Last year Congress enacted legislation to expand the U.S. Visa Waiver Program (VWP). The new law required that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) develop an Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) to gather biographic information from nationals of the soon-to-be 34 VWP countries traveling to the U.S. in advance of their visit.

ESTA will become mandatory for all VWP travelers beginning January 12, 2009. Information required through ESTA mirrors the data travelers already submit through the I-94W paper form currently filled out upon arrival at a U.S. port of entry; however, it simplifies the process by allowing visitors to complete the form online prior to arrival.

Question and Answers about the program

The following countries are currently part of the Electronic System Travel Authorization program…

Relax, your on an Anna Maria Island Vacation.  Most relax on the beach but it is always a great time to get back in the “saddle” again to get your physical activity on the right track.  Walking or jogging the beach is a favorite past-time but another option that most don’t consider is a personal trainer. 

Jeff Levine will take you to one of several Anna Maria Island fitness centers and take you through a routine sure to get your heart pumping or assist your body-part that may need strengthening.  With over 30 years of personal and fitness training, Jeff will be sure to get you back on the right track or help you mix up your fitness training while staying on Anna Maria.  Jeff prides himself in offering fun highly productive fitness. 

Another great option is to work out on the beach.  It’s more common than you think but it offers great relaxation as well as productive fitness.  After all, what better way to break a sweat than having an expert in their field show you new and great ways to keep yourself healthy and happy, all while doing it on the beach!

Another great idea is to have Jeff train your family, multiple couples, or multiple groups.  Jeff can help with groups and the best thing of all is your price per person will reduce as the group becomes larger.  If your family is like most families everyone could use a little help burning calories from all the great restaurants on Anna Maria Island. 

Jeff Levine
(941) 744-6883

Anna Maria Island, Florida has wonderful trolley service that travels the entire island.  From Coquina Beach all the way to the public pier on the North side of Anna Maria City, Florida.  The best thing of all is the trolley still remains free!  That’s right Free.  In the late Fall, Winter, and early Spring MCAT uses the mature trolleys which allows for the back half of the trolley to have the windows removed so you can feel the cool breezes of Anna Maria Island.  The Trolley service arrives about every 30 minutes at the many designated stops on the island.  If you are staying at a vacation rental with Island Real Estate Vacation Rentals then be sure to review the free visit bag Island Real Estate provides all vacation renters for more information on trolley stops.

A few tricks of the trade.  The trolley benches are spread apart all across Anna Maria Island.  Starting South to North, the trolley service starts at Coquina public beach in Bradenton Beach City.  All along Gulf Drive there are many benches.  It’s just like catching a bus.  Find one of the trolley stops and await the trolley to arrive.  TRICK:  Be sure you are sitting at a Trolley bench and not a miscellaneous bench.  A trolley bench will be painted Green and say Trolley on it.  If it is a wooden bench without any sign next to it or Trolley painting on the back of the bench then it is NOT a trolley stop. 

The Trolley travels all the way up to Manatee Avenue by way of East Bay Drive past Publix and the outdoor shopping plaza.  TRICK:  The trolley will only stop at the benches to its right.  If you are on one side of the street and you do not want to travel the direction of the traffic then cross the street and find the closest trolley stop going the other way.  The Trolley then picks up on Gulf Drive and travels North on Marina Drive.  Let me say that again, the Trolley travels North on Marina Drive all the way up to Pine avenue where it turns around at the public pier at the East end of Pine Avenue.  The Trolley then heads West along Pine Avenue, South along Gulf Drive and travels South along the Beach.  The Trolley travels ALONG the beach where it closes the loop at Marina and Gulf Drive and travels back to Coquina Beach. 

TRICK:  If you are staying anywhere from 53rd to 81st be careful!!  The trolley travels both Gulf Drive and Marina/Palm which forms a loop.  So, if you are staying at Vista Grande in Island Real Estate’s Vacation Rentals , to travel South pick up any one of the trolley stops along Gulf Drive.  If you want to travel North you must walk EAST to Marina Drive and find a trolley stop on the East side of the street to travel to the North side of Anna Maria Island. 

Visit our special page for the Anna Maria Island, Florida Trolley map and schedule.  Note, the attached trolley schedule may not be up to date and it provides stop times for only a few of the stops as a point of reference.  There are many more stops than those outlined in the Form.   To review the “official” Trolley schedule for Anna Maria Island visit the MCAT website. 

