SPI Wrap Up

Welcome back! I'm flying high in the sky on my way to Jamaica as you're reading this, and I'm so excited for this trip. As I talked about Tuesday, I'll be doing site visits and training with Sandals Resorts, and I'm so thrilled to bring what I learn back to clients. If you want to follow along on my trip in {semi} real time, follow me on Facebook & Instagram. On Facebook I'll be sharing lots of photos, info, and live videos, and on Instagram catch me on Insta Story and regular photo posts. In the meantime, it's time to wrap up our fun trip to South Padre Island, Texas.

Though it is a bit of a drive from our home just outside of Waco, Texas, getting there is half the fun. From most places in Texas, you'll drive through Austin, San Antonio, Corpus Christi, through THE King Ranch, and on to South Padre. There's also a nearby airport in Harlingen for easy access, which I know many people who go this route then rent a car. Once you've arrived, there is plenty to do, as I've shared the past couple of weeks. Here's a quick recap:

Trip Highlights: Catch the best of the best from our whole trip in one place. 
Horseback Riding on the Beach: Ride horses along the beach and bay as the sunsets, or catch a morning ride for a cool breeze. 
SPI Birding and Nature Center: Even if you're not into bird watching, you will be once you leave here! Learn about the different birds that migrate through, and watch for a few along their amazing nature walk.
SPI Beach: Long sugary sand beaches and clear, blue waters give you a taste of Florida or Mexico without the flight!
Dolphin Watch and Eco-Tour: Get a look at life under the sea with a dolphin watch and ecological tour of the bay in South Padre. Get hands on with your "catch" and watch the dolphins frolic and play.
Sea Turtle Rescue: Probably my favorite spot on SPI, this amazing organization rescues sea turtles who are ill, harmed by human presence, or just need a helping hand. The rescue, rehabilitate, and release, and you can see the turtles during their rehabilitation process here.

If you are interested in more ideas for things to do on South Padre Island you can contact me here to book your own beach vacation!

SPI Sea Turtle, Inc.

Hey there! I hope you had a great weekend. Mine was super busy preparing for a trip this week. I'll be heading to Ocho Rios and Montego Bay, Jamaica later this week for exciting training and tours of 7 different Sandals and Beaches properties! It's going to be a jam packed trip full of lots of learning I can bring back to better help you with planning and booking your vacation. I am very much looking forward to it. I'll be sharing photos & videos on Facebook & Instagram if you'd like to follow along (links on the right --> sidebar). Anyway, back to business at hand. This week I'm wrapping up our trip to South Padre Island, and today I'm sharing one of my very favorite places there, Sea Turtle, Inc.

Sea Turtle, Inc. is a wonderful organization that rescues and rehabilitates sea turtles found in the area, some with missing flippers. They work to rehabilitate these sea turtles to prepare them for release back into the wild. It is a wonderful place to visit for adults and children. You can visit the Sea Turtle, Inc. website to learn more about the cause, to plan your visit, and to donate.
Take a look at these sweet sea turtles that were there during our visit. You'll notice some of them have missing flippers. But how lucky they are to be saved by the great people at Sea Turtle, Inc.!

If you are interested in more ideas for things to do on South Padre Island you can contact me here to book your own beach vacation!

SPI Dolphin Watch & Eco-Tour

So, I have a really short and sweet post for today. Along with so many activities to do on land in South Padre Island, Texas, there are so many to do on the water. Something fun, exciting, and always different is a dolphin watch and eco-tour. I love taking tours similar to this everywhere I go, because "the catch" will always be different, it could even be different in one location. On our tour, the guides caught a few exciting sea creatures with a net. We were then able to see them, touch them, and even hold them. It is a great learning experience about the world around you, perfect for kids and adults alike. Another highlight for the tour was dolphin watching. We enjoyed seeing these beautiful and majestic creatures frolic and play along side our boat. They definitely love being watched and doted on. I feel like dolphins are just as curious about us as we are them, a truly beautiful animal. For our tour in South Padre Island, we just caught a dolphin watching boat on a local pier. You can find similar tours at just about any seaside destination you visit. 

If you are interested in more ideas for things to do on South Padre Island you can contact me here to book your own beach vacation!

