Spring Break in Sanibel 2021

Here’s our fun Spring Break in Sanibel 2021 recap!

For Spring Break a few weeks ago, we went all the way down to Sanibel Island for vacation. We stayed for a whole week with one other family and enjoyed fishing, swimming, watching dolphins in the ocean and collecting all the seashells. I shared some photos on my IG and kept getting questions about where we stayed, visited, etc. Here are all the details along with our secret secluded beach info if you’re interested in visiting this part of FL. 

We left at 6AM to get to Cape Coral before dinner time. It was about a 9-hour drive so we left as early as possible. Emmy suffers from car sickness but we arrived without too many difficulties. I will add that we had to stop on the highway because a member of the Min family had to go to the bathroom very badly! To divert a nasty outcome in the car, we had to stop because there was no exit near us. Let’s just say that person shall remain unnamed and left some of their DNA in the woods off the highway! Never a dull moment you guys!! 

 

If you have never visited Sanibel Island, it is so worth spending time there. We decided to go further south since the weather would be another 10 degrees warmer than the panhandle. Well, we were right because the weather was absolute perfection. GA had a cold front with high amounts of precipitation that week so we were more than happy to trade that in for warm weather and lots of sunshine. 

 

Since we weren’t familiar with Sanibel, we booked a lovely house in Cape Coral. The house was a gorgeous ranch-style home with a huge screened-in patio that included a saltwater pool and spillover spa.

 

That porch was a dream! It was situated right on the canal so we had the most amazing view and spent so much time out here eating and swimming.

 

The spa was so so nice during the mornings and evenings when the weather was a bit cooler.

The boys would fish right outside the patio and JJ caught his very first bass! 

We really loved staying in this house because it was comfortable, spacious, and super clean. When it comes to rentals, cleanliness is the most important factor for us and our friends. It was nicely decorated too which was a bonus. 

The only disadvantage of staying here was the distance to Sanibel. On most days, it took about 45 minutes for us to go to the beach because of the traffic.

To find a place of this size and have a pool on the property in Sanibel is nearly impossible. We started looking for a place there for Fall break but haven’t had any luck. 

On our first full day, we visited a man-made beach not far from our rental called, “Yacht Club Beach.”

It’s the only public beach in Cape Coral and it’s situated directly on the Caloosahatchee River. It’s like a much nicer version of Lake Lanier Beach. 

It was a bit crowded and the sand was really strange. It had a powder consistency that stuck to our skin and I had never experienced anything like it. I think it’s still worth a visit if you stay in Cape Coral since there isn’t a beach in close proximity. 

The next day, we decided to hang out at the Sanibel Causeway. This is a popular area for locals and tourists and you can swim fish or paddleboard. It’s full of seashells and not much sand so the kids liked this beach the least. The views are quite beautiful getting there since it’s right off the bridge. I would recommend going there for one day and you just park right off the roads on the gravel side lots.

One of my followers on IG recommended we go to Bowman Island. We decided to head towards that area another day and it was so hard to find a parking spot! We were trying to find a parking space at any public beach but it was impossible because there weren’t many available. 

We drove a bit further and we finally found some spaces at Bowman. It was a beautiful beach and I was so thankful that my reader recommended it. We stayed there for the rest of the day and enjoyed our time. Preparing to go to the beach with kids is a whole ordeal so we decided to send the guys for some takeout so we could maximize our time at the beach and watch the sunset.

This is a funny story but we ordered our dinner from a place called, “Lazy Flamingo.” The number online kept giving me a busy signal and then my friend found another number so she placed our order. We sent the guys to pick up the food and they called us saying that there was no order under our name. After some confusion, we finally realized that we ordered it from the wrong location. If you visit the area, just know that the Lazy Flamingo is a chain!

The great thing about this whole mix-up was that Jimmy and Mike saw some people walking across the street near the restaurant with beach and fishing gear. Jimmy asked if they were coming from a public beach and they said that it was an amazing spot!

