One of our favorite places in the world is Sanibel Island, Florida. This is a Gulf Coast destination we return to year after year. I'm excited to share our Sanibel, Florida Trip Journal with our favorite things to do, restaurants, and more.
Sanibel and Florida Gulf Coast Trip Journal
We started visiting Sanibel and Captiva Island in 2014 and quickly fell in love. We find ourselves gravitating towards the islands at least once a year if not more often.
In the past we would fly down from Spokane and adventure around southern Florida. Now that we live in Gulf Shores, Alabama it is a days drive from our house if we push it.
This trip our goal was to see how Sanibel and Captiva Islands have changed since we were there in August and enjoy some great shelling and bird watching.
TL;DR Don't have time to read the full article? Here are my top finds:
🏨Hotels and Vacation Rentals
📍Tours
Day 1 - Gulf Shores to Clearwater, Florida
We started the day early, heading out of Gulf Shores on our way to Clearwater, Florida. We had to stop into Dutch Bros. in Pensacola for a tropical green tea to fuel our long day of adventures.
Our 1st stop was in Port St. Joe to check out a new restaurant. Since it was a Sunday not everything in town was open but we found Sister' Bistro open for lunch. This cute local restaurant had great food, a comfortable environment, and fantastic service.
The fried ravioli was delicious! John had the Dagwood sandwich and it was so big he ended up bringing half of it with us. I had the fettuccine alfredo, and it was rich and creamy.
We are big fans of Port St. Joe and need to plan another trip to spend a few days exploring more of this cute Florida Gulf Coast Town.
Our next stop was St. Mark's National Wildlife Refuge. Rob from 2 Travel Dads has been telling us for years that we have to visit the refuge and we finally made it happen.
Our hope was to see Pinky the flamingo and the bobcats we keep seeing people post photos of. While we sadly did not see any flamingos or bobcats we did see a gator friend, the St. Mark's Lighthouse, tons of egrets and herons, plus a few terns. It was a lot of fun exploring the wildlife refuge and we will definitely be returning.
We spent the rest of the afternoon and evening driving down to Clearwater, Florida. Just when the GPS told us we had less than 15 minutes to get to the hotel, we ran into a bunch of police cars, and the Causeway bridge was closed.
We ended up taking a scenic route to the hotel which thankfully only added an additional 20 minutes. We were exhausted after 14 hours on the road.
Day 2 - Clearwater to Sanibel Island, Florida
We didn't get to the hotel until close to 11 pm the night before, so we ended up sleeping in and taking our time to get out of the hotel, we wanted to get to Sanibel for low tide but sleep won.
We stayed at the Fairfield Inn Clearwater and it was really nice! The room had everything we needed and it was quick and easy to hop back onto the freeway. We really need to plan time to explore more of the Clearwater and Tampa area.
It was a couple hour drive down to Sanibel Island which passed quickly. There is something so calming when you drive thru the toll booth onto the bridge to get to Sanibel and Captiva Island.
I always feel like I can take a deep breath and know that shelling and birds are my only worry for the time we spend on the island.
We started our time on the island with breakfast at The Bel Bagels & Deli. This cute bagel shop also has a great store area with drinks and snacks perfect for taking to the beach.
I had a great egg and cheese bagel while John had this epic cheesesteak. It was the perfect quick breakfast to start our day.
Our 1st stop was going to be Lighthouse Beach but we quickly realized as we pulled into the parking lot that Spring Break was happening and a lot of people had the same idea we did.
Thankfully there is a ton of things to do on Sanibel so we headed down to Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge for some fun bird watching. We saw a ton of egrets and herons along the 4-mile wildlife drive.
John finally saw a Pileated Woodpecker who acted like Woody the Woodpecker and did everything it could to not get its photo taken.
After spending time in the refuge we drove over to Captiva Island to visit Boops by The Bubble Room. This is one of our favorite spots to grab a sweet treat for later.
