Despite oil spill scare, Florida beaches are open for business

Family travelers this summer can be assured that many of Florida’s Gulf beaches have not yet  been affected by the Louisiana oil spill.   

Many of the coast’s best family-friendly beaches are free and clear of any physical impact and are safe and open for summer fun. Head south on the West Coast of Florida and you can find pristine white-sand beaches that can’t be beat.

Check out great summer deals on flights to Sarasota, Florida, where our family loves to vacation. The beaches of Anna Maria Island & Longboat Key, Florida, along with the destination’s restaurants and area attractions, are open and welcome domestic and international visitors to their shores.

The destination offers plenty of outdoor recreation opportunities, including fishing, swimming, paddle boarding, surfing, kayaking, boating, and more. Located approximately 490 miles southeast of the Florida Panhandle, Anna Maria Island & Longboat Key are in no immediate jeopardy of seeing oil on their beaches according to NOAA trajectory models.

For the latest information regarding the Louisiana Oil Spill, along with a live web cam from Bradenton Beach on Anna Maria Island, travelers can visit www.annamariaisland-longboatkey.com. Here are a few fun ideas to entertain both kids and kids-at-heart this summer:

Suncoast Offshore Grand Prix Festival: powerboats by the Bay, festival golf and fishing tournaments, a festival parade of boats and a Bayfront fireworks spectacular and the Suncoast

• Offshore Grand Prix Boat Race June 26 – July 4, 2010.

• Pittsburgh Pirates extended spring training and Gulf Coast League Baseball games held June – August at Pirate City.

While recent MSNBC news reports confirm that no one knows how seriously the oil disaster will hurt Florida, oil has been spotted at beaches in the Florida Panhandle.  The extent of the damage may depend on whether BP can slow or stop the flow of oil that is spewing from a drilling rig that exploded off the coast of Louisiana in late April.