Marco Island: Take it easy on this beautiful island
- Casey Harris
- Dec 25, 2020
- 3 min read
On the week of 12/13/20, we took a trip to Marco Island with some friends. Marco Island is just under a 4-hour drive from Orlando’s airport and under 3 hours from the Tampa Airport. I will say it is a great place to visit with many fun activities. Here we were on an island for 3 days and not once made it to the beach.
On the way down we stopped in Tampa, where the Bucs defeated the Vikings.
Tampa did an excellent job of keeping things socially distanced during a pandemic.
Seats not sold were zip-tied.
Ushers kept traffic moving and politely reminding guests to use masks.
Arrows kept people walking on opposite sides.
Restrooms divided for social distancing
Stickers placed 6 feet apart for people waiting in line for drinks and food.
Overall an excellent experience.
Marco Island
We had reservations at the Holiday inn Vacations Sunset Cove Resort for 3 nights and I was very impressed.
The villa had 3 bedrooms 2 bathrooms and a fully stocked kitchen.
They offered a free shuttle to the beach and it's walking distance from many shops and restaurants.
It offered great views of the waterway.
We tried several places to eat during our stay that I will outline that are worth checking out:
I definitely would recommend checking this place out for breakfast or lunch. I had the Acai Bowl which was fantastic and my wife had the Crab Benedict which was amazing too. Check the video by clicking HERE.
CJ's is right across the street from the resort and has a beautiful location on the bay. I suggest coming here for drinks at the bar. Dinner on the patio also will make for a pleasant evening. To see my video click HERE.
Doreen's was very unique. They have a great brunch menu and fantastic drinks. Our server told us each waitress gives their own unique design to the drinks their party orders. To the side is a Bloody Mary creation that you can order. Click on the Bloody Mary to see a quick video.
This was one of our favorites. We went back for a second night. The food is good and the atmosphere is super chill. It is a little hard to find but as their website says "half the fun is finding us!" Make sure to try the ahi tuna tower and any of the seafood taco's they have. Click HERE for a video on the Dolphin Grill.
Every Wednesday from November 18th, 2020 to April 14th, 2021 Marco Island has a great Farmers Market at Veterans' Community Park. If you stay at Sunset Cove it is right across the street. They have everything from fresh bread, seafood, coffee, teas to handcrafted tools, and artwork.
We took 2 different tours while we were there:
Click picture for the Instagram page:
This tour takes you all around the island on a golf cart and explains some of the histories of the island. Some of the houses and Christmas decorations you see on this ride are amazing. We stopped at several of the local bars and finished with dinner at Dolphin Tiki Grille (note food and drinks are on your own).
I highly recommend it!
This is a fantastic 2-hour boat trip that takes you into the 10,000 islands visiting Cape Romano (highlight of the whole trip for me), viewing the dolphins, going shelling, and seeing a beautiful sunset if you have a clear evening. Captain Marco was an excellent narrator for the boat ride. You are allowed to bring your own food and drinks into the boat, but I would not suggest bringing that much if you are only doing the 2-hour trip.
I highly recommend it!
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