sadiegirl Posted March 22, 2011 Share Posted March 22, 2011 My husband has been away for his job for a month. He mentioned today that when returns that he wants to plan a short trip this spring with our 2 boys...ages 14 and 15. He has always wanted to check into Atlantis and he found out from a co-worker that they are offering a buy 3 nights, get 4th night free. Has anyone gone and is it really worth the price? Also if you could take a 3-5 day trip this April or May...where would you go? We have always gone to Florida(Perdido Key) and stayed in a condo. We love being able to hit the beach, go sight-seeing in Pensacola, eat at local restaurants that the locals recommend. We are not people that just sit by the pool, water all day long. We love to shell in mornings, go to a museum or activity during day and back on beach later. I guess I'm afraid that it will be so touristy(?) and full of hidden expenses. Also, we live in southern IL and airfare out of St. Louis was high he said so the friend told him to check into flying out of Atlanta(where he is currently working)...I'm not crazy about driving 7 hours then dealing with airport check-in and plus having to do it all again in order to get home!! Another idea is heading farther south in Florida. A friend of mine once mentioned Sanibel Island to me...would it be a fun place and could we find a great place on the beach? Any ideas or input would be great... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QueenCat Posted March 22, 2011 Share Posted March 22, 2011 I haven't been to any of those places. It is far more than 7 hours from St. Louis to Atlanta. I'm 4 1/2 hrs from St. Louis, and 5 from Atlanta (if we don't hit the rush hour north of Atlanta on our way in, we do the second half of your drive often), with very minimal stopping. I just checked, and the most direct route says 9 1/2 hours. Plus stopping for at least gas and the bathroom. Please consider this before agreeing to drive and then fly out of Atlanta. Especially if you are meeting your hubby in Atlanta, and doing all of the driving. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissel Posted March 22, 2011 Share Posted March 22, 2011 My DH would say Atlantis, I would probably say Sanibel :D My idea of a vacation is to do nothing but lay on the beach, swim in the ocean, cook yummy food, and bike and hike lazily. From what I hear from friends who were just there, that's Sanibel. Atlantis is much more of a resort experience, with the programs and the tube slides and the swimming with sharks. He absolutely loved it, and I'm sure we will too. But Sanibel sounds more relaxing to me personally! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elisabeth in IL Posted March 22, 2011 Share Posted March 22, 2011 My husband and I really enjoyed Atlantis when we went back in 2001. It is very pricey and I probably wouldn't have enjoyed it as much if I had to pay for the trip. He won the trip in a sales contest. If you have the money, I'd go since your dh has wanted to check it out for awhile. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RanchGirl Posted March 22, 2011 Share Posted March 22, 2011 I think both would be great but it depends what you want -- are you looking to go go go or chill out and spend time together? Atlantis is expensive, but has awesome waterslides and beautiful resort with nice restaurants, casino, etc. Check tripadvisor.com for extensive reviews, but keep in mind that when people save up and pay a lot for a vacation, they have very high expectations. I haven't been there yet but keep meaning to, but we always choose a cruise or Beaches resort instead. To me these 3 (Disney cruise, Atlantis, and Beaches) are comparably priced and similar types of vacations. We love Sanibel too but it's totally different. I assume you would rent a condo (check vrbo.com for listings). Much more laid back, you'd probably be walking on the beach, building sand castles, picking up shells (that's called the Sanibel stoop!), swimming in the ocean, you might see dolphins from a distance in the gulf. If you like to boat you could rent one at a nearby marina. There are bicycle paths everywhere and bike rental places if it's not convenient to bring your own. There are several fun casual restaurants (we love the Island Cow and the Bubble Room, which is on nearby Captiva Island). We usually get groceries so we can cook and grill out at our condo for at least half the meals. Lots of fun kid-friendly day trips are available, especially if you are willing to go back and forth over the toll bridge to Ft. Myers. There is a small movie theater on the island as well. On Sanibel, you'll find that most condos are rented by the week. There are some houses too (and many more gorgeous ones on Captiva) but they are by the month. I think it might actually be a local ordinance. Whichever you choose, have a great time being together! