Live the Coastal Lifestyle on BNT’s Southeast Coastal Splendor Tour
How would you like to take a flying leap back into travel this Spring? In late April, BNT’s Southeast Coastal Splendor Tour heads south along our eastern coastline making stops in the Carolinas, St. Augustine, and Miami, until it reaches the southernmost point on the tour, the Florida Keys! After a few days in the Keys, the tour winds north along Florida’s West Coast stopping in Naples, Sarasota, and St. Petersburg before hugging the Southeast coast again and returning home. With a Walking Guide of “3,” we’ve planned the perfect tour to shake off the winter cobwebs.
The Food
Calabash-Style Seafood Dinner
It’s impossible to think of our Southeast coast without thinking about the food. On the way south, we’ll stop in the Carolinas to experience an authentic “Calabash” dinner, which traditionally features shrimp, oysters, clams, and fish. While the origins of the famous recipe are a bit mysterious, the “Calabash” style began in the Brunswick Islands of North Carolina. The New York Times called the fishing town, Calabash, the “Seafood Capital of the World.” Simply put, a “Calabash” style meal means fresh “lightly breaded, lightly fried” seafood. That’s not the only food highlight on the Southeast Coastal Splendor Tour. You’ll munch at Bayside Market-place, a two-story, open-air shopping center in downtown Miami, sniff out burgers and seafood in the Keys, and dine at a popular local Savannah restaurant.
The History…The Water
If you’re a history buff, you’ll tour the neighborhoods of both Savannah and Sarasota, a wander through St. Petersburg’s oldest living museum: the Sunken Gardens, and a conch train around Key West.
Maybe your favorite thing about the coast is this simple: boating and water. We’ll take an airboat ride through the Everglades, “the largest remaining subtropical wilderness in the U.S. with over 1.5 million acres of saw grass marshes, mangrove forests, hardwood hammocks, and wetlands.” We’ll do more relaxing on a luncheon cruise through Intercoastal waters and the Gulf of Mexico. And, don’t forget to pack your shades for the Miami scenic cruise in Biscayne Bay featuring Miami Beach, Fisher Island, and “Millionaire’s Row.”
This tour is packed full of colorful coastal destinations, local food, excursions, and history. So, which one is it? A history tour? A cruising tour? A food or island tour? It’s all about the splendor of coastal life. Why flip through magazines or watch a travel show when you could be living and lounging in the coastal life for 11 days with BNT!
If you are yearning for surf, sand, sunrises and sunsets over the ocean, you can still grab a seat today.
Take a look at the tour highlights and day and overnight destinations:
Southeast Coastal Splendor Attractions & Guided Tour Highlights:
- Horse-drawn Carriage Ride – Charleston, SC
- Miami Cruise – Biscayne Bay
- Conch Train – Historic Key West
- Airboat Ride – Florida Everglades
- Sightseeing Train – St. Augustine
- Edison & Ford Winter Estates – 21 acre botanical gardens and winter homes
- Ringling Circus Museum
- Narrated Luncheon Cruise on the Marina Jack II – Intercoastal waterway and the Gulf of Mexico
- Trolley Ride – Sarasota, FL
- Sunken Gardens – Historic Old Northeast St. Petersburg, FL
- Guided Tour – John’s Pass Village and Boardwalk (FL)
- Historic neighborhood tour – Savannah, GA
Day Stops:
Carolinas: Eastern North Carolina ~ Charleston, SC
Florida: St. Augustine, FL ~ Miami & Biscayne Bay ~ Key West ~ Key Largo ~ Florida Everglades ~ Naples ~ Sarasota ~ St. Petersburg
Georgia: Savannah
Overnight Stops:
North Myrtle Beach, SC * Jacksonville, FL * Miami, FL * Key West, FL * Key Largo, FL * Fort Myers, FL * Sarasota, FL * Savannah, GA * South Carolina
Southeast Coastal Splendor Tour page:
For the Culinary Curious, Taste of Southern features a “Calabash Fried Shrimp Recipe”
Click here for recipe: https://www.tasteofsouthern.com/calabash-fried-shrimp-recipe/