prefer the Gulf Coast beaches and have zero interest in the Atlantic beaches near me as a result of being down in that area.

Turtle beach is one that should be experienced if your in the area as the sand is a black/gray mix and is just generally cool to see compared to the white sand of all the others.

Here is the de facto authority on the best beaches in the US.
2 of the top 10 are in Florida…

https://www.drbeach.org/

The Florida Emerald Coast, from Panama City Beach to Pensacola has the most beautiful white sand beaches in the world, the hospitality is wonderful, and we have not yet been overrun by liberals trying to New York or Californicate our state. Also if you cross the west border into Alabama you will get more of the same. Destin has some of the best fishing charters in the world and if you dive there are a lot of dive sites along the Emerald Coast. If you come this way we will share info on restaurants and attractions. One note: Destin has developed so much that it has become seriously touristy but lots of accommodations and restaurants.

Longboat Key gets my vote. It is more private than Siesta Key and the sand is that white powdery sugar stuff.

The best water is the Florida Keys, but there are almost no natural beaches in the Keys. The sand at the man made beaches is just regular crappy sand.

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Originally posted by HayesGreener:
The Florida Emerald Coast, from Panama City Beach to Pensacola has the most beautiful white sand beaches in the world, the hospitality is wonderful, and we have not yet been overrun by liberals trying to New York or Californicate our state. Also if you cross the west border into Alabama you will get more of the same. Destin has some of the best fishing charters in the world and if you dive there are a lot of dive sites along the Emerald Coast. If you come this way we will share info on restaurants and attractions. One note: Destin has developed so much that it has become seriously touristy but lots of accommodations and restaurants.

Any food recommendations for PCB? hole-in-the-wall type places. We've been to PCB 2x this year (stayed near the west side of town, Laguna Beach & Pinnacle Port) and the only thing we weren't thrilled with was the food. Good, but not great. Kinda touristy. The 2 places we've liked have been Hook'd right at the pier and Shade's near Rosemary beach (we've been there 2x & had a good time)

Southeast Florida - From Anna Maria south to Marco Island. Pick the environment that best suits your taste - Longboat Key (Sarasota) is pretty cosmopolitan and it gets more rural from there. Captiva is really nice as well.

Kids go back to school tomorrow so things will start to quiet down. Come after Labor Day if you want warm weather but relative quiet. It doesn’t start cooling off until mid October.

Cape San Blas, about an hour east of Panama City, is a gorgeous and laid back area with relatively few tourists compared to the more populated panhandle areas. Also, St. George island, close to Apalachicola is nice.

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Originally posted by jimacp:
Cape San Blas, about an hour east of Panama City, is a gorgeous and laid back area with relatively few tourists compared to the more populated panhandle areas. Also, St. George island, close to Apalachicola is nice.

. If you want peace and quiet with few restaurants and no high rise hotels, try Cape San Blas

quote:

Originally posted by jimacp:

quote:

Originally posted by jimacp:
Cape San Blas, about an hour east of Panama City, is a gorgeous and laid back area with relatively few tourists compared to the more populated panhandle areas. Also, St. George island, close to Apalachicola is nice.

. If you want peace and quiet with few restaurants and no high rise hotels, try Cape San Blas

I like Cape San Blas too but it definitely doesn't have nice looking water, more of a poop green/brown

The Panhandle from Panama City Beach to Pensacola Beach is wonderful. Destin is probably the clearest of blue water. However, summer time will do nothing to get you away from people and it is as busy as can be in that entire area in June / July / August. There are some nice spots and home rentals in Blue Mountain Beach / Santa Rosa Beach down the street from Destin. You could tuck in back there and venture over to Destin as needed for recreation.

The Gulf Coast from Clearwater to Sarasota / Siesta Key is also wonderful. But in summer time, also busy.

Venture further south and you get to Ft. Myers / Naples. Summer is their off season, so you may be able to find something there. Marco Island is wonderful, and many years ago you could stay there in summer for a song, but it has gotten expensive year round.

My family and I like Amelia Island, outside of Jacksonville. It does not have the water you want, but it is undeveloped and unspoiled. We stay at the The Omni and when I am high up in the hotel I can look in one direction and see ocean and the other and see only tree tops. However, we only go for long weekends, if you are going for a week, I might get bored there for that long.

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Originally posted by trapper189:
Longboat Key gets my vote. It is more private than Siesta Key and the sand is that white powdery sugar stuff.

The best water is the Florida Keys, but there are almost no natural beaches in the Keys. The sand at the man made beaches is just regular crappy sand.

He is correct. We have a place in Sarasota and end up at Long Boat key mostly for the beach.

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Originally posted by BigSwede:

quote:

Originally posted by jimacp:

quote:

Originally posted by jimacp:
Cape San Blas, about an hour east of Panama City, is a gorgeous and laid back area with relatively few tourists compared to the more populated panhandle areas. Also, St. George island, close to Apalachicola is nice.

. If you want peace and quiet with few restaurants and no high rise hotels, try Cape San Blas

I like Cape San Blas too but it definitely doesn't have nice looking water, more of a poop green/brown

Yes, the water at the east end of the cape isn’t great because it is close to Appalichicola Bay and the river. However, the water is beautiful at the far end of the Cape toward the state park.

check the latest on red tide. kinda a mess in some places -- hard to predict ...

the gulf coats is 'calmer' in terms of surf if that matters...

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My family and I are currently in Madeira Beach in a condo. (Clearwater, St. Pete, Reddington Beach, Treasure Island also have nice beaches.) we came here because it’s close to my older brother over in Tampa.

Any of these or Panama City Beach-they have beautiful beaches, just go after the Fla kids go back to school and you’re GTG.

There’s no one here. Our condo is half empty.

If you come to Fla, be aware of red tide..it happens every year. The cities are quick to clean up any dead fish, and the algae move with the tides so next day it’s usually elsewhere.

Always get the trip insurance. A lady here said her daughter couldn’t make it because her family tested hot for C19, and the condo wouldn’t refund her.

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Originally posted by DaveL:

Southeast Florida - From Anna Maria south to Marco Island.

Southwest?

come to Pensacola Beach when the Blue Angels do their beach show (if you can afford it, the prices for motels goes way, way up that weekend) its a helluva show