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sadiegirl Posted March 22, 2011 Author Share Posted March 22, 2011 (edited) I haven't been to any of those places. It is far more than 7 hours from St. Louis to Atlanta. I'm 4 1/2 hrs from St. Louis, and 5 from Atlanta (if we don't hit the rush hour north of Atlanta on our way in, we do the second half of your drive often), with very minimal stopping. I just checked, and the most direct route says 9 1/2 hours. Plus stopping for at least gas and the bathroom. Please consider this before agreeing to drive and then fly out of Atlanta. Especially if you are meeting your hubby in Atlanta, and doing all of the driving. We just returned from Atlanta yesterday...and we made it from Atlanta mid-town to Mount Vernon, IL where we live in about 7-7.5 hours. My husband drove it a couple of weekends ago in 6.5 but he drives faster than I do. But, I agree it is way too much driving to add to a vacation for me! Edited March 22, 2011 by sadiegirl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissel Posted March 22, 2011 Share Posted March 22, 2011 ...you might see dolphins from a distance in the gulf. Oh, yes! My friends who were just there said they saw tons of dolphins, and one day there was a huge number of stingrays in the water, and they swam with them! My friend said they looked like they were migrating somewhere--definitely traveling purposefully in one direction. Very cool :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QueenCat Posted March 22, 2011 Share Posted March 22, 2011 We just returned from Atanta yesterday...and we made it from Atlanta mid-town to Mount Vernon, IL where we live in about 7-7.5 hours. My husband drove it a couple of weekends ago in 6.5 but he drives faster than I do. But, I agree it is way too much driving to add to a vacation for me! I based it on St. Louis, a little further away than Mt. Vernon. It takes me 5 hours to the Atlanta airport area, from Ft. Campbell/Clarksville on I-24. Most of the time, going about 75. Stopping once or twice for bathrooms/gas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sadiegirl Posted March 22, 2011 Author Share Posted March 22, 2011 I think both would be great but it depends what you want -- are you looking to go go go or chill out and spend time together? Atlantis is expensive, but has awesome waterslides and beautiful resort with nice restaurants, casino, etc. Check tripadvisor.com for extensive reviews, but keep in mind that when people save up and pay a lot for a vacation, they have very high expectations. I haven't been there yet but keep meaning to, but we always choose a cruise or Beaches resort instead. To me these 3 (Disney cruise, Atlantis, and Beaches) are comparably priced and similar types of vacations. We love Sanibel too but it's totally different. I assume you would rent a condo (check vrbo.com for listings). Much more laid back, you'd probably be walking on the beach, building sand castles, picking up shells (that's called the Sanibel stoop!), swimming in the ocean, you might see dolphins from a distance in the gulf. If you like to boat you could rent one at a nearby marina. There are bicycle paths everywhere and bike rental places if it's not convenient to bring your own. There are several fun casual restaurants (we love the Island Cow and the Bubble Room, which is on nearby Captiva Island). We usually get groceries so we can cook and grill out at our condo for at least half the meals. Lots of fun kid-friendly day trips are available, especially if you are willing to go back and forth over the toll bridge to Ft. Myers. There is a small movie theater on the island as well. On Sanibel, you'll find that most condos are rented by the week. There are some houses too (and many more gorgeous ones on Captiva) but they are by the month. I think it might actually be a local ordinance. Whichever you choose, have a great time being together! thanks for the suggestions!! I will write the restaurants down...we like to cook at the condo as well as eat out. I personally think that I would prefer Sanibel...less the resort feel. I like the ability to do our own thing. I think my husband is thinking that Atlantis would be a more memorable vacation for the kids. