Quantcast
 
VISIT FLORIDA: The State's Official Source for Travel Planning
HOMEHOME
 
My Trip Planner My Trip Planner
Welcome Login Sign Up
Tell us what you think! Click here to take our site survey.
Most Popular Tags
beachesClearwater BeachCocoa BeachDaytona BeachDestinfamilyFort LauderdaleFort MyersKey WestMiamiNaplesOrlandoPanama City BeachPensacolaSanibel IslandSarasotaSt AugustineSt PetersburgTampatheme parks  See All>>
David McRee's Blog Archive
Back to David McRee's Page
What's Going On? A Crowd Gathers by the Water.
May 09, 2008
Last Sunday evening my fiance and I went for a stroll on Pass-A-Grille Beach, just south of more
Panama City Beach Summer Discount Deals!
May 09, 2008
A number of people have written asking about whether there are some good deals to be had in Panama City Beach as far as beach front accommodations.... more
A Visit to Playalinda Beach
May 02, 2008
If you are looking for a really remote beach where you can truly get away from the crowd, I've got a just the place for you. more
I Dream of...Cocoa Beach!
April 24, 2008
Hi everybody! This is the beach expert coming to you live from Cocoa Beach. I spent the day hanging out on the beach.... more
Pelicans, Pelicans, Pelicans!
April 16, 2008
A wonderful bird is the pelican
His beak can hold more than his belly can.
He can hold in his beak
enough food for a week.
I'll be darned if I know how the heck he can.... more
Venice Shark's Tooth Festival This Weekend!
April 08, 2008
OK all you shark lovers out there--this is your weekend! To celebrate the shark's tooth and all things sharky, head over to Venice, Florida on the Gulf coast, just south of Sarasota, for their annual Shark's Tooth Festival.... more
Top Piers of SW Florida, from the Beaches Expert!
April 02, 2008
Do you have a favorite Florida pier?

 I do--all of them!

I like piers so much that I wrote an article for VISITFLORIDA about my favorite piers on the southwest coast of Florida.... more
Sunset Walk on St. Pete Beach
March 26, 2008

I took a sunset walk on St. Pete Beach yesterday.... more

Clearwater Marine Aquarium Reopens to Public After Renovations
March 20, 2008
An institution on Clearwater Beach for decades, the Clearwater Marine Aquarium (CMA) has recently undergone dramatic renovations and additions and is proudly presenting the renovations to a very supportive and appreciative Clearwater community.

I visited CMA today to enjoy the improved facilities.... more

Boy Finds Mega Sharks Tooth on Egmont Key
March 10, 2008
Imagine going to the beach and finding a five-inch long sharks tooth! That's just what happened to a young boy Sunday on Egmont Key. Johnathan Abel of The St. Petersburg Times wrote a great more
Yoga On Indian Rocks Beach--A Great Way to Relax
March 05, 2008
Sometimes the beach offers adventure and excitement, like when the surf is up. Other times relaxation is the order of the day. One of the most relaxing activities I've found happening at the beach is yoga.... more
TripAdvisor Chooses America's Top Beach: Fort Desoto Park
February 29, 2008
TripAdvisor, the world's largest online travel community, has announced their list of the top ten beaches in the U.... more
Beach Expert Visits the Gator Swamp & Bird Rookery in St. Augustine
February 25, 2008
One of the attractions I most enjoy on St. Augustine Beach is the more
Clearwater's New Beach Walk Takes Shape
February 13, 2008

If you've been to Clearwater Beach lately, you've noticed some major changes taking place along the beachfront between Pier 60 and the south jetty on Clearwater Pass. All the construction may make parking a little difficult, but the end is in sight and it is all for a reason.

more

Arrrrggggghhh! A Pirate's Life For Me!
February 03, 2008
If you are looking for a unique Florida vacation far removed from Mickey Mouse, try St. Augustine. I hadn't been in many years, but my fiance, Sue, had recently gone to yoga school there and fell in love with the place and wanted to go back to visit.... more
Sandsculpting Video Now On The Web
January 27, 2008
Hi everyone!

At long last, the video we shot at the 21st Annual Sandsculpting Festival has been edited, chiseled, massaged, hammered, tweaked, and polished into a true masterpiece! The video crew and editors did a magnificent job of condensing nearly a whole day of wandering around among the sand castles (oops, sand sculptures) into an entertaining and all-too-short video clip. Check it out.
more
SW Florida Real-Time Beach Condition Reports
January 22, 2008
If you'd like to have a heads-up on current beach conditions before you pack up the family in the car and drive out to the islands, you can now find current southwest Florida beach conditions on the web.... more
Green Flash: A Mirage at Sunset
January 17, 2008
Have you heard of it? Seen it? Did you just imagine it?  Was it real?
I'm talking about the green flash.

