Anna Marie Island - The beginning

We booked this holiday way back in february.  You know me, i like my holidays.  This place was recommended by a lot of people, and after my own research, we went for it.  I started my search on VRBO as usual, but couldn't find anything I liked.  But I did find Anna Marie Island Vacation Rentals.  This company rocks,  they look after the majority of the rentals on the island.

We made the effort to leave early, so we were on the road by 4.45am.  This was a good idea, as there was very little on the road at the time.  I had been to Krispy Kreme the night before and got some donuts, so we had those as breakfast at the road.

Leaving early was an excellent idea, as we got to Savannah, Georgia for breakfast at 8.30.  We were over a third of the way there already.

We continued on our journey and made excellent time.  Anna Marie Island is over 600 miles from here.  It is so far.... It was supposed to take 10 hours, and it pretty much did. We got to the rental company to pick up our keys at 2.45.  The place was like a mad house!!!

Unfortunately, some plonker (me) had told them we would not be there till late.  That was before we decided to leave extra early......  The gentleman got straight on with arranging for the house to be ready, and advised us of a few places to go for lunch.

We headed to the Waterfront restaurant, and were able to get a seat outside, overlooking the road and the bay.  Man, it was hot, but there was a storm brewing, and plenty of fans blowing the air around.  The food was delicious, as was the ambiance, or it would have been without 3 monkeys.

After lunch we went for a little walk down Anna Marie Island City Pier.  I purposefully picked the north end of the island, as everything is pretty near each other, so walking any where was fairly easy. The pier was lovely, with plenty of people fishing off it, and a little restaurant at the end.  There was loads of signs around telling you not to hassle the dolphins....  And a couple of areas on the shore cordoned off where turtles had already nested.

We headed back to the rental offices, and the place was just being finished off being cleaned.  We headed round, and waited for them to finish. We settled in, and gave the boys a snack type dinner, before heading down to the beach.

Part of the reason for picking this particular property was its proximity to the beach. Less than a block.....  It was stunning.  Typically the kids went in the water with their clothes on, but the water was sooooo warm....

This was the first time we have ever been to the Gulf of Mexico.  It is stunning.  

We spent about 45 minutes on the beach.  The kids had a great time, and it was so warm.....  They went to bed a little late, in preparation for the rest of the holiday