When the first actual chilly snap hits again in Olive Mannella’s residence state of Minnesota, the sort that makes you hunch inside your coat, the creator and soon-to-be-published writer is normally elsewhere: on Fort Myers Beach sinking her toes in the sand. She grew up in the Upper Midwest, so her household discovered early to maintain an escape hatch on standby as soon as winter settled in. For them, it was this seven-mile stretch of white-sand seaside alongside Southwest Florida’s Gulf Coast, a shoreline her grandparents discovered first, and her mother and father made everlasting by shopping for a place when she was one. Over the years, Fort Myers Beach stopped being a once-in-a-while deal with and have become the setting for many of her happiest reminiscences.
Now, at 26, she’s made the shift stick, buying and selling snow tires for salt air, constructing a web-based group, and ending her first fantasy novel between seaside walks. That private historical past is what makes Mannella a good information for the sort of weekend many ladies are craving proper now. The Fort Myers space is constructed for a mind-body-soul reset that doesn’t really feel like a to-do record, with islands, seashores, and easygoing neighborhoods that make it easy to be collectively with out overplanning. “It feels nostalgic even if you have never been here before,” she says. “Like when you were a little kid and you were so excited to go on vacation. That feeling exists here every day in the real world.” Consider this an insider’s information to a “girls gone mild” weekend, the place ease leads, dialog retains tempo with the tide, and the greatest moments include built-in respiratory room.
Friday: Sunset first, plans later
Book your keep at a waterfront property or downtown. Once your baggage hit the ground, head straight to Fort Myers Beach for sundown, which locals deal with as the day by day ritual. “The beach faces west so you get the full show every night,” Mannella says. The good half is there’s no single greatest spot to watch it. People merely fan out alongside the shoreline, declare a patch of sand, and let the sky deal with the programming.
Dinner can go two methods, relying in your power. Fresh Catch Bistro units the scene for a correct night time out. “It’s definitely the spot if you want to put on your cute vacation dress and do your hair,” Mannella says. Upstairs, the white-tablecloth room seems to be out over Estero Bay, and the menu follows no matter native boats are bringing in. Oysters Rockefeller present up dressed with edible flowers, a little further in the greatest means. If you’re skipping alcohol, the bar doesn’t deal with mocktails like a comfort prize. Mannella nonetheless talks about a pineapple-and-grenadine concoction that arrived in a vibrant sherbet shade with a cherry, and nil disgrace. Downstairs, Junkanoo Below Deck has a extra relaxed really feel with reside music most nights, and a crowd that feels prefer it’s been coming right here eternally. Mannella has. “These places are maintaining the vibe of what Fort Myers Beach has always been,” she says, which is the level of night time one. You’re right here, you’ve arrived, and also you don’t want to power it.
Saturday: From gulf waters to Main Street
Saturday is the place the Fort Myers space proves its vary, however the win is that you just by no means have to rush to get it. Start with espresso and a little solar. Bad Ass Coffee of Hawaii on Fort Myers Beach delivers a correct Kona jolt, greatest taken barefoot together with your toes in the sand whereas the group decides what sort of day it needs. From there, select your morning by temper. If you need nature, kayak the Great Calusa Blueway, threading via mangrove tunnels the place manatees can slide previous with unbothered calm. If your crew needs one thing gentler, a sunrise yoga session turns the Gulf into a studio, all breath, stability, and delicate mild. For a extra social boat day, e-book Captiva Cruises and island-hop to Cayo Costa or Cabbage Key, locations that protect their cherished solitude.
Back on land, maintain the afternoon unfastened. The lately established Downtown Fort Myers Farmers Market has real native buzz. Taste heirloom tomatoes, pattern honey constituted of bees gorging on lychee blossoms, and let the snacks turn into lunch. If you need an exercise that appears like a memento in actual time, Spirited Affairs’ beachside portray class on Little Hickory Island is the transfer. Persian rugs substitute drop cloths, charcuterie boards come styled like nonetheless lifes, and the level is much less “learn to paint” than “make a memory with a view.” Or comply with Wild at Heart’s classic flower truck, a boutique-on-wheels with buckets of single-stem blooms spilling out the again. Mannella swears by treating it like styling, not purchasing. Color-code your stems to your outfits, she says. She went cool blues and purples with denim, whereas her good friend leaned into heat pinks and maroons.
Choose your personal journey for dinner. In walkable downtown Fort Myers River District, Gulf catches are in the highlight. Grab a desk at Izzy’s Fish and Oyster, the place you’ll discover temper lighting and a totally stocked uncooked bar. Want much less fuss, extra flip-flops? Doc Ford’s Rum Bar & Grille on Fort Myers Beach has waterfront seating and reside music, the good means to wrap the night.
Sunday: Shells, flamingos, and a farewell lunch
Treat departure day gently—no want to rush. If your crew needs wildlife with a aspect of Old Florida, Wonder Gardens in Bonita Springs is the means to go. Opened in 1936, it’s half botanical backyard, half conservation mission, half dwelling time capsule, with flamingos roaming the paths and rescued parrots providing unsolicited opinions. If you’d slightly keep in movement, hire bikes on Sanibel and cruise greater than 25 miles of paved paths, then settle in at Bowman’s Beach for severe shell gathering. The seashell capital of the world label holds up, thanks to currents and an offshore shelf that do the arduous be just right for you. Before the actual world begins calling, make your pre-departure meal at Harvest & Wisdom at Shangri-La Springs in Bonita Springs. It’s farm-to-table and seasonal, with a lot of the menu pulled from a four-acre on-site backyard. The good send-off for a “girls gone mild” weekend, constructed for one final lengthy dialog earlier than actuality begins texting once more.
“There are a lot of beautiful places in the world, but I really think this place has a magic of its own,” Olive Mannella says. She’s speaking about the small issues—the barista who learns your title, water shallow sufficient to wade out eternally, sunsets that make you neglect to refresh your feed. “Everywhere else, I’m planning the next trip as soon as I arrive,” she admits. “When I’m here, I don’t want to leave.”
Start planning your journey at visitfortmyers.com.