Palm Island Resort, Cape Haze, FL
Travel Stories by Barry Esptein
Old Florida
Rediscovered on West Coast
When did you last find a secluded beach with
miles of unspoiled sand, bristling with shells
and pre-historic sharks teeth? Palm Island
Resort on Florida's Southwest Gulf Coast is a
mere 3 hour 200 mile drive off Exit 31 on I-75
to this charming out-island resort. There are no
bridges or causeways to the island, which
insures a relaxed, tropical vacation setting.
Guests travel to the island via car ferry and
park their car in an island parking area, as
cars are not allowed in the resort. Instead,
golf carts are provided for each guest to get
around. A 12-minute boat launch is available to
transport guests between the mainland and the
island at frequent times.
The resort is
situated in Cape Haze, just south of Englewood
and north of Boca Grande, along the intracoastal
waterway and features a two mile portion of
private pristine beach on the north end of
Knight Island. The island has 200 private homes,
plus 15 more private homes located within the
resort. Guests stay in one of 154 vacation
villas overlooking the Gulf of Mexico with one,
two or three bedrooms. The low-rise two story
buildings each feature four or eight villas per
building and are set in semi-circles around one
of four island heated pools with a Hydra Spa.
The decor focuses on island style charm and
casual elegance. In addition to swimming, there
are 11 tennis courts available for play at no
charge. A Nature Center shows photos, samples
and exhibits of the islands native plants,
animals and ecosystems. Weekly nature programs
feature presentations such as a Sea Turtle
program, manatee awareness and a variety of
other ecological subjects. A full schedule of
activities for youngsters 6-12 keeps them busy
on Saturdays with day trips, arts & crafts,
nature walks, cooking class and more. The
recreation center activities include nature
hunts, bicycle nature tours, scavenger hunts,
sand castle contests, shell hunts and shell
crafts, family bingo, fishing tournaments and
movie nights. Rental items for water sports
include canoes, boogie boards, rafts, snorkel
sets, kayaks, fishing equipment and waterbikes.
Waverunners, motor boats and fishing carters may
also be reserved by the day or week.
Complimentary
amenities include tennis, croquet, horseshoes,
volleyball, basketball and most daily
activities. Golf is available at a nearby course
and fishing opportunities abound for both the
novice and experienced angler. The 60 boat slips
on the island can accommodate boats up to a 10
and 1/2/ foot beam with boat rentals also
available. Dining Island style at the Rum Bay
Restaurant offers tempting highlights like
blackened grouper, scallops and tempura shrimp
along with the usual casual burgers, salads and
sandwiches, all at reasonable prices. Johnny
Leverocks Seafood House, the resorts new
restaurant, overlooks the Palm Island Marina and
the Intracoastal Waterway. Specialties include
all types of freshly caught seafood served for
lunch and dinner, it has been voted Best Seafood
Restaurant for three years in a row. The Rum Bay
Store offers a unique selection of essentials
and indulges and a full service landside marina
and yacht basin has 90 wet slips for boats up to
65 feet long, with all amenities. A unique
meeting environment is found at the resort, with
900 square feet of meeting space, hosting 100
people theatre style, 72 banquet style, 65
classroom style or 40 conference style, making
it ideal for a Chamber or board of directors
retreat.
Call 941-697-4800 for rates and further
information or visit
Palm Island Beach Resort website.
Its a great place to
get away for a weekend or a week and just relax.