We finished our dinner on the beach, watched the sunset, and called it a day. Oh yeah, Jimmy caught a huge trout right off the beach. Fishing has become a really fun hobby for him and his friend Mike throughout the pandemic. 

We grilled that poor sucker the next night and it was delicious!!

We had one rest day at home so the kids played in the pool while the guys fished and Jennifer and I did some shopping. There isn’t much shopping in the area except for Target and TJ Maxx. There’s an outlet about 45 minutes away but that was too far for us. I will always visit a TJ Maxx if there’s one nearby. In Cape Coral, we took the kids for some bubble tea and ice cream called AraVita and Cape Creamery at a nearby shopping center. It was so good that we had to go a second time. 

The next day, the guys wanted to take us to the nameless beach that they stumbled on the other day near Lazy Flamingo off 6520 Pine Avenue. Once you park in the gravel lot, just cross the street on Sanibel Captiva Rd and the beach is right there! 

When I say we found a gem, this is an understatement! What a hidden treasure!!

Part of it is private so we walked down the beach where there weren’t any properties and it was truly the most spectacular beach. We were so thankful that we had discovered this little oasis of a beach. We were the only ones in this section of the beach so it was quiet and absolutely breathtaking. 

The seashells along this beach were also some of the best I have ever seen. It’s a mix of soft sand and seashells so you get the best of both worlds.

I was busy collecting a bunch of seashells to take home. We fished, swam, and just enjoyed this side of paradise. Jennifer caught 4 different fish which we ended up taking home to eat the day after coming back home. I think Jimmy caught another two but I was not as lucky. The ladyfish was tossed back into the ocean. 

Sadly, we discovered this private beach at the end of our trip so we only had one more day there. We were still grateful to have discovered it because there is no way we would have discovered it without that restaurant mishap. Sometimes little annoyances and accidents create unexpected happy outcomes!

I have to share one more experience that was the most bizarre thing ever. One night after spending the whole afternoon and evening at the beach, we decided to treat ourselves to some ice cream. We landed at this place called, “Best Ice Cream Land” with eclectic decor and a piano. It was delightfully charming. Let me just say I would rename this place to be called, “Best Ice Cream But You Gotta Wait a Freaking Hour Land.” 

When we arrived, there was only one other party of 4 before us. We had no idea that the ice cream was specially made by using liquid nitrogen. They even give you some snacks frozen by liquid nitrogen as an appetizer which the kids loved. There were so many mixed flavors to choose from and if you have any dietary restrictions, they will ensure that you can still enjoy their ice cream. Right when we started to order, an older man walked in, plopped down to play the piano the enter time. 

Anyways to make this long story short, we placed our order and I’m not joking when I say this. It took an HOUR and HALF for the ice cream to come out. The man behind us was NOT happy and kept asking why it was taking so long. Ha! I felt too bad to complain because the two ladies were working so hard. They were just super slow and the process of making each one took a ridiculous amount of time. 

It was the craziest most bizarre ice cream shop I have ever witnessed. Though the wait was ridiculous, the ice cream was indeed delicious. If you have an hour or two to spend, go here. If you need to head to the airport, do NOT come here. The kids raved about it and said it was the best ice cream they ever had. We still laugh about it today because it was such a bizarre experience. 

We loved our week in Cape Coral and Sanibel and would definitely go back. Omg, I almost forgot to add. The mosquitos called Noseeums in Sanibel about killed me. You can’t see them so be careful! If you sit near the sand where there is grass behind you, please wear repellent. I got no less than 35 bites and I’m still itching today. They are quite the worst mosquito bites I have ever gotten. Can you believe Jimmy didn’t get one single bite?!!

The next day when we got home, our moms cooked up the fish that we brought home and it was so delicious!

 

If you head to Sanibel, I hope this was helpful! Dear Sanibel Island, if you would like to sponsor my next visit I will happily oblige. #justsayin

 

Thanks for reading, friends!

xoxo,

 

 

 

Let all that you do be done in Love. 1 Corinthians 16:14

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