Florida's palm-fringed Gulf Coast is home to some of America’s very best beaches. With powdery sands and clear, gentle waters, its miles of shoreline were practically made for postcards and its sunsets are the type you’d write home about.

Fort Myers Beach is a popular destination for visitors eager to engage in watersports such as parasailing and kayaking – or just as eager to simply relax on the inviting beach. Fort Myers Beach sits on a little barrier island, about seven miles long, and the beach is fabulous – wide, gradually sloping, and thick with the area's justifiably famed white-sand. Fort Myers Beach shimmers, from sizzling white sand to the shine on hotels, restaurants and shopping centres, all a stone’s throw from the bathwater-warm Gulf of Mexico.

Just off the coast of Fort Myers Beach and easy to reach are the islands of Sanibel and Captiva. Both islands are gems contain everything great about Southwest Florida; shell-laden beaches, fine dining, great shopping and ubiquitous nature. Sanibel Island is justly famed for its sunsets, lighthouse and luxurious resorts. Captiva Island is often associated with the neighbouring island of Sanibel to the south and it’s all about the outdoors – biking, sailing, birding and water activities abound. Boasting an abundance of bird life, miles of bike paths, incredible fishing and pristine beaches known for their range of seashells, it’s a serene sliver of Sunshine State paradise.