Recharging and Relaxing at the TradeWinds Island Resorts on St. Pete Beach

Staying at the TradeWinds Island Resort on the white sands of the Gulf of Mexico was both an activity filled and relaxing vacation. Visiting Florida for me has always been about the east side of the state from Orlando to Key West but the TradeWinds Island Resorts just 30 minutes from the Tampa-St. Pete airport is a destination not to be missed.

What I liked about TradeWinds Island Resort –

• KONK (Kids Only, No Kidding) Children’s Club –  I love hanging out with my daughter at the beach but as a single mom with no family nearby to help me out, I need a little time alone to just sit, relax and stare into the ocean. I loved the Kids Club because there is a different activity every day that kept my daughter pretty occupied. One day, she was registered for the Marine Bio Camp where the kids sailed out to Shell Island, collected shells and saw tons of tons of dolphins. During another activity, TradeWind’s own RedBeard Pirate visits the kids and tells pirate tales with his trusty parrot. Definitely check the schedule when you arrive so your kids don’t miss any of the cool activities.

 

• Our Room or should I say guest suite – Each of the rooms comes equipped with a fridge, coffee maker, microwave, toaster  and various kitchenware. This is such as a great option for families or people like me who like coffee in the morning and are too lazy to walk to the Starbucks (yes, there is a Starbucks in the lobby.) Our room opened up on to the Gulf of Mexico and every morning,  I just loved sitting on the balcony enjoying my coffee and paper. The hotel is undergoing a  $10 million renovation which you can tell because the rooms looked fantastic, clean, well-decorated and I don’t know how they do it but there was no sand anywhere in my room.

 

• Splash Island Water Park –  I have never seen anything like this 15, 750 square foot  floating inflatable water park. I was so happy that my daughter was able enjoy the park. From the website, t’s difficult to determine what is actually going on at the Water Park, how deep the water is or how far it is from the shore. Cost: One hour session is $25 with a $9 discount for guests that pay with their room key.

 

• Three Story Water Slide – This is the ultimate bouncy slide that is guaranteed to keep your child coming back for more. There is an all you can ride fee of $34 but it’s worth it because the per ride fee is $3. Trust me you do the math, my daughter rode the water slide all day to justify the fee.
• No Need for a Car – Unless you want to really get out and visit other major attractions in the area, the resort offers enough to keep you and your children busy for a few days. The Resort offers the BodyWorks spa,  seven restaurants from Pizza Hut to Italian and room service, walking distance to restaurants so you really don’t need a car. And if  you want to go into St. Pete, you can take readily available car service and just hop around town on the trolley. No fuss, no muss.
• Resort Amenity Fee – Rarely does one rave about a daily fee but TradeWinds has designed an amenities fee that is greatly discounted so you don’t feel nickel and dimed. At so many hotels, there are fees for parking, using the  business center (I like to get a boarding pass but being charged to use a computer to do print 2 pieces of paper seems nuts), use of  the fitness center, renting huge cabana chairs and internet (most hotels charge you $10 a day just for internet access) but for a $25 daily fee, that is all included plus more.
• On-Site Activities – In addition to the Water Slide and Water Park, there is a life-size chess game, paddle boats, mini-golf course, hammocks and a mini playground to keep the kiddies busy. I especially loved that the playground is located right near the Flying Bridge restaurant,  so you can relax while waiting for your meal and your child can play within easy viewing distance (literally it’s three feet away from the restaurant.) Kids can be impatient waiting for food or even after they eat their food and you still haven’t finished, the playground is perfect, my daughter loved it and I got to eat and relax in peace without the annoying, “can we go?” whining.

• Proximity to Tampa Bay/St. Petersburg attractions – Don’t miss out on visiting the Dali Museum with the largest collection of Salvador Dali’s works outside of Spain, the Dale Chihuly’s collection of framed glassworks,  Great Explorations Children’s museum, trolley tour of downtown St. Pete, and the scenic waterfront parks. It is also 3 hours from Disney World.

• Umbrella Beach Cabana – Not everyone wants to bake in the sun, so the umbrella beach cabana for me is perfect and the fact that it’s a two person cabana, all the better. Do get there early to stake out your cabana, they go fast.
• Wide-Ranging Appeal – As a family looking for relaxation, I appreciate all the amenities but I liked that there was a no kids pool for those who want peace and quiet. TradeWinds is also  pet friendly and I am not kidding about being pet-friendly. The resort has a dog park and pet-friendly rooms.

What I did not like (or should I say should be bugged me) about TradeWinds Island Resort:

• Lack of a  clothesline in the bathroom – Doesn’t every hotel now have them. I was surprised given that you come back to your room and have to hang your the wet suit somewhere.  For me, it just usually drips on to floor creating a huge water puddle.
• Beach Towel Charge – I was surprised they charged for the beach towels and actually did not know they charged for the towels until day two. There was a lot of confusion about this when I went to pick up towels.  How towels are handled should be mentioned when you check in.
• Slow Service at some of the restaurants – There were a couple of restaurants where the service was a tad slow for my taste but hey, I am a New Yorker so I just took a breath and relaxed.

Would I recommend the TradeWinds Island Resorts? You betcha. Everyone has different reasons and expectations for their vacation from relaxing, site seeing to partaking in a gazillion activities. TradeWinds has it all and more.

Because it’s only three hours from Disney World, the next time I head to Florida, my plan is to do the  Disney World whirlwind vacation upfront and then head to TradeWinds to truly relax.

TradeWinds Island Resort

Reservations and information:  Toll Free 866-587-8538 or visit www. TradeWindsResort.com or www.JustLetGo.com

Tip after checking on line, call the toll free number and ask if there are any special travel package for the time period you are interested.

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Disclosure: Level 7 compensation. Click  here for NYC Single Mom’s disclosure policy.