Enough with the "best beaches in Florida" rankings. Who hasn't rated them? Top restaurants? Finest hotels? Anyone with an opinion and an audience has made a list. We're giving a "high five" to some of the state's less-touted characteristics - from dive bars to yummy spa treatments.
Monkey businesses
Monkeys are the hot new Florida motif and you can see them hanging out in local bars these days. Some places have always been about monkeys. Here are our favorite spots to monkey around.
1. MONKEY JUNGLE, 14805 SW 216th St., Miami; 305 235-1611; www.monkeyjungle.com The original Florida monkey attraction, circa 1933, where people are in cages and primates run free.
2. CARIBBEAN GARDENS ZOO, 1590 Goodlette-Frank Road, Naples; 239 262-5409; www.caribbeangardens.com (also www.napleszoo.com) Monkeys, gibbons, siamangs and lemurs have their own island here; guests can visit them by boat.
3. MIZNER'S MONKEY BAR AT THE BOCA RATON RESORT, 501 E Camino Real, Boca Raton; 561 447-3185; www.bocaresort.com/dining (click on venues). The first and classiest of monkey bars, it recalls founder Addison Mizner's celebrated pets by serving drinks named Hear No Evil, See No Evil and Speak No Evil.
4. THE MONKEY ROOM, MONKEY ROOM BAR AND MONKEY ROOM PATIO, COLONY BEACH & TENNIS RESORT, 1620 Gulf of Mexico Drive, Longboat Key; 941 383-6464; www.colonybeachresort.com This newcomer deserves mention for its whimsy. The comical monkey mural behind the bar will have you falling off your stool BEFORE you try the Monkey-tini.
5. THE MONKEY BAR, HOMOSASSA RIVERSIDE RESORT, 5297 S Cherokee Way, Homosassa; 352 628-2474; http://riversideresorts.com (click on preview facilities). See real monkeys from this second-story bar overlooking Monkey Island, home to descendants of escapees from Homosassa Springs State Wildlife Park.
Orchid enchantment
Susan Orlean's account of orchid lust, The Orchid Thief, inspired the critically acclaimed movie Adaptations, starring Nicolas Cage and Meryl Streep. The setting: Florida's steamy corners. Steal a peek at sensuous blossoms in these places.
1. FAKAHATCHEE STRAND PRESERVE STATE PARK, Everglades City; 239 695-4593; www.floridastateparks.org/fakahatcheestrand/default.asp Orlean sloshed through the swamps with her unlikely hero searching for the coveted ghost orchid. You can, too, through ranger programs held in season. The park is on Janes Memorial Scenic Drive, just west of Copeland on State Road 29.
2. MARIE SELBY BOTANICAL GARDENS, 811 S Palm Ave., Sarasota; 941 366-5731; www.selby.org Of course, an easier, drier way to look at orchids is at this historic bayside home, where more than 6,000 orchids thrive in a moist rainforest setting.
3. INTERNATIONAL ORCHID CENTER, 16700 AOS Lane, Delray Beach; 561 404-2000, toll-free 1-877-672-4437; www.orchidweb.org Headquarters for the American Orchid Society, its new greenhouse gushes orchids. It also hosts how-to classes for wanna-be growers.
4. HOMESTEAD: A hotbed for orchid-growing, Homestead plays a major role in Orlean's book. One of the growers mentioned was R.F. Orchids Inc. 28100 SW 182nd Ave.; (305 245-4570; www.rforchids.com
5. FAIRCHILD TROPICAL GARDEN, 10901 Old Cutler Road, Coral Gables; 305 667-1651; www.fairchildgarden.org Site of the International Orchid Festival every April.
Ghost stories
Many Florida communities - particularly the old ones - guide unsuspecting tourists about in the dark on fright-seeing tours, searching for ghosts and dastardly bygones. Through the decades, Floridians have discovered some very lovable ghosts among our spectral population. The Tampa Bay area must be particularly ghastly to have three of the five favorite haunts:
1. TAMPA THEATRE, 711 Franklin St., Tampa; 813 274-8981; www.tampatheatre.org Television parapsychologists once filmed Fink, the theater's projectionist who refused to give up his job for a flimsy excuse like death.
2. DON CeSAR BEACH RESORT & SPA, 3400 Gulf Blvd., St. Pete Beach; 727 360-1881, toll-free 1-800-282-1116; www.doncesar.com An aching tale of unrequited love precipitates hand-holding sightings of the "Pink Palace's" builder, Thomas Rowe, and the woman, Lucinda, he was denied.
