Sanibel Island: Paradise Found

By: Velda Johnes

Take a moment to picture your perfect vacation. Does it include extreme adventure and adrenaline-rushing thrills? Or, are you yearning to explore new and exotic locations? Maybe all you really want and need is to find a stretch of beach to kick back and relax. No matter what you're looking for in a perfect vacation, you're sure to find it at any one of the many resorts on Sanibel Island.

Highly rated as one of the world's perfect vacation destinations, Sanibel Island hosts thousands of visitors each year. Travelers come from far and wide to search for seashells along the endless white, sandy beaches and to get up close and personal with hundreds of birds, reptiles and mammals thriving in their native habitat amid the J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge.

While the thriving tourist industry has not marred the beauty of the island, it has led to a marked increase in the number of well-appointed resorts on Sanibel Island. Enterprising landowners realize the need for comfortable accommodations, and have provided travelers with many options.

Most of the Sanibel Island resorts cater to families, although there are a select few that provide services solely for romantics and mature adventurers. No matter what type of resort you're looking for, you'll be sure to find comfortable accommodations and wonderful dining choices. These resorts offer the best of everything Sanibel Island is famous for.

Casa Ybel Resort

If you love the look and feel of a grand old island resort, visit Casa Ybel. This resort mirrors the sort of personal sanctuary that Sanibel Island so famously provides. Casa Ybel Resort is located on a shell-studded sandy beach along Florida's southwest coastline. Guests can spend days gathering seashells along the shore, or simply soaking up the sub-tropical climate. It is one of the most popular beachfront resorts on the island, located within a comfortable drive from the Southwest Florida International Airport in Fort Myers.

South Seas Island

If you prefer the luxury of newer accommodations and dining choices, then you should consider the South Seas Island Resort. More than $140 million in renovations have transformed this resort into a luxurious tropical getaway. Golfers love the South Seas Island Resort for the incredible course, located on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico.

Sanibel's Sundial Beach and Golf Resort

Of all the resorts on Sanibel Island, the Sundial Beach and Golf Resort is regarded as the most comprehensive. To say that there is something for everyone at Sundial Beach and Golf Resort would be something of an understatement.

The resort is knows as "centerpiece of the Island", providing visitors with the degree of comfort and pleasure one would expect from a classic Florida resort. Visitors to Sundial Beach can swim in the crystal waters, frolic along the magnificent beach and explore miles of paved Island pathways on foot or bicycle.

West Wind Inn Resort

Sometimes, all you really need is to leave the day-to-day stress behind and enjoy a little pampering. The West Wind Inn is one of the most highly acclaimed of all Sanibel Island resorts. It's where friendly and professional staff members pamper every guest with stress-free service. The private West Wind Inn beach is a lovely bonus with white sand, warm waters and an abundance of those magnificent seashells that make Sanibel Island world famous.

Whether your perfect vacation involves a set of golf clubs, a pair of hiking boots or a beach chair and sunglasses, Sanibel Island resorts can make your dream of paradise a reality.