Anonymous wrote:PP, I kinda differ. First off, it is SW Florida, on the Gulf. If the water is cold there, it will be cold in all of Florida. Also, the place is well known for its shells - if you expected a powder sand beach, well, you made a mistake. And, I am pretty sure Captiva/Sanibel meet the definiton of "beach". I mean, they are islands, right?

What I meant is that the beach was so bad for my standards, that we ended up spending most of our time at the pool. I was not the one to mention sharks and to be truthful, I didn't see any. The place is famous for having tons of manatees and we were very excited about seeing them. But like everything else, it was just hyper as we didn't see a single one during our visit (and our room faced the Marina).

The resort does have a somnambulant feeling to it, it's kind of a sleepy millionaire's marina type place but does not have as lush landscaping as you see in Naples or say the Omni Amelia Island. I was glad I did not stay there myself, but rented a house down the road. I'd say the best way to enjoy that area is to fan out and explore (Ding Darling, boat trips, Sanibel light house, Blind Pass shell hunt etc.) not expect to sit in a lounge chair the whole time.

I've been to souths seas a bunch if times, and my sister worked there (and lived on property) for two years. And, we have relatives who have had time shares there for a million years. Of course there are sharks all over fl. But you can see them up close and personal by that pier.

Ok, I can't win this argument....I don't know what a great beach is apparently, and, they are sharks in every salt-water body. You've done research to prove they just sit by a pier in Captiva?

But south seas doesn't have a great beach, and its not easily accessible from most of the accommodations. Sure, there's water all around, but the swimming beach is a schlep. And there are sharks off the pier.

PP, I kinda differ. First off, it is SW Florida, on the Gulf. If the water is cold there, it will be cold in all of Florida. Also, the place is well known for its shells - if you expected a powder sand beach, well, you made a mistake. And, I am pretty sure Captiva/Sanibel meet the definiton of "beach". I mean, they are islands, right?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Iam the op of this thread and fyi, I went with my husband and preschooler for SB and was underwhelmed.

Interested. I was also considering going here. Underwhelmed in terms of the whole scene, or of the place you stayed?

The room was fine, nothing fancy but not bad either.

However, I was underwhelmed with the beach itself - tons of seashells so it is NOT fine sandy beach. Also the sea water was not particularly calm or warm as I like for preschoolers (3y).

The pools were good, but I was aiming for a "beach" vacation and ended up spending most of our time at the pools.

The place is also pretty isolated.

If I had to drive 1 or 2 hours it would have been fine - but to get on a plane, then drive 1 hour for that?! Not worth it. Next time when I want a beach/dreamy vacation I will try to splurge on something else.

Oh, it is not inclusive and everything is VERY expensive.

I did not use the shuttle; we kinda liked the flexibility of having a car. The shuttle on Captiva only goes to the middle of the island, basically 1 intersection outside of South Seas Resort, where you can jump out, eat at a few restaurants, etc. If you want to explore Sanibel, you need the car. The resort is beautiful, and essentially new. They were hit by 4 hurricanes in, I think, 2005. Captiva/South Seas was pretty much re-built. We own time-share, and it may have been the nicest resort in over 20+ years of traveling. The place is NOT cheap, but, it is super safe, super nice, and a real escape from reality. I also don't really like Florida, but I loved South Seas. We had friends meet us there, and, they rented, while booking directly thru South Seas. it cost them almost $500 per night. Fantastic sailing school, for kids, great stuff to rent on the resort, drinks on the beach.

Research restaurants on Sanibel. You definitely need a car.

Np here. Just booked a trip there for winter break and I was coming on here to see if I need a rental car. What is wrong with South Seas? Any good restaurants in the area?

My sister worked there for a couple years, and we stayed in what was supposed to be the nicest accommodations and we were seriously underwhelmed. Thank goodness we didn't pay full price. It's not fancy, and it doesn't feel like a resort. It's isolated, so we had to schlep to get anywhere (which we felt compelled to do since the resort itself is pretty boring). Naples was much more fun IMHO. Or try Sarasota.

Anonymous wrote:Iam the op of this thread and fyi, I went with my husband and preschooler for SB and was underwhelmed.

Interested. I was also considering going here. Underwhelmed in terms of the whole scene, or of the place you stayed?

Iam the op of this thread and fyi, I went with my husband and preschooler for SB and was underwhelmed.