3. SAFETY HARBOR RESORT & SPA, 105 Bayshore Drive, Safety Harbor; 727 726-1161, toll-free 1-800-458-5409; www.safetyharborspa.com Developer of the mineral springs' sanitarium here, the late, health-conscious Dr. Salem H. Baranoff, takes current displeasure in seeing salt on the table and has been known to move salt shakers.
4. PALACE SALOON, 117 Centre St., Fernandina Beach; 904 491-3332; www.thepalacesaloon.com Long-gone Uncle Charlie the bartender appears in the original 1903 mahogany-framed mirror behind the bar. May have something to do with the powerful Pirate's Punch.
5. LILIAN PLACE BED AND BREAKFAST, 111 Silver Beach Ave., Daytona Beach; 386 323-9913, toll-free 1-877-873-7579; www.lilianplace.com One of Daytona's favorite ghosts, Lucile occupies an old home on Orange Avenue, where author Stephen Crane once recovered from near-drowning, an event memorialized in his short story The Open Boat.
Shellfish motives
You adore gobbling shellfish fresh from the briny. Who can blame you? Florida specializes in curing the craves at these famed crustacean stations:
1. APALACHICOLA OYSTERS: Oystermen in this antebellum town brag that their annual commercial harvest produces enough "sliders" to cover a football field three deep.
2. EVERGLADES STONE CRAB: Legend has it that stone crab was "invented" by a character named Totch Brown, the late Everglades alligator poacher and author who, along with his uncle, introduced the highly prized shellfish to Joe's Stone Crab on Miami Beach, now world-renowned for its house specialty. Everglades City is the place to buy them fresh off the boat.
3. STEINHATCHEE SCALLOPS: Recreational scallopers scoop 'em up by the bucketful (limits apply) from the grass flats of Florida's Big Bend, headquarters at fishing hamlet Steinhatchee.
4. FORT MYERS BEACH SHRIMP: An annual fleet-blessing and festival celebrate the succulent pink shrimp that has provided livelihood and sustenance in these parts for generations. A waterfront boardwalk expounds on the town's fishy heritage.
5. CEDAR KEY CLAMS: The climate is clammy these days in Cedar Key since the net-fishing ban has turned fishermen to farming the bivalves, which thrive in its pristine, unpolluted waters.
Spa treatments in good taste
In Florida, spa treatments often sound good enough to eat. Local spas transfer the good energy that bursts forth from our fauna to energize, cleanse and replenish the human body and soul:
1. TUSCAN CITRUS CURE, THE RITZ-CARLTON GRANDE LAKES, 4012 Central Florida Parkway, Orlando; 407 206-2400, toll-free 1-800-576-5760; www.ritzcarlton.com/resorts/orlando_grande_lakes. Grande Lakes is the first resort on the books to have a citrus consultant on staff. One of its signature treatments involves a citrus scrub, lime shower and vitamin C-charged massage using extracts of green mandarin and lemon, followed by a hydro soak in a latte milk concoction and a sweet orange body wrap.
2. KEY LIME COCONUT BODY SCRUB, MANGO RAW SUGAR BODY SCRUB, COFFEE MOCHA SCRUB AND RUM MOLASSES WATERFALL, THE RITZ-CARLTON, KEY BISCAYNE, 455 Grand Bay Drive; 305 365-4500; www.ritzcarlton.com/resorts/key_biscayne These recently unveiled treatments give new meaning to the phrase "spa services menu."
3. FLAVOR-OF-THE-MONTH BODY SCRUBS, THE BREAKERS, One S County Road, Palm Beach; (561) 655-6611, toll-free 1-888-273-2537. Choose from mango, key lime, chocolate, coffee.
4. MARGARITA KEY LIME PEDICURE, LITTLE PALM ISLAND RESORT AND SPA, 28500 Overseas Highway, Little Torch Key; 305 872-2524, toll-free 1-800-343-8567; www.littlepalmisland.com This one you actually can taste. Sip on a key lime margarita while the therapist scrubs your feet and legs with key lime juice, Dead Sea salts and more.
5. FLORIDA FRUIT FRESH FACIAL, NAPLES BEACH HOTEL, 851 Gulf Shore Blvd. N, Naples; 239 261-2222, toll-free 1-800-237-7600; www.naplesbeachhotel.com It's not just for breakfast anymore. Fresh-squeezed orange juice also makes a refreshing mask.