The story goes that if you look very carefully when the sun is setting over the sea, sometimes there is a flash of green light just as the sun disappears. For most, the green flash is half real, half legend.... more

Sand Between Your Toes
January 07, 2008
Every beach in Florida has sand and shells. Some have white sand, some brown, some gray, some orange. Some beaches, like those in the Daytona/Ormond Beach area, have a lot of coquina shell fragments mixed in with the sand.... more
It's Warm Again!
January 07, 2008
You've probably heard all about the cold snap we had here in Florida during the first week of the New Year. Yes, it was pretty chilly for a couple of days. It's gone now.... more
Honeymoon Island is for Nature Lovers
January 03, 2008
Driving up US 19 through Dunedin, Florida, just above Tampa Bay, you would never suspect that adjacent to the coast is a wonderful undeveloped State Park on an island with a virgin pine forest.

more

Walking the Planks on G.C. Tiller Memorial Pier
December 27, 2007
Not long ago, I got an email from someone who saw some more
Merry Christmas from the Beach!
December 26, 2007

Just from watching television, almost anyone would come away with the impression that Christmas Day is spent by everyone in front of a lighted tree, a pile of gifts, an assortment of relations, and a fourteen pound turkey. For most of my life that's pretty much the way it was.

Sure, when I was a teenager, if the surf was up I'd make an early run out to the beach to catch a few waves on Christmas morning, but I'd always be back in front of that Christmas turkey by lunch time.... more

Sand Dunes Big and Small
December 20, 2007

One of the most beautiful features of Florida beaches is the sand dunes. The sand dunes on each beach are different—some are large, others are small; some are covered with sea oats, while some of the larger dunes are inhabited by larger vegetation like sea grape or small oak trees.

Dunes are formed by the wind and plants on the beach.... more

Take an Evening Stroll on Pass-A-Grille Beach
December 14, 2007

Many of us, when we think of the beach, think of the weekend. After all, that's when those of us who live in Florida usually have the time to go to the beach. We drive to the beach and have to contend with heavy weekend beach traffic and crowds at the public beach.... more

Sea Turtles Go Back to Nature
December 09, 2007
Sea turtles are creatures of few words, but I imagine that if they spoke, certain lucky turtles would express their appreciation for the kind folks that saved them from near death, cared for them and released them back into the wild to continue doing what turtles were put here to do.

Turtles "Astro" and "Kelsey" were released back into the wild on Friday morning by their rehabilitators from Mote Marine Laboratory in Sarasota. Astro is a loggerhead turtle discovered in June 2007 floating near a weather buoy near New Pass in Sarasota.... more
BeachHunter in Sarasota Magazine
December 05, 2007
I'm pleased to say that the December issue of Sarasota Magazine has an article about me and my beachhunting activities. On my own more
The Beach is On The Web!
December 03, 2007
If you are wondering what it's like at the beach today but are not able to be there, did you know that the beach is just a mouse-click away? Web camera technology makes it possible to get a live view of your favorite beach. Although not all beaches have web cams, more are popping up all the time.

What exactly is a beach web cam, you ask? It's nothing more than a camera (still or video) that is connected to a computer.... more
Bridge Street Pier's New Face!
November 27, 2007
Sunday evening my fiance and I decided to drive down to one of my favorite islands, Anna Maria, and have a look around the newly renovated Bridge Street Pier. Bridge Street is not a contrived name. The bridge between Bradenton Beach and the mainland used to connect to the island at Bridge Street.... more
Beach Wrack for Beachcombers
November 18, 2007
So, what do you do for fun at the beach? Listen to the radio? Read a book? Play Frisbee? Swim? Skimboard? Take long walks and look at all the people? Look for shells? Have you ever tried “beachcombing?”

Does a cloudy day interfere with your day at the beach? Well, a lot of people go to the beach just to see what has washed up with the tide. They look for interesting objects to identify and marvel over. This is called beachcombing, and doesn't require a sunny day, or even a warm day.... more
Spectacular Sandsculptures on the Beach
November 15, 2007
I attended my first sandsculpting event on November 8th and 9th, 2007 and discovered that sandsculpting is a lot more than just building sandcastles on the beach. Artists from all over the World participated in the event and produced some incredible works of art in the sand. The VISITFLORIDA video crew met me at the event to help create a short video of the sandsculpting, which you will be able see right here on the VISITFLORIDA.... more
Sunsets at the Beach
November 01, 2007
Hi Everybody!

Fall is finally here and our first Florida "cold front" is coming through. The temperature is expected to plummet into the upper 80's for a high over the next few days. But it will be a "dry" 88 degrees.... more
VISIT FLORIDA Experts
David's picks
Ron Jon Surf Shop
Ron Jon Surf Shop in Orlando ... View
Surfer at Sebastian Inlet
Try your skills at surfing, like this surfer at Sebastian Inlet. ... View
Surf School in Cocoa Beach
Surf School in Cocoa Beach ... Watch
Florida's Best Surf Spots
Florida's Gulf coast doesn't offer the surf of the state's Atlantic coast, but all winter, ... More
Florida Surf Lessons
Florida Surf Lessons is the leading Florida Surf School not only for energetic Junior High ... Read More
 
RSS FeedsRSS Feeds | Meeting Professionals | Travel Professionals | Advertising Information | Media | Feedback | FAQ | Privacy Policy | Site Index | Link To Us | About VISIT FLORIDA®
Florida: The SunShine State VISIT FLORIDA® is the Official Florida Tourism Industry Marketing Corporation. The content for this web site has been provided both by professional travel writers and by individual consumers. The opinions expressed in the getaway ideas, Floridians' Favorites and readers' comments do not necessarily represent those of VISIT FLORIDA. To send a comment to the site editor or to report a problem, click here. All material ©2001-2008 by VISIT FLORIDA®, all rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part is prohibited without the written permission of the publisher. View our privacy policy.