Below is a VERY quick you tube video at a trolley stop…

Looking for some good pub grub?   Maybe your favorite team is playing, and you wanted to catch the game.  I know a place in Holmes Beach where you can find both!  While on Anna Maria Island make sure one of your stops is Hurricane Hank’s Bar & Grill.  You definitely have to try the BBQ burger or the black-bean quesadilla.  Those are two favorites of the agents in my office.  Also on the lighter side they have some mouth watering salads.  The Grilled Sesame Chicken Salad or just a Classic Caesar being the top picks.  They are also family friendly with great kid’s baskets of chicken fingers, fried shrimp or fish all served with french fries. 

The atmosphere is island style with bright colors and beach memorabilia.  The dress code is “come as you are” whether that be in a business suit or bathing suit.  This may turn into one of your favorite island hot spots.

Hurricane Hank’s
5346 Gulf Dr.
Holmes Beach, Fl. 34217
941-778-5788

Well we have all gone through denial, anger, and now acceptance.  The Manatee Drawbridge is closing Monday, September 29th.  It’s a little like a freight train coming straight at us and there’s nothing we can do!  It’s to late to stop, hit reverse, derail the train, whatever.  Speaking with local business owners we all are just “prepared to roll with the punches.”  Some have scheduled their vacation surrounding the bridge repairs while others remain optimistic that the affect will be minimized from the fabulous planning of the city and the Florida Department of Transportation.  If the bridge repair vendor has planned as much as the Florida DOT we should see the bridge repair complete right on time. 

Regarding the traffic congestion its going to get rough.  The folks most affected are those commuting to and from work that rely on the Manatee drawbridge to get to or from Anna Maria island.  Island Real Estate is offering deep discounted vacation rentals for employees of the island that are affected by the bridge closure.  We want to do our part and we can to help!

There is an upside to all this…we should develop some young entrepreneurs that take advantage of the traffic congestion and sell hot dogs or lemonade.  The intersection where we should see the most action (or least for that matter) would be Cortez and Gulf Drive.  Don’t worry be happy, if this is the worst thing Anna Maria, FL residents have to deal with in the next few years then life is very good to us in paradise.  After all, it’s only 45 days, sure its going to be a long 45 days but the events in “Bridge the gap” should help and honestly, I would rather not spend the next 45 days anywhere else! 

The Sun newspaper of Anna Maria Island has led the community through a fantastic series of meetings to form “Bridge the Gap.”  If you are lucky enough to be visiting Anna Maria Island from October 2nd through November 16th you will see the spirit of Anna Maria Island.   There are events all throughout Anna Maria Island.   A Softball tournament, a trolley scavenger hunt, pickle ball, karaoke contest, pot luck and movie dinner, and much much more.  The events are planned to promote all the fantastic things to be done on Anna Maria Island while the route 64 bridge is closed for repairs.   There is so much fun to be had during October and November why leave the island? 

For a calendar on Bridge the gap events visit the Sun website.  If you don’t have a planned visit during October and November what are you waiting for?  See our Anna Maria Island Spirit for yourself and come visit.  Visit Island Real Estate’s vacation rental website for more information on accommodations or Real Estate information. 

September 8th, 2008, 12:00 PM - Hurricane Ike 

Life is good in paradise.   The current three day path has Anna Maria Island well out of the path.  We will get some rain and wind but the only folks impacted by Ike will be the surfers.  All is clear and this will be Island Real Estate’s last post on Ike unless conditions change severely.  At this point Island Real Estate WILL NOT implement our hurricane preparation for Hurricane Ike.  

September 7th, 2008, 8:00 AM - Hurricane Ike

 The projected path looks more encouraging this morning.  Although the projected path shows Anna Maria Island will miss a direct hit we are still concerned with the most Northern path which would place the island in harms way of a pretty significant storm surge.  This morning Ike is a Cat 4 but the path continues to be pushed Southward which is good news for Anna Maria Island and worse news for Texas.  Island Real Estate has not yet initiated its hurricane preparation plan for our owners.  We will continue to supply more information later in the day or Monday.

