Marco Island

Marco Island, the largest of Florida's Ten Thousand Islands, is the last populated shore on the southern tip of Florida's sunny Gulf coast. Quiet, unhurried, off the beaten track, Marco opens east to the mystical Everglades, west to the magical Gulf of Mexico. The resort crowd vacations here year after year, drawn by the island's luxurious laid-back comfort. Seafaring menus echo island pastimes of sea and backwater fishing, scuba diving, snorkeling and beach combing. Tables near tidewater afford sweeping views of gleaming yachts and rainbowed sailboats gliding past color-touched clouds. Chickee bar bands invite you to dance the night away. A world class oasis a world away from schedules, modern access to this charming island surfaced just 50 or so years ago.

Rich archeological sites, though, reveal the good life Calusa Indians shared here until the advent of 16th century explorers. Survey your vision of this new world from an airy sea balcony, beach cabana, campground hideaway or Old Florida porch rocker. Marco Island pampers your senses. All you need is at hand. Scores of nearby lush championship golf courses and tennis courts, shops, spas and restaurants call irresistibly to come and treat yourself. Cooling breezes waft you across two bridges, to tony Naples, Florida on the one hand, the emerald wilderness of the Everglades on the other. Enroute, catamarans and sailboards ply aquamarine waters below, while pelicans surf bridge updrafts. Calling water birds portend the wildlife to come. Hundreds of exotic flora and fauna inhabit this tranquil corner of Southwest Florida. Native hammocks, mangroves and estuaries along island shorelines connect with the unparalleled 50-square-mile "River of Grass" known as the Everglades. Ranger-friendly nature preserves and parks border the 1.5 million-acre Everglades National Park. Boardwalks and tours introduce nature lovers to resident alligators, bobcats, wood storks, ibis, anhingas, roseate spoonbills, bromeliads, orchids and more. On and off Marco Island, the living is gracious, delectable...easy.

Photo by Rod Wiley