In the News

Definitely come here for the sunsets, but plan to stay for the sunrises, too. Anna Maria Island—a wisp of a seven-mile island along Florida's West Coast—is a place that revels in the end of day. As the sun slips spectacularly past the horizon, bongs clang, music plays, cameras click, and viewers try to guess the exact time of daylight's finale. Yes, it's a nightly celebration not to be missed, but come morning, visitors still will find plenty to do until the evening ritual starts anew.

The Florida Green Building Coalition listed the Pine Avenue Revitalization on Anna Maria island as one of the Top 10 projects in the state.

We call those pig fish, says a gravely voice behind me as I inspect the small silver creature, not much bigger than the hook, dangling in front of me. "If you get 'em big enough they make some good eating, but you'd need a couple hundred of these for a main course."

It seems I have passed on the travel gene to my daughter, Taryn. For the last several years, Taryn has been given a choice in December of a birthday party or a trip. For a teenager to pick a weekend with her mother, aunt and mother's friend over a party with her own friends, there's got to be good times happening on these trips! ;This year was no exception.

Vacationers longing for a laid-back, old-time Florida beach vacation during the holidays found it on Anna Maria Island, courtesy of USA Today, Baltimore Magazine and the Internet.

"It was more crowded than ever over the holidays," said resort owner David Teitelbaum, whose interview on Bay News 9 on Monday contributed to the media momentum, causing phones to ring persistently at the Anna Maria Island Chamber of Commerce.