Worth the Trip: Animal Kingdom

Posted on August 6, 2021
By John Thomason, Boca Magazine
Cabbage Key, Captiva, Recreation, Reviews

Part of the ideal South Seas experience involves leaving the resort: The on-site Captiva Cruises features five-to-six-hour narrated voyages to nearby islands, including Boca Grande, Useppa and Cayo Costa State Park. I joined a cruise to Cabbage Key, a 100-acre speck purchased by its original owners for all of $2,500. We disembarked at the Key’s sole attraction: a historic home converted into an inn and restaurant, one of many places in South Florida attributed as the site where Jimmy Buffett wrote “Cheeseburger in Paradise.”

Boaters first view a sign in Pine Island Sound that marks the channel leading to Cabbage Key, seen in the background.

Here, There, and Everywhere

Posted on October 20, 2020
By Necee Regis, Globe Correspondent - Boston Globe
Cabbage Key, Captiva, Sanibel, Staycation

The Beaches of Fort Myers & Sanibel are offering secluded cottage rentals for a “bubbled” vacation on the barrier islands of Sanibel and Captiva.

Florida Cottage Getaways

Looking for a family beach getaway that minimizes your COVID concerns? The Beaches of Fort Myers & Sanibel are offering secluded cottage rentals for a “bubbled” vacation on the barrier islands of Sanibel and Captiva. Visitors can bird watch at J.N. Ding Darling Wildlife Refuge, comb the beach for seashells, or bike along 25 miles of trails while staying at a diverse selection of cottage rentals.

The natural wonders of southwest Florida

Posted on May 15, 2019
By Amy Bertrand, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Cabbage Key, Captiva, Pine Island

Drive across Sanibel Island and eventually it becomes Captiva Island (if there was a bridge, I missed it). Captiva offers a number of cute shops and restaurants. We stopped for a breakfast of crab cakes Benedict on the porch of RC Otter’s Island Eats. It felt like one of those secret family-owned eateries you find on a Caribbean island.

We were on our way to South Seas Island Resort’s Q-Dock to board a Captiva Cruises’ voyage. Captiva Cruises sails to several islands in Pine Island Sound. With a terrific storyteller on the microphone we set out on a gorgeous 70-degree day in January for a couple of hours. We saw dolphins hopping along the side of our boat numerous times, though this was not billed as a dolphin cruise. We had a destination: Cabbage Key. ($40, captivacruises.com)

In Fort Myers area, Mother Nature is the best salesperson

Posted on March 25, 2019
By Holly V. Kapherr, Travel Weekly
Cabbage Key, Captiva, Fort Myers, Nature & Wildlife, Sanibel

A shell-strewn strand of beach on Captiva Island. Photo Credit: Holly V. Kapherr

Ever since my childhood best friend brought a sand dollar she found on the beach on Sanibel to show-and-tell, it has been my dream to find one myself. I recently visited the Fort Myers, Sanibel and Captiva Island area on a media tour with the Lee County Visitors and Convention Bureau and triumphantly toted home three beautiful sand dollars. Mission accomplished.

On the trip, my group saw an incredible amount of wildlife: giant gopher tortoises named for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles; blue crabs winding their way through the mangrove roots; a couple of adorable marsh hares with their signature tiny ears; an enormous great blue heron who dared us to come closer while he eyed a fisherman’s chum bucket; and some live “pink gold,” the large, pink gulf shrimp that originally brought riches to the region.

Charmed by Southwest Florida

Posted on December 11, 2018
By Bruce Sach, Dreamscapes Travel and Lifestyle Magazine
Cabbage Key, Captiva, Reviews

We drove through Captiva island to embark on a Captiva Cruise to Cabbage Key, a tiny 404,685-square-metre island (key) one hour away by boat. From the dock, we carefully crossed the very shallow Pine Island Sound, so shallow that our guide causally mentioned that if we ran aground, they’d open up the bar while we waited to be unstuck by the Coast Guard!

Nothing untoward occurred, however we were occasionally entertained by pods of delightfully playful and curious dolphins. They love sounds and are attracted by the boat’s engine and any noise we cared to share.

A Magical Boat Ride to Cabbage Key

Posted on July 17, 2018
By Olivia Johnson, Baubles to Bubbles
Cabbage Key, Captiva, Recreation

I’m back in Cincinnati after an incredible family vacation on Captiva Island in Florida! We have been vacationing in Captiva since I was a baby, and it’s always a nice weeklong escape when we go.

This year Joe was finally able to come on the trip with us, so it was his first time experiencing the island. In past years, the dates of our vacations unfortunately perfectly lined up with other work/travel obligations Joe had so I was excited this year worked out!

We like to lounge on our beach vacations, so most days we headed straight to the beach. We decided to switch it up one day and rent a boat to take us out to Cabbage Key, an island only accessible by boat.

How to Do a Digital Detox Holiday Near Fort Myers

Posted on March 22, 2018
By Natasha Mekhail, WestJet Magazine
Cabbage Key, Captiva, Fort Myers, Local Attractions, Sanibel

Leave your devices at the door when you visit Florida’s Sanibel and Captiva islands.

J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge, photo by Susan Rydberg/Thinkstock

Close your eyes. You’re reclined in a beach chair on a long stretch of powdery white sand. Out in the water before you, a pod of wild dolphins turns somersaults in the waves. You rise, walk to the ocean’s edge and dip your fingers in, only to catch a sand dollar in your outstretched hand. Around you, thousands of seashells tinkle in the tide like a giant wind chime. Relaxed yet? This isn’t a guided meditation—it’s real life on Sanibel and Captiva islands, just across the bridge from Fort Myers. Explore these unspoiled isles tip-to-tip by bike, spot resident manatees from trailside lookouts and roam the shell-strewn beaches.

Here are the top things to do.
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Finding Florida’s best places to eat and drink

Posted on July 10, 2017
By Michael Fitzpatrick, Manchester Evening News
Cabbage Key, Captiva, Fort Myers, Reviews, Sanibel

The burger at Cabbage Key restaurant

A tour of the American state with your appetite in mind

On a food and drink tour of Florida you might think enjoying a burger isn’t very adventurous. There are countless joints here in Manchester to get your beef-fix – but this was no ordinary burger.

Before sinking my teeth into this American classic I’d enjoyed a boat trip across the south west Florida ocean, accompanied by family of dolphins for part of the hour-long cruise, before docking at an island that despite its unassuming name, can only be described as paradise.

Your Island Getaway Awaits

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Captiva | Cabbage Key Inn & Restaurant