This Summer, we kept our two vacations relatively close to home. This July. we decided to spend a few days on Anna Maria Island. Anna Maria Island is a barrier island on Florida’s Gulf Coast. It’s known for its broad beaches, like Manatee Beach Park. In the small resort city of Anna Maria, Pine Avenue is lined with shops, galleries and eateries. We stayed at Bali Hai, which is one of the island’s only hotels. If there’s one thing I believe is worth the money, it’s having someone else keep the space we’re staying in sand-free! I also want to make sure that wherever we stay is walk in/walk off for the beach. Bali Hai met all the requirements we were looking for, plus Justin really loved that their two-bedroom units have a small kitchenette where we could have coffee and breakfast in the morning, store and warm up leftovers from eating out and even do some light cooking (but I wasn’t having any of that!) Bali Hai has direct access to Holmes Beach and a short bike ride away from Pine Street and many other restaurants in the area. I liked that they had free bikes we could use while there, although since our girls haven’t mastered bike riding yet, we weren’t able to do that.
The Gulf Coast beaches are white and beautiful. We went right before 4th of July, so the beaches were pretty crowded. That being said, we had no difficulty using the beach lounge chairs the resort provided. It was also easy to toggle between the beach and the pool. We would often leave our things at the pool for a short jaunt at the beach, then head back when we were done. Some of the best parts of the beaches on this side of Florida are the gentleness of the waves (no big rip tides) and all of the beautiful shells you can collect on your walks. If you’re looking for bigger waves, this isn’t usually the side of Florida that gets them. But, it’s great for little ones.
We stayed in the two-bedroom unit and our room opened right onto the pool deck. This came in handy when the girls woke up early and wanted to get out some energy. The hotel just updated a number of these rooms so everything was new. The decor reminded me of a modern coastal style – like something you would find in California. As I mentioned, Justin loved the small kitchen that this unit included because it allowed us to do some light cooking there for breakfast and lunches. We frequented the lounge by the pool which included a full-service bar as well as a light assortment of snacks and ice cream. For dinners, we went out to eat. I highly recommend Salt Bar + Table where we ate the second night we stayed here. They have great cocktails and I got the scallops and shrimp linguine which was delicious. It’s a nicer restaurant than your typical beach fare.
We had a great time on Anna Maria Island and staying at Bali Hai. We have it on our list to go back so we can explore more. We wished we’d been able to explore Pine Street. I hope the girls can ride a bike next time we go back so we can explore the island on bike.