The Bubble Room was still closed but we could see how much work had been done since we were on the island in August. We picked up a couple slices of their Tropical Cake which is a mandarin orange cake with pineapple cream cheese icing. It is a must try!
We drove around Captiva and Sanibel for a while looking to see what restaurants are re-opened and what work has been done. They have done so much work recovering from the hurricanes that sadly hit the island.
We stopped into the Bailey Track which is part of Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge and were sitting in the car when a gentlemen came up and asked if we liked wildlife.
After we eagerly said yes he pointed down the trail and told use there were Roseate Spoonbills 20 feet off the trail just down from the parking lot.
I am going to admit that we scurried down that trail in hopes of seeing them. I may have squealed out loud when we came up to the pond and there were two Roseatte's along with a bunch of Wood Storks feeding in the pond.
Then the most magical thing happened and a flock of White Pelicans took off from a different pond and started circling around us. They flew straight at us standing there as they were landing on the small pond.
I can't wait to share the video that I took. You can hear me squeal with joy as a pelican is landing right in front of me.
One of the things we love about Sanibel and Captiva Island is the wildlife and bird moments that always seem to happen.
After taking 8 million bird photos we headed to The Shack on Sanibel which I had seen posted on TikTok a few times. I went with a Shack it on Sanibel custard with raspberries and strawberries. It was perfect for a hot afternoon after walking the trails in the refuge.
We finally made it back to Lighthouse Beach for a walk to the lighthouse while looking for shells.
It was really interesting seeing how much the beach has changed since we were there in August. It looks like beach restoration was done and there is a ton of fresh sand down the entire beach.
I found a few fun shells on the beach and then when I was rinsing my feet at the outdoor showers I found some epic tiny shells in the shell gravel.
Only on Sanibel will you look down and find a whelk, Olive, and Murex in the shell gravel. I couldn't help but giggle as I rushed to the rental truck to show John.
We headed off the island to get checked into our hotel and get ready for another fun day of adventures. Tomorrow is all about Park Ranger John work focused on Everglades National Park.
Day 3 - Sanibel Island Shelling and a new Pelican Friend
Originally we were supposed to head south towards Everglades National Park to take an airboat ride and then a 10,000 Island Boat Tour. John had a full day of park adventures mapped out including Big Cypress National Preserve.
Funny thing we didn't count on John getting a stomach bug and feeling horrid overnight. The one thing with travel is you have to be able to adapt and flow with random unexpected life moments.
We decided to have a quiet morning at the Residence Inn Fort Myers Sanibel so John could recover and see how he felt. I managed to get a ton of work done with the comfortable space in the room.
We headed back to Sanibel Island for a completely unplanned day and it turned out perfect.
Over Easy Cafe was a must-visit for a late breakfast. They have been on the island since we started visiting years ago and have never dissapointed with their delicious food.
There was a few minute's wait at Over Easy Cafe so I walked into Suncatcher's Dream Store next to the restaurant. I promptly fell in LOVE a few feet into the store.
Madly deeply in love with a Pelican sitting on the floor. I noticed the pelican art was marked down and asked the saleswoman about it. She told me that it had survived Hurricane Ian with a few bumps and a bit of rust.
To say I was in love is an understatement. I told her I needed to go for breakfast but would return as soon as we were done. Ian the Pelican needed to come home with us.
Over Easy Cafe was delicious just like I expected it would be. The Orange Cinnamon Roll alone is worth the visit. So good!
Seeing the water line on the restaurant wall showing how high the water reached during the hurricane was gut-wrenching.
You think you know just how much water it was but then you stand next to the line and realize you would be deep under water if you were there. It's mindboggling and eye opening at the same time.
After seeing the water line I knew there was no question Ian the Pelican was coming home with us. I quickly headed over to pick him up along with a few gorgeous coastal inspired pieces of jewelry, postcards, and some other fun things.
Suncatcher's Dream Store has so many cute items that are perfect for remembering your time on Sanibel Island.
Carrying a large pelican to the parking lot was quite the conversation starter. Multiple people had to stop me and ask about the pelican it was so much fun.
