Vacation Rentals & Villas

Famous for its award-winning soft white sandy beaches, warm Gulf waters and numerous river inlets and state parks – holiday villas on the Gulf Coast are the perfect antidote to the hectic days of rushing around the theme parks and attractions of Central Florida. Parents can kick back and relax on the beach and watch their blood pressure drop back to normal whilst the kids can enjoy a few days of detox away from Mickey Mouse, Harry Potter and Shamu and their accompanying merchandise carts.

Directly west from Orlando, there are a multitude of tranquil lakes, forests and inlets around Homosassa Springs where it is possible to encounter and even swim with Florida's famous manatees. Legend has it that these gentle giants were often mistaken for mermaids by early (and quite possibly blind) sailors. A number of historic sites – some well preserved and others lost to time - dot the coastline here, where early pioneers set up plantations of commodities such as sugar cane and mills to process them. Kayaking, fishing and even scallop hunting are popular pastimes and organized tours are available to suit every budget.

Further south in Tampa and St Petersburg there are all the attractions of a major metropolitan area – shopping, attractions such as Busch Gardens Zoological Park – home to some of the best thrill rides in Florida - and Clearwater Marine Aquarium and sports arenas for the Tampa Bay Rays and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The St Pete Times Forum plays host to major musical artists as well as other shows such as Nick Junior and Sesame Street live. Along the coast of Tampa and St Petersburg are also a number of islands and keys – some private and some state parks. Property owners on private islands sometimes offer holiday villas for rent – these may range from simple basic cabin rentals to luxury villa rentals. These Gulf Coast locations offer the ultimate in seclusion and exclusivity.

Across the impressive and imposing sunshine skyway bridge – ranked third by the Travel Channel's top ten bridges of the world, it is an attraction in its own right and has featured in several Hollywood films – lies Bradenton, Sarasota Bay and Siesta Key home to some of the finest beaches in the USA. The soft “powdered sugar” sand remains cool on your feet even in hundred degree heat and the miles of gentle shelving beach and warm Gulf waters make this a sun worshipper's paradise. A popular second-home location, there are numerous holiday villas and condo available in the area with restaurants and beach bars aplenty (visit the Old Salty Dog in Siesta Key for their “as seen on TV” fully loaded Salty Dog – perfect with an ice cold beer or zesty margarita).

For those who can bear to drag themselves off the beaches, there's Several major rives and State Parks offering fishing, trail walking and wildlife spotting or even a spot of fossil hunting. The Peace River basin is a fossil collecting hotspot where petrified wood, prehistoric manatee, alligator, turtle and even mammoth fossils can be found with relative ease by scouring and sieving the loose gravel river beds. The crown jewel of fossils in this area however are the fossilized teeth or Carcharadon Megalodon – a fifty foot long prehistoric mega-shark with razor sharp teeth five to six inches long that makes Jaws look like a goldfish by comparison. Organized fossil hunting tours are available or you can go it alone – keep an eye out for the not so fossilized gators though – they get right of way on the rivers! Florida's Gulf Coast is a fantastic location for a short break or an extended stay with holiday villas available year round - both beachfront and more secluded inland locations. Why not make your next visit to Orlando into a two-site trip and book your second week on the coast?