Last month, Andy and I traveled to Florida to visit family and to celebrate our belated one-year anniversary, beach style.
We were able to catch a gorgeous week of weather, mid-80’s to low-90’s. And knowing that winter is rapidly approaching here in New England, we soaked up as much vitamin D as we could get.
Prior to landing, this trip had an almost vacant itinerary. We were looking forward to exploring the area and seeing where each day took us. Overall, we hit 6 beaches in 8 days, met up with some old friends and family that had moved, and spent some quality time with the in-laws.
And as always, we jammed a little too much into too little time, but that’s kinda how we roll :)
Most of our days were spent on the beach, while most nights were spent either enjoying a home-cooked meal or trying a new restaurant. The menu usually consisted of a large salad or an occasional veggie burger.
Keepin’ it easy.
Our first & second stops were to West Palm Beach, once by car and once by bike. We easily could have spent all our days at this particular beach, packing a lunch and biking around town. The water was a warm 82F, the sun was shining bright and the water was so, so clear. I pretty much ran into the ocean and didn’t come out until I was completely pruned.
I would definitely recommend renting bikes and exploring West Palm at your own pace. Not only was it fun, but it’s easy to ride around and stop whenever and wherever you please.
For lunch, we chose the West Palm Beach Brewery. The owner is a Boston native with a passion for Boston sports. We watched the Pats game while eating cheese-less pizza. Who knew a pizza without cheese could ever be so delightful? If it were up to me, I would have returned day after day. This place was great.
Another spot we tried, recommended by a family member, was Christopher’s Kitchen. There were so many plant-based options and the food was worth it. It was a relief to be able to order a meal that wasn’t salad or rice and beans. I definitely ordered 3-courses here, and didn’t regret it.
When I was younger, my family used to travel to Florida often. But at 13, I chose to hang by the pool instead of the beach. I realize how silly this sounds now, but I really had no idea how beautiful the beaches of Florida were…
It’s hard to choose favorites, but Delray was probably ours- mostly because of its downtown and proximity of things to do after the beach.
There were tons of restaurants, happy hour promotions and a lot of people… especially for a Wednesday night. The atmosphere was inviting, but not overwhelming. Not only that, there were pineapple murals and a Christmas tree! Like I needed anymore reason to love this little town…
We chose the happy hour with the longest line and figured this meant that their food and drinks would be worth waiting for. El Camino was it. Vegan tacos + $5 margaritas. Yes, please.
Out of the 8 days we had, there was only one (relatively) bad day. The sun played peek-a-boo, but with the wind and spurts of rain, the beach wasn’t the most enjoyable place to be. On this day, we drove to Juno and Jupiter beach, window-shopped, and grabbed lunch at Guanabanas- a cute little tiki hut on the water.
And then there was Miami <3
While I can’t say Wynwood lived up to my high expectations, the beach was absolutely worth the 1.5 hour drive from West Palm. I’m not sure if we visited Wynwood at a bad time, or whether it was because I was hangry, but it just wasn’t my favorite.
There were some cool shops and restaurants, along with the Wynwood Walls of course- but there seemed to be limited menus at most restaurants and very little activity during the time we visited.
This is also the reality of a completely spontaneous day-trip…
With little planning or researching, this is sometimes what you get- but that’s the joy of traveling. Next time we know that Miami is a must, and Wynwood is for exploring, not eating.
The beaches though, they were worth it.
Miami kind of stole my heart. Actually, all of Florida did.
It was hard not to look around in wonder, at the bright blue sky, the white sand, the changing colors of the ocean. The lifeguard huts, the buildings, the art and the umbrellas… color was infused everywhere, in everything.
It was hard not to be happy.
In a matter of 8 days, we hopped around from West Palm to Delray, Miami and then to Naples. While I wouldn’t recommend this packed of an itinerary, the centrality of West Palm made it a wonderful place to stay.
Overall, I think October is the perfect time to visit Florida. And it’s the perfect place to relax, spend time in the sun and to clear your mind.
See ya next time, Florida. Thanks for the sunshine