My family has fallen in love with this area. We (one group from California and one from Florida) spent a glorius week in 2 timeshare units at Sea Oats. We stocked up on groceries and used the kitchens and outdoor barbecues. The kids loved hanging out on the beach and using the pool. At night we were able to observe the loggerhead turtles laying their eggs and burying them in the sand. In the daylight we were happy to see their nests marked and protected by volunteers. The manatees floating around at the marina were also fascinating to watch...we tried to feed them lettuce.
You can rent golf carts to tour around the island of Boca Grande. The old light house at the pass is an interesting museum of the history and wild life of the area. It is also the best location to watch the crowd of boats fishing for Tarpon. Even better is to be on one of those boats...with a guide. We went out with Captain Rodney and he made sure we experienced the thrill of hooking and reeling to the boat these silver kings (catch and release). We loaded ourselves up on the boat in the dark and made our way out to the pass as the sun rose. There we began weaving our way amongst the many other eager fisher-people...all waiting to hear, "Fish on!". The mighty tarpons jump and fight hard, wearing out the person on the reel. A little bit much for me, but someone had to hang with the wee ones. Another day we did some flats fishing and came "home" to our timeshare with some fresh fish for dinner.
You can bring your own boat, leave it on the trailer or rent a space in the marina. We also brought kayaks and paddled around in the inland waterways. The restaurants offer some pretty good seafood fare, our favorite being grouper sandwiches. The kids really love the local ice cream flavor, Boca Blue.
This is what I call real Florida. The beaches are sandy white and not crowded. Seashells are a plenty. The Gulf of Mexico is warm and user friendly. We have been back several times.