Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
WORTH A TRIP
CORTEZ FISHING VILLAGE
Ever since the 1700s fishermen have been harvesting mullet in Cortez, now one of the few
remaining wild fisheries in the US. Sandwiched between Anna Maria Island and Palma
Sola Bay on the mainland, the village is a perfect time-warp with old boats and crab traps
drying on the lawns of wooden bungalows. Ethan Hawke played poor boy Pip here to
Gwyneth Paltrow's Estella in the 1998 adaptation of Great Expectations.
Head down to the water and you'll find the Star Fish Company ( 941-794-1243; ht-
tp://starfishcompany.com ; 12306 46th Ave W , Cortez; mains $3-15; 11:30am-8pm Tue-Sat, to 3pm
Sun & Mon; ), a commercial fish house that's been selling wholesale fish since the
1920s. It now has a rustic restaurant that sits out over the dock with views of Jewel Fish
Key and Net House, out in the bay. If there's smoked mullet on the menu, be sure to order
it with a side of cheese grits.
Sleeping
Many people opt for house rental on Anna Maria Island, and there are dozens of providers.
Check www.annamariaislandaccommodations.com .
Turtle Beach Campground CAMPGROUND
( 941-349-3839; www.scgove.net/turtlebeachcampground ; 8862 Midnight Pass Rd, Siesta Key;
campsites $32-60; )
This park campground is small, caters to RVs, has zero privacy and doesn't allow camp-
fires, but it's well worth camping here to be mere steps from Turtle Beach and a quick
drive from Sarasota.
Hayley's Motel MOTEL
(
941-778-5405; www.haleysmotel.com ; 8102 Gulf Dr, Anna Maria Island; r $169-219;
)
Owner-operated Hayley's offers motel rooms, one bedroom suites and buckets of 1950s
charm. Super-quaint and competitively priced for Anna Maria. You'll find it about a block
back from Holmes Beach. There's a $50 fee for pets, but note that the beaches on Anna
Maria don't allow dogs.
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