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted March 22, 2011 Share Posted March 22, 2011 I've been to Atlantis and Sanibel, and other areas in S. Fl. We used to live in Ft. Lauderdale and traveled a lot to the Keys and to the west coast of Fl. I don't like Sanibel because the beach is uncomfortable--very small stones and shells. It is pretty, but just not the N. Carolina/Outer Banks type of sand I prefer. Ft. L and Miami are way too commercial for me, but some folks really like it. Atlantis has waterslides, lots of small pools and a few large ones, a big casino (didn't go in there), some shops in the resort, maybe 10 or so restaurants (or more--we went in 1999 in August). It's all marble pillars and marble floors inside, with giant aquariums in the walls and just over the top decor--very, very pretty. You can do extra things, like jet skiing and parasailing, and all that sort of stuff, but it's pricey. We took a catamaran out (we were scattering dh's dad's ashes), and also went on a water taxi to the Straw Market. We had a fun time, but most of it was spent by the pools (we only had 3 days). There are other Fl beaches that are quite nice-- If I had the same amt of money, I'd probably go back to Atlantis. I was newly preggers with dd, and she'd love to go! It is really lovely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sadiegirl Posted March 22, 2011 Author Share Posted March 22, 2011 I've been to Atlantis and Sanibel, and other areas in S. Fl. We used to live in Ft. Lauderdale and traveled a lot to the Keys and to the west coast of Fl. I don't like Sanibel because the beach is uncomfortable--very small stones and shells. It is pretty, but just not the N. Carolina/Outer Banks type of sand I prefer. Ft. L and Miami are way too commercial for me, but some folks really like it. Atlantis has waterslides, lots of small pools and a few large ones, a big casino (didn't go in there), some shops in the resort, maybe 10 or so restaurants (or more--we went in 1999 in August). It's all marble pillars and marble floors inside, with giant aquariums in the walls and just over the top decor--very, very pretty. You can do extra things, like jet skiing and parasailing, and all that sort of stuff, but it's pricey. We took a catamaran out (we were scattering dh's dad's ashes), and also went on a water taxi to the Straw Market. We had a fun time, but most of it was spent by the pools (we only had 3 days). There are other Fl beaches that are quite nice-- If I had the same amt of money, I'd probably go back to Atlantis. I was newly preggers with dd, and she'd love to go! It is really lovely. I was worried about the added expense of doing the extra things at Atlantis...my husband and I want to spend about $3000 or so for trip. I know that will go very quickly from what I have read so far about Atlantis and I really don't want to go somewhere and feel like we have to feel unable to do! The thing I like about Florida is that you can control your $$ and splurge when you want but still have fun and not spend much on some days. I would like for the kids to do some extra things but I guess I am clueless as to the cost of each of those activities. My youngest son is really into fish tanks and we have fresh water and salt water tanks so I think he would enjoy the aquariums even though we have been to Shedd, Atlanta, etc. As far as Florida...we are used to the white sands of Pensacola, Perdido Key...but we love shelling. We went to Newport Beach a year ago and we loved seeing the different tide pools and the kids loving searching for sea glass. I guess my concern on picking somewhere new to go in Florida is that we don't know anything about southern area and best place for $ $. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beth in OH Posted March 22, 2011 Share Posted March 22, 2011 I'm in the Bahamas right now, just a mere 8 miles from Atlantis! The expensive part of your trip really begins once you get here--and you won't avoid it by leaving the resort. Here's an example...last night we took a cab downtown to a locally owned, casual restaurant, that serves a varied menu including the local specialty: conch. We are a party of essentially 5 adults. The restaurant was 5 miles away. Cab ride: $50 round trip. Dinner: $150. The equivalent meal in OH would have been $80. I just thought I'd be able to put some specific numbers on what others have referred to as expensive. It's beautiful here, and we may even venture over to Atlantis just to check it out. Have to go.....the sunshine's calling :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SailorMom Posted March 22, 2011 Share Posted March 22, 2011 We here in Pensacola would love your tourist dollars again :) Still recovering from the oil spill.... Anyway - Have you looked into Destin? Not much further down the road from us, but there are some wonderful resorts and beach rental houses for a steal right now - and a TON to do nearby... SanDestin Beach Resort is amazing... http://www.sandestin.com/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cindy in FL. Posted March 22, 2011 Share Posted March 22, 2011 If you go to the Atlantis, make sure you go into town and explore. We took public transportation around, watched some cricket at a small club, etc. Otherwise you could be at a resort virtually anywhere. It is very nice, beautiful beaches, great pools, and wonderful aquarium. I'd probably pick the Atlantis if I were you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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