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.
Read More