"Best of the World" List - World’s 14 Best Islands
by Chris - Islands Magazine - November, 2009
Islands Magazine selected Anna Maria Island as "THE WORLD'S BEST QUAINT ISLAND" - in it's November, 2009 list of the world's BEST 14 ISLANDS. Tortuga Inn Beach Resort was chosen as it's favorite resort on Anna Maria Island. Click here to read the entire article
Business is booming on Anna Maria Island
Bay News 9 - Sunday, September 6, 2009
MANATEE COUNTY (Bay News 9) -- At a time when the national economy is taking it's toll on locally owned businesses, some businesses on Anna Maria Island are showing an increase in revenue..
Anna Maria Island’s wedding industry has grown from about 50 weddings a year five years ago to nearly 1,000 in 2008. And a large number of the members of wedding parties return to the Island as vacationers, said Caryn Hodge, marketing director for the Sandbar Restaurant in Anna Maria.
By CINDY PRICE
Published: July 26, 2009 New York Times Choice Tables
FLORIDA is a clever little peninsula. Just when you think you’ve seen everything under its proverbial sun, you stumble across a place like Anna Maria Island — a seven-mile slip of cushy white sand tucked in the Gulf of Mexico where you can dump the car, rent a bike, swim in smooth, teal waters and eat remarkably well.
The motto of Florida's Anna Maria Island says it all:
"Welcome to paradise without an attitude." Our Insider's guide helps you
make it your own slice of heaven.
ANNA MARIA ISLAND, Fla. — "Please be sweet and
rinse your feet," hand-painted signs over troughs of water outside rooms
at the beachfront, 23-unit Cedar Cove Resort & Cottages gently urge.
Tanned owner Eric Cairns makes his rounds in Jimmy Buffet-style
tropical shirts and oversees the resort's "Queen for Your Stay" program,
in which the name of a lucky woman staying a week or more is picked from a
hat. She gets a crown, massage and other royal perks during her visit.
By Rick Catlin and Lisa Neff | Islander Reporters - July 8th, 2009
Manatee County administrator Ed
Hunzeker agreed with Island mayors June
28 to keep the trolley fare-free, while at the
same time endorsing a “Save Our Trolley”
campaign proposed by Island businessman
David Teitelbaum.
By Dale White -Published: Saturday, March 21, 2009 at 1:00 a.m.
MANATEE COUNTY - The power of favorable publicity is giving motels
and other tourist-related businesses on Anna Maria Island and the Manatee
County half of Longboat Key a shot of financial adrenaline.
Despite the ongoing recession, motel and hotel occupancy rates in Manatee
County were only slightly down last month compared with February 2008, a
drop from 71.3 percent to 70.3.
By Chris Tauber - Managing Editor of Island Magazine -
06/09/2008
I'm fresh back from a very relaxing, if too short, weekend
getaway to Florida's Gulf Islands -- Anna Maria and Longboat Key, just off
the coast of Bradenton. The trip was to help research the annual ISLANDS
Romantic Retreats issue, out this January. I was looking for an affordable
island escape that my wife and I could enjoy without getting on a plane.
YouTube Video Footage from Chris Tauber's Anna Maria
Island Visit
By Chris Tauber - Managing Editor of Island Magazine
TRAVEL - LAID-BACK ANNA MARIA IS FLORIDA'S BEST-KEPT SECRET
Saturday November 29,2008
Having been to Florida several times, I thought I knew what to expect from
the Sunshine State. Over the years I’ve visited countless theme parks in
Orlando, gone alligator-spotting in the Everglades and stayed in a number
of high-rise touristy hotels. I felt I had seen all that Florida had to
offer. But the moment I drove across the bridge from the mainland, I knew
I’d stumbled across something special. I was only an hour’s drive from
Tampa but it felt like I had entered a different world: an island paradise
of cozy, clapboard guesthouses, endless white-sand beaches and family-run
restaurants.
By BETSY WITTEMANN | Special to The Courant | March 22,
2009
ANNA MARIA ISLAND, Fla.- Can you find old Florida
in new Florida?
