#sgi

How to Sell a Vacation Rental and Protect Your Renters

This has been a bittersweet week for us at St. George Island Beach Vacations. In April, we decided to sell our beloved Sand Dollar, and we closed on that sale yesterday. Sand Dollar was the first home we bought on St. George Island. It was 2011 and the St. George Island real estate market had been in 6-7 years of free fall. Sand Dollar was a foreclosure that had been sitting idle for several years, but it was in great shape. It desperately needed new pool equipment (and a goo

Finally, a Good Cup of 'Joe' on the Forgotten Coast!

Yay! I have been saying for years that we need a cute coffee place to grab some joe on the island! Then, something amazing happened…Bayside Coffee! At Bayside, not only will you have great coffee, but you will be welcomed by the friendliest people as well. Bayside is located across from Fisherman’s Choice in Eastpoint, On my first visit, I was greeted with such a welcome feel, and I ordered a latte and a cinnamon roll. The latte was the perfect temperature (that is always imp

Aunt Ebby’s – Better than Going to Your Favorite Aunt’s House

Have you ever driven by a store or restaurant dozens of times but never stopped in to give it a try. We’ve been taking St. George Island beach vacations for nearly 20 years and probably driven by Aunt Ebby’s hundreds of times, but we’ve never stopped to have ice cream at Aunt Ebby’s. Normally, when we go need an ice cream fix, we always go to the Old Time Soda Fountain in Apalachicola (you can check out our Soda Fountain blog here). However, we decided to finally stop at Aunt

What it's like as a vacation rental owner during COVID-19

As we pass more than 435,000 cases of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) in the US, these are clearly difficult times for our country and the world. Several recent articles have said that the travel industry has been the hardest hit of any sector in the US economy. Cruise lines have completely shut down and air traffic is likely down more than 75%. Coronavirus is hitting St. George Island especially hard. Vacation rental taxes are $1.4 million of our small county’s budget and is a vi

You Asked For It - the complete list of restaurants on and around SGI

We’ve heard a lot of people asking about how they can support the local businesses around St. George Island as we deal with national COVID-19 crisis. For an area that is so dependent on tourism, a complete shutdown of vacation rentals on St. George Island could devastate the economy if this extends for very long. In this blog, we want to provide a list of local restaurants that are offering takeout or delivery. We will try to make it as exhaustive as possible. We are starting

The Franklin - A historic restaurant experience

As I said in my blog about the Owl Café, fine dining is not exactly the first thing people think about when they are enjoying their St. George Island beach vacation. However, the Franklin at the Gibson Inn offers a fine dining experience in the heart of Apalachicola when you want to get away from your St. George Island vacation rental. Led by Executive Chef Ken Lumpkin and Chef Breeze Lambert, the Franklin supports local fisherman and farmers to offer food to their guests. Th

Pesky Hunger Pangs? Try the Pesky Pelican!

Unfortunately, the Pesky Pelican has closed due to inappropriate behavior by it's owners. We do not condone the actions of the owners and unfortunately we can no longer recommend the restaurant. We’ve talked about restaurants on St. George Island, and we’ve talked about restaurants in Apalachicola, but have you tried the Pesky Pelican in Eastpoint? The Pesky Pelican is located on highway 98 about three miles east of the Big Bend Scenic Byway (the road that leads over the brid

Doc Myers - The Tiki in Paradise

Please note that Doc Myers is under new ownership with a new menu. Please keep an eye out for a future blog on "Mango Mike's." Are you looking for a truly unique restaurant atmosphere on St. George Island? Then Doc Myers’ is the spot! Doc Myers’ is one of the newest restaurants on the island (it opened in 2017 at 36 W. Pine Ave on St. George Island), and the key feature is the atmosphere. Doc’s is an open air tiki hut that serves great food, and you need to check it out the n

The Owl Cafe - Fine Dining in Apalachicola

Let’s face it, when people go to St. George Island, most people typically aren’t looking for a candlelight dinner while they’re on vacation. Usually you want to sit on the beach (or at the pool), cook dinners in your vacation rental home and just relax. Many people go out to eat (and there are many great options in the area…just check out our other blogs), but a candlelight dinner isn’t often on the list of “to dos” on vacation. But what if you do have a special occasion to c