Guest Hook Travel Guides Anna Maria Island Families | Page 5

5 EXPERIENCES YOU CANNOT MISS... 1 Eat Like Tony Soprano... 2 Free Summer Surf Camp for Kids... 3 Freshest Seafood You'll Ever Taste... 4 Get to Know the Local Wildlife - Free Tour... 5 Our Best Boating Spot... Yep, you read that right! The owners of Vinny and Cheryl's Italian Kitchen used to run a catering business in New Jersey where they catered to the cast and crew of "The Soprano's" production team. Once they retired to Anna Maria, they couldn't find an authentic Italian restaurant, so they did the next best thing and opened one themselves. They have fresh baked artisan Italian breads, pastries and cookies, a wood burning pizza oven, freshly made pasta and ravioli that transports us back to Italy. Doesn't EVERY kid want to learn how to surf? To feel the board gliding over the waves on a sunny summer day... there really is no better feeling! Beach life is all about getting out there and enjoying the fresh salt air, having fun and exercising in the emerald green waters of beautiful Anna Maria Island. Register early for the Free Eternal Summer Surf Camp because it grows every year! If someone hasn't told you about The Starfish Company you will never find it! It's virtually in a secret location, you can get to it by car or better yet by boat. Sharing tables with strangers, who quickly become your friends, is the norm here. We guarantee your meal will not be fresher anywhere else! Our tip, if you are too busy or tired to wait in line, is to head next door to their Seafood Market and take home the freshest catch of the day to cook up at your luxury vacation home. Get to know the locals... the local wildlife that is! Endangered sea turtles, such as Green, Leatherback, Loggerhead and more, have found a haven on Anna Maria. Our best insider tip for getting up close and personal with sea turtles is by taking a free guided tour offered from April to October through the Anna Maria Island Turtle Watch and Shorebird Monitoring Group. Children of all ages are welcome. We love boating and are willing to share our best boating spot with you! Head out to Egmont Key whatever way you can via pontoon, power, or shuttle boat. This Florida State Park is primarily a wildlife refuge, but it can be a personal refuge too - a place to relax and collect shells along secluded, pristine beaches. This park has great photography opportunities for rare shore birds, due to it's restricted bird sanctuary section, as well as manatee sightings.