While we love to have weekend fun on our own, it is even better when we get visitors to our temporary homes who we can explore with! In the first week of March Megan’s mom, Steph, came down from the Minnesota tundra to hang out with us in Florida, as well as to see Megan’s grandparents and to celebrate her birthday early! It was an awesome week that culminated in another long and action-packed weekend.
Gotta love family time 🙂
North Hutchinson Island
On Friday evening, off the three of us went driving across Florida from the west coast to the east coast in order to have most of Saturday with Megan’s grandparents. It was roughly 2.5 hours through dimly lit back country roads and state highways in order to arrive at North Hutchinson Island , located just east of Fort Pierce. From the mainland, it has a nice little causeway bridge that provides a good overview of the area. On Saturday morning, we checked out a nearby farmer’s market that had solid food options and neat little artsy tents. Just to the north of the market, a manatee viewing area has been established which also has a great gift shop.
One of the many pretty flowers we found in my grandparent’s community on North Hutchinson Island!
One of the many pretty flowers we found in my grandparent’s community on North Hutchinson Island!
Vero Beach
Following the market, we drove further up north to the Vero Beach area. This spot has tons of quaint beach shops, but most importantly it has an awesome beach that we walked up and down for 30-40 minutes. The whole Vero coast is lined with beachfront patios and restaurants, which brings us to the second most important thing here- Mulligan’s Beach House. This is a lively and crowded tropical restaurant and bar that will have you craving pina coladas.
Mulligan’s Beach House
Hanging out with Megan’s grandparents on Vero Beach!
Also hanging out with Megan’s mom on Vero Beach!
Mulligan’s Beach House
Hanging out with Megan’s grandparents on Vero Beach!
Also hanging out with Megan’s mom on Vero Beach!
Veterans Memorial Island Sanctuary
Right up near Vero Beach is a tiny island to the west honoring the men who have fallen serving our country who were from this area of Florida. The V.M.I. Sanctuary is a fantastic place to do a peaceful stroll around the perimeter sidewalk and to take in sights of the bay. You can even capture glimpses of dolphins coming up for air!
A nice place for a peaceful afternoon stroll with potential dolphin sightings!
Manatee Island Bar and Grill
After relaxing for a bit at Megan’s grandparent’s place, we drove down to the very northern tip of South Hutchinson Island where we celebrated Steph’s birthday with numerous appetizers and a couple fun drinks at Manatee Island Bar and Grill. This is another pretty popular restaurant like Mulligan’s, but if you go outside of peak times, you’ll either find a very short wait or no wait at all! They have especially good happy hour deals for apps! When we were finally stuffed, the three of us said our goodbyes to the grandparents and we made the dark trek back to southwest Florida to rest up for Sunday!
Manatee Island Bar and Grill right on the water!
Congo River Golf
Along came Sunday morning and we decided to start our day with some mini golf just south on US 41. Actual golf was out of the question as we had another full day planned, so it was 18 holes of adventure-style putting to determine the champion for the weekend. The Congo River also features an arcade area and an area where you can feed their baby gators. It definitely has some fun holes to play on their multi-level landscape following a theme the entire time, but not a ton of shade!
We found a fun putt putt place in Bonita Springs!
Congo River Mini Golf
A fun, adventure-themed putt putt place!
Where they have fans to keep you cool!
And gators to feed!
We found a fun putt putt place in Bonita Springs!
Congo River Mini Golf
A fun, adventure-themed putt putt place!
Where they have fans to keep you cool!
And gators to feed!
Everglades Wonder Gardens
In the afternoon we checked out a little piece of tropical wilderness even further south on old US 41. This place is difficult to miss as it has a giant billboard advertising the interactive exhibit. For $12 (adult fee) you can enter this paradise and come face to face with a ton of exotic animals. For even a few extra dollars, the Wonder Garden allows you to purchase feed that you can hand out to gators, turkeys, birds, peacocks, flamingos, and turtles. Or even if you don’t want to purchase the feed, tons of other people will so you can witness them toss food to these creatures that are unique to this area!
Everglades Wonder Gardens!
Lots of gators!
A parrot that will chat with you!
A super scary python – we were happy there was glass between us!
A peacock that, unfortunately, we couldn’t convince to open its feathers for us.
Lots of flamingos and ibis!
Huge turtles!
Beautiful plants!
Everglades Wonder Gardens!
Lots of gators!
A parrot that will chat with you!
A super scary python – we were happy there was glass between us!
A peacock that, unfortunately, we couldn’t convince to open its feathers for us.
Lots of flamingos and ibis!
Huge turtles!
Beautiful plants!
Naples Princess Dinner Cruise
Just like that, we found ourselves at the end of a weekend again! But we had one more very fun event left for about 2-2.5 hours. We drove south down US 41 to park just past Tin City on the right hand side for the Naples Princess Dinner Cruise! This is a triple decker cruise boat complete with a couple bars and full-service buffet. This particular night they offered prime rib and chicken breast, along with the standard sides and salad. The true draw of this dinner cruise, besides the amazing company, is the path they take through the old Naples canals, slowly creeping by the beautiful gazillion dollar mansions and yachts on its way to the Gulf of Mexico for an exquisite sunset.
Naples Princess
Our reserved table!
Tasty drinks!
Checking out the deck!
We enjoyed the views of huge boats and fancy homes on this evening cruise!
Enjoying the sunset on the Gulf of Mexico!
Naples Princess
Our reserved table!
Tasty drinks!
Checking out the deck!
We enjoyed the views of huge boats and fancy homes on this evening cruise!
Enjoying the sunset on the Gulf of Mexico!
Even though the weekend ended, the family fun still continued through the next week as Steph spent some quality time with us after each work day. And we continued to celebrate her birthday! We can’t wait to see more family again!