September 6th, 2008, 8:00 AM - Hurricane Ike

Island Real Estate of Anna Maria Island, Inc will be tracking Ike for our owners and concerned absentee owners.  What has us concerned is the severity and the projected path.  The 5 day path has Anna Maria Island ever so close to taking a direct hit from Hurricane Ike.   Currrently Ike is a category 3 down from a category 4 and Ike is very organized.  The dry air from the North is slowing it down but this also results in a more Southward direction.  Each Forecast I have seen continues to push more and more to the South.  The BIG trouble with the current path is that it puts Anna Maria Island to the West of the eye which is where storm surge is most significant and a category 3 is going to create 10′+ storm surge.  We will keep an eye on Ike and lets hope the cone continues to be pushed South.  Island Real Estate has NOT started storm preparation as of yet for our owners.  We will let everyone know if and when we initiate our storm preparation. 

Most of us don’t look forward to late summer because with the heat comes major storms.  Everyone breathes a sigh of relief when a hurricane misses Anna Maria Island.  Surfers really look forward to near misses and travel hundreds of miles to find high surf on the Gulf Coast.  High tide as well as hurricane Gustav and Ike created fabulous surfing conditions the last few weeks on Anna Maria Island.  The entire island was overrun with surfers.  Every beach access point was packed with cars filled with anxious surfers.  Watching surfers make it to the beach to see the surf for the first time was like seeing a child on Christmas morning.  I didn’t need to see smiles on the surfers faces, I could see they were smiling from the glimmer in their eyes.    

Firstly, I have NEVER seen the beach as crowded as it was Sunday and secondly on a cloudy stormy day.  It was a site to be seen that I wish all visitors to Anna Maria Island could have witnessed.  I took many photos and I hope that these help bridge the gap for everyone to feel the awe inspiring energy that was present.  It was amazing!  Most of us hunker down as a storm’s arm reaches out to give us stormy weather.  I think surfers of Florida showed the Anna Maria Island residents and visitors why rainbows come out on a rainy day!  Who would have known such a treasured experience could be found on a stormy day?

View the video below and turn up the sound if you hear nothing.

This week has proven to be a week out of the nature book of the human spirit. Each sunset walk had it’s version of out-doing the previous night. The first of this series I will call the angry sunset. You could almost see figures or faces fighting with the boldness of red and orange to add fuel to the fire.                       

The following night was the night of the moon. As I was snapping away at the sunset, I turned to find an entirely different mood arise as I caught the moon in the lens of my camera and noted how perfect it appeared. There was a sense of peace seeing the golden moon poking it’s head up in the opposite direction over Anna Maria Island. Sometime if we just look in a different place then what has become mundane, we may find new emotions we did not expect but are very soothing as is the moon on this perfect night!    Sandbar Resturant in Anna Maria

The following night was a night without the camera. This was a new experience for about 20 people. We noticed the sand being moved in the loggerhead turtle nest. It was getting very dark but no one in this group of strangers spoke above a whisper as we waited staring at a tiny fin above the sand. After over an hour had passed, almost like an eruption, baby loggerheads begin to pour out from the nest. We made two lines to the water to assure no one would get lost in this march to their new life. It was beyond amazing how they knew just what to do and where they needed to go. With one little mighty leader marching toward sea, more than 100 were close behind. Some would veer off but we would quickly remind them of the path they must follow to reach their destiny. This proved to be a spiritual adventure for all 20 of us that met that night on Anna Maria Island. 

Two nights later would prove to be one of the best sunsets of the week. This was the night following the hurricane that never hit the Island. She was known as Fay and we thank her for stirring up the atmosphere and giving us such an incredible sunset. Please, enjoy the sunset!

Written by Melinda Bordes ~941-705-0146 who is here to assist you with all of your real estate needs whether buying or selling on Anna Maria Island and surrounding areas.

Be sure to click on the pictures to enlarge them in order to see greater detail! Don’t you think it is time to come to Anna Maria Island and see the sunset for yourself?

The Sand Dollar Gift Shop is one of Anna Maria Island’s finest for its ambiance and style.  When you take your first step into the store you are instantly surrounded by the great smells of exotic scented candles and stones for the home.  As you begin to look around you will start to notice all of the wonderful sand and beach inspired decor for the home as well as a great selection of jewelry.  The clothing and shoes are always up to date and stylish.  But most of all you will be taken back by the charm, friendliness of the staff, and most of all, the affordability.

The Sand Dollar Gift Shop is a definite must see while either visiting or vacationing on Anna Maria Island.  The Sand Dollar is also a must visit if shopping for unique gifts for those at home helping you while on vacation.  The gift shop is located in the city of Holmes beach.  

Sand Dollar Gift Shop
5302 Marina Drive
Holmes Beach, FL 34217
(941) 778-2024