Dive bars
And we mean that in the most flattering way. For those who like nothing better than hoisting a cold one in the company of locals who don't equate bars with high heels or chinos, pull up a stool at any of these:
1. SKIPPER'S SMOKEHOUSE, 910 Skipper Road, Tampa; 813 971-0666; www.skipperssmokehouse.com Full of local color, this prime example of shack chic serves up smoked mullet, gator ribs, black bean gator chili and live zydeco and blues in an inimitable, old Florida setting.
2. BERT'S BAR, 4271 Pine Island Road, Matlacha; 239 282-3232; www.bertsbar.us Anglers make some of the liveliest drinking companions and here the only dress code seems to be those white-rubber boots endearingly dubbed "Pine Island Reeboks." Great wings and water views add to the attraction.
3. FLORA-BAMA BAR, 17401 Perdido Key Drive, Pensacola; 850 492-0611; www.florabama.com At the intersection of Florida and Alabama, it holds an annual Interstate Mullet Toss. Need we say more?
4. WOODY'S, 7308 Sunset Way, St. Pete Beach, (727) 360-9165. Besides anglers and mullet-tossers, surfers can make a hangout gnarly and off-beat. Problem is, there's no surf here, but there are surfboards hanging from the ceiling, and the waterside stance makes it feel appropriately Maui-esque.
5. STAN'S IDLE HOUR, 221 W Goodland Drive, Goodland; 239 394-3041; www.stansidlehour.net Shove your fists into your armpits, flap your elbows, and carry on like a roadkill-inflamed turkey vulture. They call it the Buzzard Lope at Sunday's Buzzard Bash in this funky Marco Island waterfront bar.
City strolls
Okay, so some of these are touristy, but locals slap their heels here, too, when the city social mood hits:
1. DUVAL STREET, KEY WEST 305 294-2587; www.fla-keys.com/keywest/index.htm Iguanas on shoulders, dogs on the backs of bike riders, street artists and fruit vendors: Once you've seen Duval, you've seen it all.
2. LAKE DORA WATERFRONT, MOUNT DORA (352) 383-2165; www.flausa.com/destinations/location.php/location=ci-mtd Between the venerable Lakeside Inn and the end of the Palm Island boardwalk, you'll pass antique shops, lawn bowlers dressed in tournament whites, the world's smallest lighthouse, fishermen, picnickers, ducks, alligators, oaks and cypress trees.
3. DAYTONA BEACH BOARDWALK, toll-free 1-800-854-1234; www.daytonabeach.com Kitsch but classic, the walk takes in beach action, a mini-fair and a 1930s bandshell.
4. DOWNTOWN DELRAY BEACH, 561 278-0424; www.flausa.com/destinations/location.php/location=ci-dlb. One of many downtown renaissance success stories in Florida, this stroll will get you to the Pineapple Grove Artwalk and a new Cultural Loop, in addition to sidewalk cafes and one-of-a-kind shops.
5. JACKSONVILLE'S RIVER WALKS, toll-free 1-800-733-2668; www.visitjacksonville.com A water taxi ferries between lively venues on both sides of the St. Johns River, where restaurants, shopping, museums and festivals happen.
Tea time
"There are few hours in life more agreeable than the hour dedicated to the ceremony know as afternoon tea," wrote Henry James. You'll get more than a caffeine buzz when partaking at these rituals:
1. MORIKAMI MUSEUM & JAPANESE GARDENS, 4000 Morikami Park Road, Delray Beach; 561 495-0233; www.morikami.org Participate in the traditional sado tea ceremony one Saturday each month. For the untraditional, sample delightful green tea manju ice cream at the Cornell Cafi.
2. THE RITZ-CARLTON NAPLES, 280 Vanderbilt Beach Road, Naples, 239 598-3300, toll-free 1-800-241-3333; www.ritzcarlton.com/resorts/naples/default.html All of Florida's Ritz-Carltons put on a grand affair of afternoon tea that could make the queen smile. Once a year at Christmas, the Naples property hosts a precious children's Teddy Tea with stuffed animals from the local Teddy Bear Museum. In Sarasota, the Ritz - 1111 Ritz-Carlton Drive; (941) 309-2000; www.ritzcarlton.com/hotels/sarasota - often invites Barbies instead of Teddies.