I might have buckled him into the rental truck to make sure he was safe and sound for our days adventures. John was laughing the entire time at how much care Ian the Pelican was getting.
We decided to check out a beach park we hadn't been to after a follower on TikTok suggested it.
It was fantastic with great shells and gorgeous views. I walked and looked for shells for a couple of hours. The sheer number of shells and the diversity of shells on Sanibel Island is amazing.
I have never seen so many Florida Fighting Conch is one spot before visiting Sanibel Island. I can see why it is considered the shelling capitol of the United States.
The title is rightfully earned! After walking and doing the Sanibel stoop for a couple of hours we headed to The Magic Bus for a cold treat.
I have been seeing the Magic Bus on social media and knew we needed to try it. The ice cream shop is owned by the same owners as The Island Cow which is a restaurant we really hope comes back to the island.
There is a sign for an Island Cow location but building has not started. Fingers crossed they are able to build again.
The Magic Bus is so cute and perfect for fun photos! The tropical smoothies were delicious. If you are looking for a sweet treat of any type they probably have it.
I know this won't surprise you but we had to drive through Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge again since we were on the island. We saw Mottled Ducks for the first time!
Being later in the afternoon the songbirds and other smaller species were not as active but we saw great ducks, herons, and egrets.
Our final stop of the day was Bowman's Beach. This beach park has a ton of amenities including great restrooms, changing rooms, outdoor showers, and easy to follow boardwalks to the beach.
After walking the beach for a bit it was time for dinner and planning our next day. We ended up ordering Tutti Pazzi pizza to go so we could enjoy it in the car.
After multiple beach walks and shelling most of the day we didn't feel up to sitting in a restaurant. The wood fired margherita pizza from Tutti Pazzi was delish!!! Oh my goodness this is the perfect meal after a day of walking.
Day 4 - Private Shelling Tour and Sanibel Island
We woke up bright and early to head south to the 10,000 Islands area for a private shelling tour!
I found an epic deal on Groupon for a private shell and wildlife tour and had to book it! One tip...make sure you bring your notes on what time you are going to meet the captain. I thought it was 9 am and then when we got there they told us it was actually 10 am.
Which was funny because my phone calendar had a completely different time with switching from central to eastern time. Thankfully it was a private tour and they were more than happy to go out early.
The 4 hours shelling and wildlife tour started with an epic manatee sighting maybe two minutes after leaving the dock. There was a mom and baby manatee nearby who were super cute.
We cruised to a secluded island for our 1st shelling adventure. I was able to walk all over the island looking for shells. I squealed with joy finding an epic pear whelk.
As I was walking back to the boat a group of Atlantic Bottlenose Dolphins started playing and leaping from the water. Talk about a dream moment.
When we left the island the dolphins started playing in the boat's wake.
Our next stop was another secluded island which turned out to be amazing shelling.
I found a gorgeous whelk in the water and waded out to pick it up. It was exciting and also heartbreaking to find it inhabited. So cool to see one alive and thriving but also so sad to leave the gorgeous shell.
We found quite a few shells I had never seen before and can't wait to look up in our shell book when we get home.
The entire four hour private boat tour with Just Add Water and Sun was fantastic. We are already talking about needing to do it again during our next trip.
After the tour we had planned to head back to Sanibel directly but realized we could take a bit of a detour and check out Lovers Key State Park and Ft. Myers Beach area.
Lovers Key State Park was gorgeous. They have an excellent tram ride that takes you closer to the beach so you don't have to hike the hot trails if you don't want to.
Our driver told us there are a ton of manatees hanging out in the waters around the park right now. He suggested renting a kayak or taking a Kayak Eco Tour and being able to cruise around the waterways seeing all of the manatees.
When we left the park and headed north towards Ft. Myers Beach, we could see the damage from Hurricane Ian, which is still being dealt with. The storm ravaged the area and it is amazing how much has been done since it hit.
