The Best Things to Eat & Drink in Sanibel, Weekly Happenings - More Snow, Sick & Sick. Note you will have to head back into Fort Myers to get picked up by there van for this excursion. A jaunt down the beach or a bike around the island makes for wonderful take-home memories. The Island also offers many opportunities for kids to learn and have fun at the same time. Each day includes surfing, art, group-bonding activities, all while integrating subjects like fiddler crabs, wading birds, and sea turtles. March 4-26, Saturdays and Sundays, 10 am - 5 pm. Registered dietitian & mom behind Create Kids Club an online kitchen where feeding kids is made easier with simple gluten-free recipes & kids cooking ideas. Bonus tip if you come down here, make sure to include a stop at Sanibels Best Homemade Ice Cream. The whole family has endless opportunities for fun. Take a dolphin sight-seeing boat ride. Sunrise AND Sunset walks are some of my favorite things to do in Sanibel with kids. Summers in Florida are HOT. After a low tide or storm are best along with the months of January, February, and March. The two ice cream places we tried on Sanibel Island are Joeys Custard and Love Boat Ice Cream. After your walk, you can enjoy a picnic lunch. Copyright 2023, Create Kids Club. Battlegroundz has a 20,000-square-foot . The wildlife refuge is open every day except Fridays. Dedicated to saving wildlife through state-of-the-art veterinary care, this center offers various educational experiences. Find a Dunkin Donuts and you will be good. If you're lucky, you may see manatees and pods of dolphins in the waters. The Clinic for the Rehabilitation of Wildlife (CROW) is great for learning about Southwest Floridas native and migratory wildlife. All ages. They have plenty of cute shops to pick from for the kiddos. It sets over the ocean where you can watch from a huge stretch of public beach. Pick from one of many competitive games at Battlegroundz in Lincoln including dodgeball, laser tag, paintball, archery tag, airsoft, darts and cornhole. Sanibel Island is an island on the west of the Florida panhandle. There are so many options for accommodations on Sanibel Island with kids, at all budget levels. Click here for instructions on how to enable JavaScript in your browser. I offer tools, guides and resources to help you through all of the steps of planning meaningful, memorable family vacations. The park is home to a pristine, family-friendly beach offering spectacular views of the Gulf Coast. Currently expanding to add live-mollusk aquaria, Sanibel's shell museum is one of a kind, putting shells in the context of living creatures, history, culture, religion and art. Winters the weather can be hit or miss, and the months between December-February are busier with snowbirds escaping winter. Many of the area's islands are lined with red mangroves, which are fascinating trees that are easy to spot bytheir tangled root systems that make them look like they're standing on stilts above the water. The same currents that bring all of the shells and wash them up on the shore also stir up the shallow bottom, making the water less than clear. We didnt eat out that much while we were here. You will not find chain restaurants, high rises, or traffic lights here. The island is approximately a 30-45 minute drive depending on traffic and time of day. We belive strongly that travel benefits kids in SO MANY ways. Your whole family will enjoy spending hours exploring all the creatures they find! We spend a ton of time on North Captiva and always make trips over to Sanibel truly a beautiful spot. Located near Fort Myers, just offshore Floridas Gulf Coast, this unique island offers visitors the opportunity to bask in many outdoor activities. Hit the big grocery stores in Fort Myers on your way. Most folks rent a car, but there are shuttles available to take you here (depending on where you are staying and what you plan on doing, you may not need a car once you get to the island). Red Tide is a name given to an algae that are harmful to fish and humans. The island is a special place for any type of trip, but there is a unique charm in taking kids there because it allows them to appreciate nature a bit more than more developed beach cities. My boys have spent hours in pools next to our rentals and I'm sure yours will too. The Best Things to Eat & Drink on Sanibel. You to get to the beach by boat, and its simply amazing. Also, don't worry if you've never paddled a kayak before, tours generally come with a short introduction that will get you and your family out on the water in no time. Download a tide app to check tide times. Here are a few that seem to welcome and appreciate kids. Its a nice place to stay, but the spa is