Today, Norm Goldman, Editor of the travel site Sketchandtravel and the book reviewing site Bookpleasures is pleased to have as a guest, travel author, Bruce Hunt, expert on Florida Travel.
Bruce is the author of Visiting Small Town Florida Revised Edition, Florida’s Finest Inns And Bed & Breakfasts, and Adventure Sports In Florida.
Norm:
Good Day Bruce and thank you for participating in our interview.
Norm:
Could you tell our readers something about yourself and what prompted you to write books on Florida?
Bruce:
I’m one of those raritiesa Florida native. I’ve lived in Tampa all my life, and I’ve watched it grow from a medium-size town into a big city, with all the things that go along with thattraffic, crowds, etc.
I do love Tampa, but occasionally I need a break from the “big-cityness”, and I like to go visit off-the-beaten-path placesquiet and peaceful little towns where people you don’t even know smile, wave, and say Good Morning as they pass you on the sidewalk, where it’s still quiet enough in the middle of the day that you can hear birds chirping, and where Mom-and-Pop general stores and home-cooked-meal diners still exist. I figured there must be others like me, so I pitched the idea for the first volume of “Visiting Small-Town Florida” to Pineapple Press ten years ago.
That wasn’t my first book though. “Adventure Sports In Florida” (also Pineapple Press) came first. It’s out of print now, but it was a guidebook to high-adrenaline sports (skydiving, automobile racing, hang gliding, hot air ballooning, cave diving, etc.) and where to learn how to do them properly. I’ve been skydiving for 28 years and racing sports cars for 20, so this was a natural first book for me.
Some people think it’s odd that I have an interest in these types of things as well as the small-town stuff, but what can I say, I like them both. After “Visiting Small-Town Florida”, came Volume 2 of that book, and then “Florida’s Finest Inns and Bed & Breakfasts”, which complimented the “Visiting Small-Town Florida” series nicely, then in 2003 “Visiting Small-Town Florida, Revised Edition”.
Norm:
Do you believe that travel is a learning experience and by effectively employing our senses we will be handsomely rewarded? As a follow up and if you agree with this assertion, were there any events or experiences that would lead you to this conclusion? Please elaborate.
Bruce:
Travel is all about new experiencesplacing yourself in a completely different environmentfresh sights, sounds, and smells. And I think the more you learn about the place you are visiting, the more you will enjoy it. That’s why I spend so much time digging up trivial tidbits of history about the places I go to and write about. Regarding events or experiences, I can’t pinpoint oneI’ve just had the travel bug as long as I can remember.
Norm:
What is your idea of the perfect romantic getaway, and the perfect romantic inn or B&B?
Bruce:
Quiet, private, and picturesquelike the places I list two questions down.
Norm:
Why should we consider Florida as a romantic destination?
Bruce:
Well certainly Florida has its tropical and exotic side, and there’s something about being around beaches and the water that’s enticing, but I think there’s a lot of romance in well-preserved historic Florida tooSt. Augustine, Fernandina, Micanopy, Apalachicola, Cedar Key, Mt. Dora, to name a few spots.
Norm:
If you had to choose 5 unique and romantic Florida destinations for a wedding, which ones would you consider and why?
Bruce:
How about seven?
The top spot would have to be Little Palm Island, a private island off Little Torch Key, about 25 miles north of Key West. But at $700 - $1600 per night, it’s not for everybody.
I also like the Elizabeth Pointe Lodge on Fernandina Beach/Amelia Islandlooks like an old Cape Cod house, very nautical, but actually built in 1992 (it’s on the cover of my “Florida’s Finest Inns and B&Bs”).
The historic Don CeSar Hotel on St. Pete Beach is very elegant and posh.
Anywhere on Captiva (off Florida’s southwest Gulf coast)The Castaways (simple little cottages right on the beach), the ‘Tween Waters Inn, or South Seas Plantation.
Seaside, up on the Panhandle between Panama City and Destinperhaps Florida’s most beautiful beachrent one of the many pastel bungalows.
The Herlong Mansion, a gracious turn-of-the-century red-brick Georgian (and maybe haunted?) bed & breakfast in Micanopyabout fifteen miles south of Gainesville.
The Dewey House B&B at the southern (quieter) end of Duval Street in Key West.
Norm:
As a follow up to the last question, which 5 inns or B&Bs in Florida would you consider to be the most romantically unique and why?
Bruce:
See the list in the previous questionbut it’s a constantly shifting listdepends on what you’re in the mood for. If you ask me a month from now I’m liable to give you five different choices.
Norm:
Which five restaurants in Florida would you consider to be the most romantically unique, and why?
Bruce:
With the same disclaimer as above:
Beach Street Grill in Fernandina on Amelia Island:
Bud and Alley’s in Seaside:
Marquesa Caf
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