3. Sisters' Tea Room & Gallery, 121 E Green St., Perry; 850 838-2021; www.sisterstearoom.com/index2.ivnu Borrow a pair of gloves and a proper "tea hat" from the sisters and have a seat for scones, watercress sandwiches, clove chicken puffs, carrot cake and other treats at this unexpected pleasure in out-of-the-way Perry. The sisters - Sharron and Carolyn - also sell well-chosen collectibles and gourmet foods.
4. COBBLESTONE GALLERY & TEA ROOM, 1501 Main St., Sarasota; 941 954-4494; www.floridasecrets.com/Restaurants/SW/Cobblestone.htm; Order the Maxfield Parrish, Wyeth or Norman Rockwell tea as you gaze up at signed originals and limited edition graphic prints.
5. WHITEHALL, HENRY MORRISON FLAGLER MUSEUM, One Whitehall Way, Palm Beach; (561) 655-2833; www.flagler.org Gilded Age Tea (during season only) recalls the days when Henry Flagler built this monument to excess.
Stare-worthy staircases
Nothing makes an elevated statement like a sweeping staircase. Here are some of the state's more dramatic climbs:
1. PONCE DE LEON INLET LIGHTHOUSE, 4931 S Peninsula Drive, Ponce Inlet, Daytona Beach; 386 761-1821; www.ponceinlet.org Florida's highest climbable lighthouse features 203 steps right out of Vertigo and step-into-windows where you can rest, catch your breath, and stare at ocean and sea marsh vistas.
2. NORTON MUSEUM OF ART, 1451 S Olive Ave., West Palm Beach; 561 832-5196; www.norton.org In the Tsai Atrium, an enchanting stairway wraps around itself in a free-form manner with no visible means of support, an expression of gravity-defying architecture.
3. DON VICENTE DE YBOR INN, 1915 Avenida Republica de Cuba, Tampa; 813 241-4545; www.donvicenteinn.com) Built circa 1895 by Ybor City's founder in a clinic for cigar workers, the lobby's original marble staircase has been restored with cherry oak rails, gilded filigree balustrades and an ornate mirror at the landing.
4. DORAL GOLF RESORT AND SPA, 4400 NW 87th Ave., Miami; 305 592-2000; www.doralgolf.com Frankly my dear, this double circular ascent feels as elegant as the staircase in Gone With the Wind.
5. WINTERHAVEN HOTEL, 1400 Ocean Drive, South Beach, Miami Beach; 305 531-5571, toll-free 1-800-395-2322; www.winterhavenhotelsobe.com An example of "Steamline Moderne" art deco architecture, its restoration brought back to life a molded steel staircase that makes a solid flashback statement in the lobby.
West Wing, Fla.
Presidentially sweet throughout its history, Florida has played both resort and office for visiting chiefs.
1. LITTLE WHITE HOUSE, 111 Front St., Key West; 305 294-9911; www.trumanlittlewhitehouse.com Harry S. Truman's tropical "Camp David," where Eisenhower, Kennedy and Carter have also stayed.
2. PEANUT ISLAND, PALM BEACH MARITIME MUSEUM, 4512 N Flagler Drive, West Palm Beach; 561 832-7428; www.pbmm.org/Page1.htm JFK built himself a bunker on this tiny island during the Cuban missile crisis; he often visited the family home on Palm Beach. Today the site holds a park and maritime museum you can visit by ferry.
3. FLORIDA HOUSE INN, 20 S Third St., Amelia Island, Fernandina Beach; toll-free 1-800-258-3301; www.floridahouseinn.com Grant really did sleep here. As one of Florida's earliest resort towns, Victorian Fernandina Beach hosted the Yankee general with Southern hospitality at this 1857 landmark.
4. TAMPA BAY HOTEL now the Henry B. Plant Museum, 401 W Kennedy Blvd., Tampa; (813 254-1891; www.plantmuseum.com Teddy Roosevelt turned the grounds of this ostentatious folly into barracks for his Rough Riders during the Spanish-American War. From the hotel itself, officers planned war strategy.
5. GASPARILLA INN, 891 Eighth St., Boca Grande; (941) 964-2201. Both Bush presidents frequent this grande dame when they are in town casting for tarpon rather than votes.
- Chelle Koster Walton, who lives in Sanibel, is the author of several guidebooks about Florida.
