Anna Maria Island for Families!
Surrounded by the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean, visitors to Florida can have a hard time choosing which beach town to visit. Our family chose to rest on Anna Maria’s Island for its old Florida charm and character. There are no high-rise buildings and chain stores are limited.
Accommodations
After an afternoon visit to Myakka River State Park, we spent a few days feeling like a local and “living” in a gorgeous suite at Tortuga Inn Beach Resort for about $165/night in September. There are many options all over the island. Finding the right accommodations for our family (pre-AirB&B) took hours of searching, but it paid off big time for this trip!
Around the Island
There are wonderful restaurants, many activities, rentals like paddleboarding in the bay, and more to enjoy but for our family, we just relaxed!
There are several nature centers in the area and we enjoyed hiking Leffis Key.
It was hard to leave after three lovely days and four restful nights, but we knew the kids would be thrilled when we surprised them at LEGOLAND Theme Park and Resort!
We packed our seashells in plastic deli meat containers and most of them survived the plane ride home.
We loved Anna Maria Island in Florida! 
How cool, I’ve never even heard of this place. Granted all my trips to Florida have been either East Coast or Orlando. Anyway, what was the weather like in September? Was the ocean water warm enough for a swim?
When we were there in late Sept the weather was beautiful! It was hot and humid and the ocean felt great! We swam for hours each day. It’s worth it to visit all the different beaches because they are each unique.