Is there any place that isn't filled with high-rise condos
or gated golf communities, a spot where you can walk uncrowded beaches in
the late afternoon or ride a bike fearlessly? Where restaurants totter at
the end of fish piers and serve fresh grouper? Where you find luscious key
lime pie with a meringue topping in an old cottage painted aqua and pink?
Anna Maria on Florida's West Coast promises a sunny
escape for the winter weary.
By Suzanne Loudermilk
Definitely come here for the sunsets, but plan to stay for
the sunrises, too. Anna Maria Island—a wisp of a seven-mile island
along Florida's West Coast—is a place that revels in the end of day.
Birds, bistros and beaches: three days in Manatee County
By Pam O'Meara - staff writer, Woodbury Review News
Beaches, bistros and birds are highlights for visitors to
Anna Maria Island, a 7 1/2 -mile-long barrier island, less than a mile
across, at the southern end of Tampa Bay on Florida's Gulf Coast.
By Leslie Joy Ickowitz - BABM (Bay Area Business
Magazine)
In one hour, which is how long it takes to get to Anna
Maria Island by car from Tampa, we cross water eight times. Eight times!
And one of those times is a breezy excursion over the soaring Sunshine
Skyway. Click here to read the entire article
Island Honors - Anna Maria Island is the family-friendly destination
that earns kudos near and far
By Kate Pursell
The little tyke on the Anna Maria City Pier was as cute as a button in his
Tommy Bahama-style shirt (just like dad's) and his khaki cargo shorts.
The Hallworth family was visiting from snowy Grand Rapids, Mich., and the
youngest Hallworth man was in for some serious fishin' as he cast his line
in the shimmering waters and declared, "I'm going to catch a fish." He got
a thumbs up from dad, who beamed as the balmy and picture-perfect weather
made him remark, "I'd be shoveling snow right now."
by Molly Feltner, SmarterTravel.com Staff - May 14, 2007
Last summer, when you were sitting in an endless traffic jam waiting to
get on the ferry to Martha's Vineyard or laying down a month's pay for a
family trip to Maui, you may have wondered if your relaxing beach vacation
was all worth it.
There must be alternatives, you think—and you're right, there are. With a
little guidance, you can still find beach destinations unmarred by
development, with opportunities for adventure, culture, great food, and
yes, even reasonable prices. After doing thorough research and consulting
with numerous other travel writers, I found five places in the U.S. and
Canada that fit the bill.
Click here to read the entire article
Finding a new Florida
TRAVEL COVER STORY By Karen Jones and Gina Salamone
There’s no better way to beat the winter blues than with a quick trip down
to Florida, and you won’t find many New Yorkers arguing it — of the 77
million travelers who visited the Sunshine State in 2005, 11.9 % were from
New York. But where to spend the weekend? Miami’s got nightlife and
dining, and Orlando’s great for family fun, but sometimes all you need on
a winter getaway is sand, surf and a few good meals. For a lower-key
escape, consider two Florida destinations that might not be on your radar.
Click here to read the entire article
Overlooked: Anna Maria Island
from Elliot - first aid for travel, July 17, 2007
Just when I thought I had thoroughly explored Florida's coastline and
discovered its best vacation destinations, I stumbled upon a place like
Anna Maria Island, a quiet resort area near Bradenton, right across the
bridge from Longboat Key.
Click here to read the entire article
Florida's 'Paradise Island Its Best-Kept Secret'
DECEMBER 3, 2008 |14:47 | GOSSIPS BY : TEAM X
In addition to its impressive theme parks and sprawling
resorts, Florida has something of a well-kept "secret", suggests a Travel
commentator. The Gulf island of Anna Maria has "some of the most amazing
sunsets I've seen", states Matt Carroll, writing for the Daily Express.
Click here to read the entire article
2200 Gulf Drive North -
Bradenton Beach, FL 34217 - (800)447-7124 (941)778-5254
For information about Condominium Sales, Contact
David
Teitelbaum
"Best of the World" List - World’s 14 Best Islands