This is an area that has forged through the fire and continues to get stronger daily. They are working hard to rebuild while continuing to take care of visitors and locals who are on the island.
We just missed driving Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge again after getting stuck in some traffic. We divered over to the Gulfside City beach park for a sunset stroll that turned into a shelling dream.
Without planning it we were on the beach right before low tide and the shells were mind-boggling. So many Florida Fighting Conch's that were alive and so cute!
I found multiple shells I had only seen in shelling videos online. Did I squeal wiht joy silently to not scare people around me..yes i did. LOL.
I also might have gotten a bit focused on shelling and enjoying the gorgeous sunset and forgot to look up to see where I was on the beach.
I thought I was near the walkway to the parking lot but that was not the case. oops! I was walking with a woman I met on the beach talking when we realized the boardwalk we were walking was not to the parking lot we thought it was.
I had to call John and ask him to come out on the boardwalk with his phone flashlight so I could see which boardwalk to walk to. My husband the retired park ranger is never going to let me live it down that I got so lost in shelling I literally ended up a bit lost.
Thankfully we were not too far down the beach and quickly made it back to the right parking area. John was shaking his head when I got there.
For dinner, we headed back to Tutti Pazzi Italian Kitchen to check out the full restaurant experience. The pizza was so good with take out we had to see what else was on the menu.
This may be one of my new favorite Sanibel Restaurants! The vibe is amazing with live music, fun decorations, and epic service.
From the warm bread rolls with olives to the drool worthy menu you will not be dissapointed. Every single thing we tried was beyind delicious.
Get the burrata appetizer! YUM!! John would tell you the baked lasagna is a must try! I would tell you to get a wood-fired pizza.
Whatever you get I promise you will not be disappointed.
Day 5 - Sanibel to Everglades NP
We started the morning with a drive through Ding Darling NWR. We figured we would do a quick drive and then head to Wickies Restaurant for breakfast.
A funny thing happened...All the birds showed up. We ended up spending a couple hours on the wildlife drive and then heading to the Bailey Tract again after another birder told us to go look for Black-necked Stilts.
The Black-necked Stilts were amazing. We sat and watched them for a while. A lovely couple foot long snake slithered past and I am happy to say I kept my composure and simply advised the snake that we were not friends and it could continue along quickly.
It ended up being lunch time by the time we were done so we headed to the Blue Giraffe which looked really cute on social media.
This restaurant was fantastic! They have a fun giraffe theme with an absolutely gorgeous mural of a blue giraffe inside the restaurant.
I was looking at the mural when the owner came by and told me more about it. The family connections built into the mural are wonderful.
The food was great at the Blue Giraffe. I had a delicious salad while John had a fantastic Cuban sandwich.
We stopped by the Sanibel Sprout coffee truck to get an iced chai and smoothie. The Sanibel Sprout is super cute with a fun vibe.
This is when we were supposed to be heading off the island and heading north towards Tallahassee. Funny thing we were having so much fun that we decided to call and extend our rental truck and head towards Homestead, Florida for the night.
We figured we were already in South Florida why not make the most of it. I am going to admit it is always hard to drive over the Sanibel bridge heading off the island but this time I at least knew we would be back for 1 more day after heading to Everglades NP.
On our way to Homestead we stopped into the visitor center for Big Cypress National Preserve. The amazing volunteers told us to check out a loop drive we hadn't driven before. They said it should take an hour or so to see the whole drive.
It took us 3+ hours with all of the amazing birds we saw. I can't wait to go through all of the pictures and see how they turned out. My owl dreams came true when a Barred Owl swooped out of the trees and landed right in front of us.
The Owl spent 5+ minutes just sitting in a tree near us. I might have teared up in sheer joy seeing this amazing owl for the first time.
We also saw multiple green herons, Black-crowned Night Herons, Ibis, Egrets, and herons. A red shouldered hawk surprised the heck out of me when we stopped for another bird. I turned my head and the hawk was sitting on a tree limb at eye level staring at me.