SPI Beach

Hello again! Gulf beach trips are ever popular in the south this time of year. Road trips to nearby beaches are a last ditch effort for some R&R beaches before school starts back. Among the most popular are Gulf Shores, Alabama, Destin, Florida, and South Padre Island, Texas. Though I'd love to make a trip to the two former, SPI is on my mind. It reminds me of a trip to Pensacola, Florida we took as a kid, with its pretty blue water and sugary sand.

It's been a few years since we've made our way there, but it's always on my mind. Though we didn't have the best weather for the whole trip, we made the most of the sunny days, and enjoyed serene ocean views from our balcony on the rainy days. Besides, in my opinion, a rainy day at the beach is better than any day not. There are so many options for beachfront condos and hotels on SPI, so you could take advantage of those views as well. Another favorite of mine on SPI are the amazing sand dunes on the far north of the island. If you take the main road as far as you can, it dead ends into the most beautiful dunes, most taller than I am! South Padre Island is full of so many neat things to see and do, most importantly, the beach does not disappoint!

If you are interested in more ideas for things to do on South Padre Island you can contact me here to book your own beach vacation!

SPI Pirate's Cruise

Hello again! I hope your week is going well. I haven't gotten nearly as much done as I'd hoped, but that's really my own fault. Sometimes it's hard to get motivated, isn't it? I better get on the ball soon. I've got a trip coming up, and I really hate to leave loose ends. This weekend will be a lot of prioritizing and, hopefully, lots of marking off the to do list! In the meantime, I have plenty to share here. Today's post is a fun one from South Padre Island.

Black Dragon Cruises are a fun "pirate's ship" adventure located just near the island at Laguna Madre. They set sail from a bustling pier full of restaurants, fishing, and entertainment in the form of parrots! If you're ever in the area, it's worth the visit even if you decide to skip the pirate's ship. But if you're in for a little adventure, surrender yer booty and walk the plank to board Black Dragon pirate cruise!
Our pirate adventure started out with a show featuring a fire breathing pirate! Talk about starting out hot! From there, the adventure continued out on the pier with a pirate battle, cannons fired and all! After the cannon explosion, we headed aboard the ship for an exciting time with sword fights and treasure hunts and more. The pirates included all of their audience in the show, giving us pirates faces and "booty" too! This would be a great experience for kids, and I suppose we are kids at heart since we had such a fun time. It's also a nice way to get great views of the island and bay. You just may see a dolphin or two as well!

If you are interested in more ideas for things to do on South Padre Island you can contact me here to book your own beach vacation!

SPI Bird Watching

Hello again! It has been awhile. I took a much unexpected hiatus last week. My dear, sweet father-in-law passed away suddenly, so of course everything took a back burner to family, as it should be. I'm settling back in at home and work while my husband is away staying with his mom to hopefully ease her heart a bit. In the meantime, I'm taking care of things on the home front, and taking a little time to catch up on things here and there. High on my list is picking up on the fun journey around South Padre Island where I left things a couple of weeks ago.

Today, I want to share our time at the South Padre Island Birding and Nature Center. During our stay on the island, SPI was deemed the "bird watching capital of the world" at that very moment. The weather, the winds all contributed to birds migratory patterns at the time making South Padre Island the prime spot for bird watching at that moment in time. We'd had the pleasure of seeing birds from our condo, including the friendliest of warblers just outside our door. But nothing could compare to the amount, in numbers and species variety, we would see at the birding center.
Though Google says most people spend 30 minutes here, we were hear at least an hour or two strolling along the boardwalk watching the birds, fish, and even alligator. There is no telling how many species of birds we saw in our short visit, but each was as fascinating as the next. We caught glimpses of several ducks, Roseate Spoonbills, Painted Buntings, orioles, hummingbirds, sandpipers, Great Egrets, Little Blue Heron, Tricolored Heron, and so many others.
I wouldn't say that we are ordinarily into birds, but this was a spot not to be missed. It is the perfect spot to get away from the sometimes busy beach, and relax among nature.

If you are interested in more ideas for things to do on South Padre Island you can contact me here to book your own beach vacation!