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 This Week's Featured Offers
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From $199 per night
(including resort fee)
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| Naples |
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Naples
Don’t expect Naples, Florida, to resemble the lively Mediterranean city with which it shares a name. This Naples is a casually elegant Gulf Coast city thoroughly rooted in a genteel Southern way of life. Although the town was only founded in 1886, the Olde Town neighborhood makes it feel like time has stood still—and most visitors wouldn’t have it any other way. In Naples, the main activity is relaxing, and as you stroll the white sand beach gazing at rows of handsome Victorian homes, you can’t help but breathe a little bit easier.
Activities and Attractions:
Naples is a town where the locals haven’t forgotten the art of genteel living. In Olde Town you’ll find historic mansions lining the streets, some of which, like Palm Cottage, are open to the public.
This neighborhood is also where you’ll find the best restaurants, and because you will more than likely end up staying there, it won’t be a long walk from your hotel. Naples’ best shopping is also in the Olde Town area. Try Third Street South for jewelry and fine clothing boutiques. Fifth Avenue has a number of serious antique shops, and is also dining central.
Olde Town even has its own beach, a beautiful stretch of white sand—you’ll find it right behind the monolithic wall of Victorians known as Millionaire’s Row. The Olde Town beach is where you’ll find the 600-foot Naples Pier, the perfect place from which to watch the afternoon sun drop into the Gulf of Mexico. Or catch the sunset from one of several beachside parks. Try Lowdermilk Park, where there’s almost always a lively volleyball game going on, or the amusingly named Clam Pass Country Park. Here you can take a nearly mile-long tram ride along a boardwalk, through a swamp, and back to the sandy beach.
To truly enjoy the calm, warm waters of the Gulf, book a bay tour or charter your own boat. You can go fishing, or just enjoy the experience of being out on the water—it’s not unusual to see porpoises frolicking in the waves. If you’re feeling athletic you can also rent a kayak or canoe to navigate the mangrove swamps near Naples Bay and the Gordon River.
Still have some energy? Visit the zoo, with the best big-cat habitat in Florida. A unique canal system allows you to tour the zoo on a boat safari. Or trek through Conservancy of Southwest Florida's Naples Nature Center, where an aviary harbors bald eagles—you can tour this facility by boat, too. You could also book a cruise to nearby Keewaydin Island. But don’t forget to slow down and relax for a bit. That’s what Naples does best.
Insider Tip:
Any time is a good time to visit Naples, although not everyone enjoys the summer temperatures that spike into the nineties most days. If you’re a baseball fan, spring is an especially good time to visit. From Naples it’s just a (25-mile) hop, skip, and a jump to Fort Myers, where both the Boston Red Sox and the Minnesota Twins have their spring training facilities.
-Exclusively for Perfect Escapes by Nicole Clausing |
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