It was pitch black as we drove the last parts of the wildlife loop. I have to admit that this loop drive was a lot longer than what we assumed it would be.
Next time we will plan a few extra hours for it so we don't end up driving in the dark wondering what is going to hop out of the bushes.
We stayed at a Fairfield Inn in Homestead that is close to Everglades NP and easy to get to.
Day 6 - Everglades NP and Sanibel
We woke up early and headed to Everglades National Park to spend time on the Anhinga Trail.
This is one of our favorite areas of the park. The Anhinga Trail is an easy walk with boardwalks that lead you over the water and grasslands. As soon as we walked past the visitor center we saw our first gator cruising by in the water.
My bird dreams came true again when a Purple Galinule came out of the grasses and hopped around the lilypads. It is one of my absolute favorite birds that is so fun to photograph.
After wandering the trail we headed to John's favorite thing...Key Lime Milkshakes from Robert is Here Farmstand.
If we are within a few hours of Homestead we will end up at Robert is Here so John can have a key lime shake. They are so good!
We started visiting Robert is Here over 16 years ago and it has been amazing to see how it has evolved while still having amazing shakes.
Our next stop was a fun airboat adventure with Coopertown Airboats. They are a National Park Service concessionaire with permission to run in the park.
I found another epic Groupon for the airboat ride before we left Gulf Shores. The Airboat Ride was so much fun. I would happily spend hours speeding along the water looking for wildlife.
We saw a few gators and another purple Galinule during our tour. I truly think the best part is when the boat starts going sideways and the wind is in your hair. So fun!
After a quick stop at the Big Cypress National Preserve to pick up my Junior Ranger Badge we headed back to Sanibel.
I love when things work out perfectly even when you didn't realize it was going to happen. We got back to Sanibel 2 hours before low tide!
We headed to Algiers Beach for an epic shelling walk. My shell dreams came true finding a red tulip shell and Common Fig shells. Along with a few perfect Angel Wing Shells that I am hoping make it home safely.
The Angel wing shells are so light that they would fly off as I picked them up with the wind.
After a couple of hours I had to drag myself off the beach so I didn't end up wandering around again trying to find the right access to the parking area.
We headed to Doc Ford's for dinner. This is one of the 1st Sanibel Restaurants we visited years ago during our 1st trip to the island.
Hello yum! Every single thing we tried was absolutely amazing. John would tell you to get the Taquitos, I would tell you to get the Doc Ford Bread or Spinach Artichoke flatbread. Both were delicious.
We stayed at the Residence Inn Fort Myers Sanibel again since it is only a few miles off the island.
Day 7 - Sanibel to Lake City
We woke up early knowing it was our final morning on Sanibel Island. We finally made it to Wickies Restaurant for breakfast.
One of the benefits of being early in the morning is that there was no wait, and we were able to get breakfast before the weekend rush hit the island.
I stopped into EmOcean Coastal Wear next door and bought a couple of t-shirts. When we extended our trip, I didn't think about whether we had clean clothes for the next few days. I quickly realized I was out of clean shirts, which was the perfect reason to get a few cute new Sanibel shirts.
We headed to Ding Darling NWR for one more drive through the park. On our way into the refuge, John and I named our dream bird for the morning. I chose a Mangrove Cuckoo and John said a Flamingo.
Would you believe we were maybe 5 minutes into the drive when we saw a gentleman with a nice camera lens taking photos. We slowly drove up and right there in front of him was a Mangrove Cuckoo!
It was amazing! This magnificent bird posed for photos for 20 minutes hopping around branch to branch right in front of us. At one point John wasn't sure if it was going to hop right onto the hood of the rental truck.
One of the things I really love about Ding Darling NWR is how these bird moments bring people together in moments of JOY. I was able to point the Mangove Cuckoo out to other people as they pulled up and a group of us stood in awe together on the road.
It was amazing hearing from people that it was a bucket list dream bird they never thought they would see in their lifetime. Everyone was so excited and fist bumped each other.
