Relaxing on Anna Maria Island with Kids

What happens when you’re cooped up over the winter during maternity leave after you give birth to your third kiddo? You plan a 15+ hour road trip to Disney with your 3 kids (including your 2-month-old infant)!

Might as well get a trip in since I wasn’t going to have any paid time off left once I returned to work. Ha! Luckily my husband was on board with the whole idea as long as we added in some beach time. SOLD!

After looking into lots of options, we decided that Anna Maria Island with kids would be the perfect spot. So, off we went!

And other than being a little chilly while we were there, it was just what we were hoping for! A laid-back, relaxing beach town with powdery white sand and teal water. Picture perfect!

We spent a couple of days on Anna Maria Island before going to Disney World with our little ones. Here’s a recap of what we loved the most on Anna Maria Island with kids:

_{Disclosure: You may see affiliate links throughout this post, which means these are the products I handpicked! If you purchase something through these links, I will get a small commission at absolutely no extra charge to you. And that sure means a lot to me, so thank you in advance!}

Contents hide

1. Where to Stay

2. Where to Eat

3. What to Do on Anna Maria Island with Kids

4. Wrap Up

Where to Stay

The entire island is just 7 miles long and 1.5 miles wide, so no matter where you’re staying, you’re always close to the beach and water. We went through Island Vacation Properties (who were SUPER easy to work with) to find the perfect rental property for us.

We often stay in hotels when traveling, but this was the perfect scenario in which a rental property worked better for us than a hotel.

The property that we stayed at was located in the Holmes Beach area. It had two bedrooms, a full kitchen, a washer and dryer, and a pool. It was located on a quiet street, and there was beach access about a block away.

As you can imagine, these features were GREAT when traveling with kids. We couldn’t have asked for a better setup!

Where to Eat

There are plenty of Anna Maria Island restaurants that are kid friendly. Here are the places we enjoyed:

Breakfast:

Peach’s Restaurant

A perfect little diner to grab breakfast before heading to the beach. We enjoyed our meal and the service was fast (which is always a bonus when traveling with kids!). Plan to get there early to avoid having to wait for a table.

Paradise Bagels

We stopped here on our last morning on the island before heading to Disney. The bagels were delicious, and they kept everyone full and happy during our 2-hour road trip that day.

Lunch:

Anna Maria Island Beach Café

This was perfect when we were at the beach! It’s located on Manatee Public Beach, which is where we spent most of our beach time. Having the restaurant there made everything so convenient with little ones.

Dinner:

Sandbar

Since our property had a full kitchen, we decided to order take-out one night. Sometimes it’s just nice to not have to worry about your kids going crazy in a restaurant! The food was great, and they had a decent-sized kids’ menu, so our boys easily found something they liked.

Anna Maria Oyster Bar on the Pier

We loved eating dinner here! It’s located on the Bridge Street Pier, and the boys had a blast watching the boats while we ate and while hanging out on the pier after dinner.

The only issue we had with this restaurant was parking. It was difficult to find a spot, so the kids and I hung out at the restaurant while my husband parked the car.

What to Do on Anna Maria Island with Kids

As you can probably guess, we spent most of our time at the beach!

Beach

Manatee Public Beach was our go-to. There was a restaurant and bathrooms on site. Plus, there are lifeguards on duty (although you never want to hit the beach without a well-packed first aid kit!).

We brought a bunch of beach items, including a pop-up tent, a beach blanket, and a bag full of beach toys. We even brought our baby dome so our 2-month-old could nap while the older boys played in the sand. But if needed, they also have chair and umbrella rentals. For a full packing list when visiting the beach with a baby, check out this post.

There is a big parking lot right next to Manatee Public Beach, making it easy to unload the kids and beach gear. We got there early, so we had no trouble finding a parking spot. If you don’t want to deal with parking, you can take the free trolley service on the island.

Now, if you want the best beach on Anna Maria Island to watch the sunset, head north to Bean Point!

Shopping

If you’re looking for a fun souvenir, visit Shiny Fish Emporium. It’s not only a unique and kid-friendly gift shop, but your little ones can also paint a sand dollar. This was something fun to do when the weather wasn’t as nice as we had hoped.

What’s Nearby?

If you’re thinking about visiting a theme park during your time in Florida, you’re in luck! Anna Maria Island is just a short road trip away from a few of the major ones.

You can get to Busch Gardens in 1 hour and 15 minutes, Walt Disney World in 2 hours, and Universal Studios in 2 hours and 20 minutes.

(Tip: make the trip from Anna Maria Island to Orlando or Anna Maria Island to Tampa even easier by driving during your kiddo’s naptime!)

Adding on a beach vacation to a Disney vacation was the perfect combo. And we honestly feel like we always have to add on some beach time whenever we take a family trip to Disney now.

Wrap Up

Even though we only had a couple of days to spend on Anna Maria Island, we loved every second of it! A quiet beach town that is relaxing and kid-friendly? Sign me up!

Bonus that Anna Maria Island is close to Disney, so we could easily hit the theme parks after having some beach time.

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