Sanibel & Captiva: A Guide to the Islands

Rating:
Summary: The most personable guidebook ever.
Review: We visited Sanibel and Captiva islands for the first time in June 2004. It was everything we hoped it would be thanks to this book. I must have read the book 15 times front to back before we left. I loved the given itinerary- it made organizing our time in order to experience everything so easy and we never felt rushed.

I am a huge fan of Frommer's guidebooks. Since they offer little information regarding the islands, I purchased this book instead which came highly recommended. It was really neat to get an actual islander's point of view but I did occasionally miss the to-the-point opinions of Frommer's guidebooks. The book is occasionally generic when recommending dining options.

However, I have to say that you should NEVER visit these islands without first purchasing this book. It taught us how to appreciate island life and we had a wonderful relaxing vacation. There are descriptions of each shell found on the island as well as each bird, turtle, etc. It was fun to open up the book at the end of the day and find the names of both the shells we had collected and the birds we had seen. Have a great time in Sanibel!!