I needed a couple of photos of Doc Ford's during the day so we headed over to the restaurant. As soon as we pulled in John told me...you know those taquitos were pretty epic last night. We could just grab lunch since we are already here....
He planned our photo stop perfectly at lunchtime so he could have the taquitos again. LOL!
I wasn't sad to have Doc's Beach Bread again and enjoy the fun vibe of the restaurant.
Sadly, it was time for us to leave Sanibel and head towards Gulf Shores. After a quick stop into the visitor center to pick up a couple of brochures we headed off the island.
We made it to Lake City, about 90 minutes outside Tallahassee, and found a great new Lake City Courtyard Marriott for the night right off the interstate.
Day 8 - Lake City to Gulf Shores, Alabama
I am still in awe that our trip turned into an eight-day adventure. The drive back to Gulf Shores had to include a stop at Trader Joe's in Tallahassee to stock up on our favorites.
We are already planning a return trip to Sanibel and Captiva Island, Florida soon! Hopefully this Fall if not sooner we can get back on the island and explore more great Sanibel Restaurants and things to do.
Sanibel Island Trip Report Recap
Hotels
Fairfield Inn & Suites Clearwater - This was a great hotel close to the interstate. We would definitely stay there again. Book HERE
Residence Inn Fort Myers Sanibel - This hotel was so close to Sanibel. 8 miles to Lighthouse Beach from the hotel! Book HERE
Fairfield Inn Homestead - Near Everglades NP and Robert is Here Fruitstand. Book HERE
Marriott Courtyard Lake City - Brand new hotel close to the interstate. Book HERE
Restaurants
Sisters' Bistro, Port St. Joe - Great small local restaurant open for breakfast and lunch.
Bel Bagel & Deli, Sanibel Island - Cute bagel deli and small grocery store.
Boop's by The Bubble Room, Sanibel Island - Epic dessert bakery and ice cream shop. Get the Orange crunch cake or Tropical cake!
The Shack on Sanibel Island - Cute custard shop with frozen treats.
Over Easy Cafe - Great breakfast and lunch restaurant.
The Magic Bus - Fun ice cream, smoothie, and acai bowl restaurant with epic photo opps.
Tutti Pazzi - Delicious Italian restaurant you need to try! Get the burrata appetizers.
Sanibel Sprout - Cute coffee and acai bowl food truck
The Blue Giraffe - Local restaurant with really good food and a fun giraffe mural.
Doc Ford's Rum Bar & Grille - a long-time local restaurant that serves delicious food.
Wickies Lighthouse Restaurant - Popular local restaurant open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner with brunch on the weekends.
Attractions/Things to do
St. Mark's National Wildlife Refuge - Great wildlife refuge with birds, gators, and a fantastic lighthouse.
Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge, Sanibel Island - Amazing 4-mile scenic wildlife drive with tons of birds.
Lighthouse Beach Park, Sanibel Island - Fantastic beach park with shells, historic lighthouse, and soft sand.
Private Shelling Tour - We booked an epic Groupon deal for Just Add Water & Sun and had a great time.
Sanibel Beach Parks - There are multiple public beaches on the island great for relaxing, shelling, and fun.
Big Cypress National Preserve - Great National Park Service site for birds.
Everglades National Park - One of our favorite National Park sites for great birdwatching, gators, and more.
Robert is Here - You have to go here for a key lime milkshake!
Coopertown Airboat Tours - We booked a Groupon Deal and it worked out great. This was a really fun airboat tour through Everglades National Park. They are an approved concessionaire for the park.
We also have articles on the Emerald Coast of Florida, including Destin, Fort Walton Beach, Pensacola Beach, Navarre Beach, Panama City Beach, Perdido Key, Pensacola, Sanibel and Captiva Island, and more.
Don't miss our other Gulf Coast destinations, including Gulf Shores, Orange Beach, Dauphin Island, Fairhope, Fort Morgan, Foley, Mobile, Bayou La Batre, Alabama, and so many more!
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