Southwest Florida’s Secret Escape! Experience Less Crowds And White Sand Beaches

Well…Google Maps and Apple Maps caved, so it appears to be like like we’re right here to speak in regards to the “Gulf of America”.

Politics apart, “the Gulf”, because it’s mostly identified, has lengthy been an iffy go-to for vacationers who sometimes go for California’s Pacific blue paradises and Florida’s Atlantic turquoise each time they’ll, slightly than the standard brackish waters spreading from Texas to most of Alabama.

Near the Floribama line is the place we start to see circumstances extra paying homage to the Caribbean, a far cry from Galveston and Biloxi.

The consultants at World Atlas not too long ago revealed the ‘Most Underrated Towns In Gulf Coast’ for 2025 with one unheard-of white-sand hideaway we right here at Travel Off Path had been ooh-ing and ahh-ing over, questioning to ourselves how we have by no means managed to trip right here.

It’s time to place the Gulf’s fugly stereotypes within the rear-view. Florida’s Gulf aspect is a white-sand surprise teeming with famend seaside cities, but under-hyped Redington Beach has someway slipped by means of the cracks.

So Long, Siesta Key! A New ‘Key’ Awaits

Located on the barrier island of Sand Key, Redington Beach is one in all Southwest Florida’s final remaining hidden gems.

Last yr, we revealed Nokomis in the identical mild, however now it is Redington’s time to shine.

Say goodbye to preventing for house, grabbing a barstool at a sandy tiki shack, and witnessing manner too many retirees’ past-their-prime swimwear.

Unlike Siesta Key and Clearwater, Redington is the kind of place solely locals flock to flee, such locations that vacationers flock to yr after yr, and who can blame them?

Siesta Key and Clearwater discover themselves in an annual duel in a battle to be topped the perfect seaside, however you are not sacrificing all that a lot by flipping the script to Redington this summer time.

Southwest Florida’s White-Sand Hideaway

As somebody who has visited Siesta Key, I used to be blown away from the second my group scored a entrance row parking spot in what appeared like a surprising shoreline straight out of the Bahamas.

But when you lug a cooler from the car parking zone by means of smooth white sand and uncover you are going to be eavesdropping on the speak of the city on the retirement dwelling, whether or not you prefer it or not, it had me questioning if Siesta Key (and Clearwater) are the one pristine seashores within the space.

Circling again to Nokomis, the reply is not any — however Siesta Key for sure deserves the accolades.

It additionally begs the query of why locations like Redington Beach should not family names.

Hate to interrupt it to you, however I haven’t got a solution as a result of all the pieces I’m seeing is nothing however constructive:

How uncommon is it to seek out Florida shores the place you do not have to rise up manner too early simply to attain a parking house and a entrance row seat overlooking vibrant emerald waters?

Redington Beach is only one sq. mile in dimension, however that is ample house to take pleasure in additional elbow room.

In explicit, Archibald Beach Park holds a powerful 4.7 Google score in a world of whiners, so you already know it must be high notch!

Just 2 days in the past, a beachgoer raved in regards to the park’s ‘powdery sand seashores!’, and acknowledged the seaside has ‘extra shells than you’ll know what to do with’.

Reaching Redington Beach

Despite being unknown to most, Redington is definitely very easy to succeed in, deepening the thriller of why it is remained underneath the radar.

According to Travel Math, there are 4 airports inside 100 miles of Redington Beach:

• Saint Petersburg, FL (PIE / KPIE) – 16 miles away
• Tampa, FL (TPA / KTPA) – 27 miles away
• Sarasota, FL (SRQ / KSRQ) – 43 miles
• Punta Gorda, FL (PGD / KPGD) – 102 miles (Okay, I could have stretched the reality slightly…)

Despite being essentially the most related of the bunch, it is stated that Tampa is one in all America’s most unreliable airports. The different 4 could be your greatest wager.

Don’t imagine me?

Read our function on Punta Gorda as Southwest Florida’s new journey hotspot.

Sam Sears

Sam, our Lead Writer & Journalist based mostly in San Diego has visited 36 international locations and written over 1000 articles with a give attention to sharing his personal journey experiences and shining a lightweight on lesser-known gems.