especially wonderful. Summer Waves Water Park. Visiting this lighthouse is one of the more popular Sanibel things to do. Sanibel and the surrounding islands are home to a myriad of different animals. With all we had to do, we had plenty to keep us occupied for our three night visit. It's a great and inexpensive activity for the family that doesn't involve having everyone sit at a table for an entire meal. Map of kid-friendly places. You'll soon find there's nothing quite like the calm and quiet beauty of being completely surrounded by natureeven kids will be too entranced to cause a ruckus. Times Square and the Fort Myers Beach Fishing Pier. Sprinkled in youll find family travel inspiration. The Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum. There is a Publix right before paying the toll to cross the Sanibel Island Causeway. It's known for its natural beauty including gorgeous beaches, shelling, and island lifestyle. Shelling is one of the best things to do on Sanibel Island, so plan to spend lots of time at the beach! But in the spring and summer, the northern beaches are where it's at. Dont forget the camera some of my best shots have come at this time. Kids Activities. We had a lodge gulf view luxury suite with a full kitchen for cooking and a screened-in balcony for dining and spending evenings listening to the water. It is located nearby Blind Pass Bridge, which connects the two islands. This sounds like a great place for a family vacation and so many activities! First lit in 1884, the area around the lighthouse is open to public, but the lighthouse itself is not. Dont leave the park without checking out the Sanibel Island Lighthouse. Dont get suckered into ordering the special kids drink, though. Definitely worth a half-day trip adventure. Located off Sanibel-Captiva Road, Bowmans Beach has several miles of secluded white sand and gentle waters ideal for a refreshing swim. Your email address will not be published. Tarpon Bay Explorersofferscanoe and kayak trips in the J. N. "Ding" Darling NationalWildlife Refuge where naturalist guides give you an up-close experience with this unique ecosystem. Sanibel Island with kids is lovely! Having a sub-tropical climate, visitors and residents enjoy the outdoors and sunshine all year long. There is so much to explore right outside your hotel, both on the beach and in the water. It was tempting. Sanibel Island is located off the coast of southwest Florida, just west of Fort Myers. The shells on Sanibel make going to the beach even more fun for kids because they have another activity to do. Kids will find themselves immersed for hours in this natural treasure huntwithout a care given to the backbreaking stance known as the"Sanibel stoop." Some of my favorite memories as a kid are from Sanibel Island and I think these are all such great activities to do with kids! Warm Gulf waters and calm surf make most of the island's beaches great for families withsmall children. Sanibel is known as the Shelling Capital of the World, and it's not hard to see why. Sanibel Island is as much about world-class as it is about beaches. Almost every restaurant in the area boasts its own version of Key Lime pie, but if you have kidsor a big sweet toothyou HAVE to make a stopfor a slice of cake at the Bubble Roomlocated on Captiva island (which is accessible from Sanibel by car). Part sporting event, part comedy dinner show, the crab races have guests select a hermit crab from a bowl, name it and then cheer it on as it races to the finish line. Admission is $7 for kids ages 5-11, $9 for ages 12-17, $15 for adults. My boys had never had REAL ice cream before so we splurged and let them have some. Because of its distance from the airport, there are no public transportation methods to get here. The kids were told that if they waited and were quiet, theres a good chance they could spot a manatee somewhere in the wildlife refuge. It connects by bridge to Captiva Island. One person mentioned that it comes from Alabama. The gator viewing wasnt plentiful, there were a few eyes popping up here and there, but it certainly was exciting to try to see them! In the winter, catch both sunrise and sunset on the southerly beaches. This is Tampa's Ybor City is a National Historic Landmark District. I know it sounds strange, but if you ask my daughter, this was one of her favorite places on Sanibel island for kids. Too badwill have to make another trip . Once we left the beach area, we stopped coughing. We got these super easy-to-use kid-friendly Octopus Kites and they have been great. Just make sure not to keep any live ones! I found in my time there that Sanibel Island is like a magical place with tropical overgrown brush, no street lights and rumours of manatee sighting abound. This should be enough to get you started (and if you have any favorites that you think I should add, please let me know! I looked carefully at the hotels and resorts just across the bay in nearby Fort Myers. This is for sure at least worth a stop for ice cream (or a place to leave the kids and hubby so you can go in and grocery shop BY YOURSELF!). Unique Experiences and Travel Inspiration. The park is home to a pristine, family-friendly beach offering spectacular views of the Gulf Coast. 