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PaulS

Touchdown! Greaser!
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PaulS
Last year we spent a week in Naples, Florida and really enjoyed it. So we booked an Air BNB for March there. The house survived without a scratch, but unfortunately the beach and park down the street is closed indefinitely. It sounds like they are still hard at work recovering there and I'm not sure I want to be in the middle of that. It's getting time to make the payment and we are thinking there are probably better places in Florida to go.

So I'm looking for suggestions. I'm thinking East coast now, probably southern half of the state. We probably want a house, relatively close to the beach with some night life. We are 55+, so that will hopefully give a little insight. I will be flying myself and my wife down from NH, so we should be pretty flexible in location, although a nice GA airport nearby would be cool. TIA
 
The Boca Raton and Pompano beach area are nice with Ga airports in the area.
 
Have you visited the Keys? That is my favorite part of FL, including the flying.
 
Have you visited the Keys? That is my favorite part of FL, including the flying.

Yes, we spent about 5 days at Key west last year, that was just about enough unless I'm missing something. Not sure a month there would be worth it. Flying there was "exciting", flying to Naples from there was awesome.
 
Consider the Cocoa Beach / Titusville area. Lots of neat stuff nearby. Tour the Space Center. Visit Valiant Air Command. Relax on Playalinda Beach (one of my favorite beaches, as it's not overrun with development). Take a couple of days and drive up to St. Augustine (lots of great history there, much to see and do). Go to Daytona and do the Richard Petty Driving Experience. Do some offshore fishing, or some inshore fishing in Mosquito Lagoon. Tour the Piper factory in Vero (call and see if they've resumed factory tours yet). And don't miss a shrimp dinner at Dixie Crossroads!
 
I'm a big fan of the panhandle area, especially all the places between PCB and Destin. I don't know how March is here, but right now at this time of the year, it's perfect. The beaches are virtually empty, places aren't crowded at all, rental prices are super decent and the weather has been great since we arrived about a month ago. We had two days in the 50s. All other days went up into the high 60s and occasionally as high as high as 80s. Next week looks like once again, highs in the high 60s. Then, three days over Christmas weekend are supposed to be cooler (40s or 50s) but then back up into the 60s - 70s. Personally, I don't need 80s and 90s in the winter. I can live with temps in the 60s and definitely prefer less crowded places over the hustle and bustle further south.
 
I like the panhandle also, though not warm enough for many in the heart of winter. From what I heard, further south seems a little tight with rentals, or costly. If not actually going in the water, maybe temps in the 50’s is doable?

I do know that Apalachicola, FL is a great airport, cool stuff around to explore. The area has the moniker of the ‘forgotten coast’, less busy than further south. I’m not even recommending it if you need mid-winter warmth, just throwing the idea out there. The timing is a factor.
 

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March here can be... unpredictable. The weather is usually pretty good. But definitely not always South Florida good. Could be 70's and 80's and sunny. Or it could be 50's and rainy. The biggest issue with here in March is that's spring break time. College students flood in and the place can be a zoo. After some unpleasantness a few years back they had to crack down. Now during the month of March, no alcohol on the beach and not alcohol sales after 2am and no house parties. These rules aren't deal breakers for most adults, but they exist because of the majority of the people who come here in March. So that's who you're going to be around.

If it were me and I wanted to be in this area in March, Mexico Beach, Cape San Blas, Appalachicola would be my go to places.
 
Unless it’s changed since we were at Tyndall and Eglin, March in the panhandle kicked off tourist season with Spring Break. PCB was worse than Destin, but I’d probably be looking more towards Gulfport, MS.

That far north, March can be…unpredictable.

ETA: I lived in Mexico Beach when at Tyndall and would recommend it or Appalachicola. Airport is more convenient to Appalachicola, though.
 
Thanks for the responses, the wife likes pompano or Deerfield, we have zeroed in on a couple properties. Are there any crime safety issues with either spot? Tia
 
Are there any crime safety issues with either spot?

Yes. Anywhere in the vicinity of Ft. Lauderdale / Miami will have some crime problems.

You might want to read this https://www.travelsafe-abroad.com/united-states/pompano-beach/ but here's the TLDR summary:

There are parts with very low crime rates and parts you don’t want to be in at lunchtime alone.

A good rule of thumb is that if it wasn’t designed for tourists or on the beach, it’s not very safe.

Crime maps back this us.

The central and western parts of the city have the highest crime rates, aside from better pockets near the city hall and the Isle Casino.
 

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