2. Whether you choose to be boating, kayaking, canoeing, water-skiing or fishing from one of the favorite spots, play a round of golf on the challenging scenic courses, there are over 70 of them, the perfect place to tee off and test your mettle on the green . Learn all about seashells and the animals that make them. Winter and springtime (from December to April) are the best times to visit Sanibel. When they are ready, they follow the moonlight and head back to the Gulf of Mexico. After 9:00 p.m on Sanibel, itsturtle time. Get Dessert at The Bubble Room. Kids stop in local businesses on the hunt for prizes. Take a Walk at Sanibel Lighthouse Beach Park. Eating out in Sanibel with kids? If you aren't familiar with Sanibel Island, Florida it's a small island off the coast of West Florida near Fort Myers. Its perfectly legal and encouraged to head down to the beach with a bucket and scoop up as many beauties as you can. We also had dinner there and the kids were super happy with their chicken fingers. 1.Rent A Convertable There's no better way to explore this tropical location with the roof down and the wind in your face. Whether your kids like seafood or more traditional food, there is something on the menu for everyone at these places. Plan your trip to Captiva before sunset and head to the beach across from the Mucky Duck for the best sunset view available. Here are the activities they have for kids! Offering free cancellations and no added fees, our {31 fun activities in South Plainfield fun activities in South Plainfield } are also worth a look. Do you want amazing sunsets or sunrises? Check out the accommodation options for your dates through my booking.com affiliate search box: Booking.com(function(d,sc,u){var s=d.createElement(sc),p=d.getElementsByTagName(sc)[0];s.type='text/javascript';s.async=true;s.src=u+'?v='+(+new Date());p.parentNode.insertBefore(s,p);})(document,'script','//aff.bstatic.com/static/affiliate_base/js/flexiproduct.js'); And always remember, Florida can be very HOT! Suzanne Rowan Kelleher is a nationally recognized family travel expert and an award-winning travel writer and editor. The homes are amazing to look at, the water even better. Less restaurants and shopping. Bring goggles for kids to get a good look at the sandy ocean bottom. There are bike lanes literally EVERYWHERE. Its the only way to get a seat at the race table! And while you won't find theme parks or children's museums to keep your kids entertained, instead, give them the opportunity to spot dolphins, hold small sea creatures, and kayak through the mangroves. If you like a bit of history in your travels, then be sure to pay a visit to the lighthouse on the eastern tip of Sanibel Island. You can show up in a bathing suit and flip flops and get everything from salad to burgers to fried alligator. There are a lot of super kid-friendly restaurants on the island but there are some that specifically ask you not to bring tots online, so check ahead of time! CROWs Visitor Education Center features a collection of interactive exhibits and videos, while the guided Wildlife Walk through the hospital allows you to observe veterinarians treating sick and injured wildlife. Friday, March 3. Looking for a little fun in the sun. Thats awesome. The beach here was beautiful white sand, and the water was a bright shade of beautiful blue. Mound House. You can find out more about which cookies we are using or switch them off in settings. As a visitor, that attitude is somewhat concerning to me and in the future, Id like to see some efforts in place and real discussion about red tide and the time of year when its low and high, and how to prevent it from happening. There are several ways to explore the refuge. Since 1884, the Sanibel Lighthouse (or Sanibel Island Light), has stood on Point Ybel at the eastern tip ofSanibel Island, markingthe entrance to San Carlos Bay. We came back with so many amazing shells (a whole suitcase full of them in fact). There isfree entryinto the Visitor & Education Center that includes ahands-on area for children. We've taken the twins twice and both times they loved running out on the boardwalk and spotting animals. 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