Anna Maria Beach Resort

A Beachfront Resort Built Around Anna Maria Island's Slower Pace

Anna Maria Beach Resort sits directly on Gulf Drive in Holmes Beach, on an island that has kept its low-rise, old-Florida character better than almost anywhere else on this coast. The suites are condo-like rather than standard hotel rooms, each with its own private balcony or patio and a view of either the beach or the resort grounds, and every one has been remodeled with new furnishings and appliances rather than left to age quietly over the years. It is a resort built for a longer stay, where guests settle into a suite rather than simply pass through a room on the way to the beach.

Why It Works

We chose it because Anna Maria Island rewards exactly this kind of property: unfussy, beachfront, and built around the pool and the sand rather than a lobby or a spa menu. The condo-style suites give a family or a group more room to actually live in than a standard hotel floor plan, and the direct beach access removes the usual walk across a parking lot or a road that so many Gulf Coast hotels still require of their guests, even ones that advertise themselves as beachfront.

Why This Location

Holmes Beach sits in the middle of Anna Maria Island, a barrier island that has resisted the high-rise development found elsewhere on Florida's Gulf Coast, keeping its pace closer to a beach town than a resort strip. Golf carts and bikes are the island's preferred way to get around, and the resort leans into that with rentals of its own, making a car largely unnecessary once a guest has arrived and settled in.

Fast Facts

• Price: Premium

• Vibe: Beachfront, condo-style, old-Florida

• Rooms: Condo-like suites with private balconies or patios, remodeled with new furnishings and appliances

• Best For: Families and groups wanting more space than a standard hotel room, travellers who want direct beach access

• Our Favorite Thing About the Hotel: The loggerhead sea turtle nesting program each summer, when the resort clears beach chairs and dims lights after sunset

• Amenities: Oversized pool with a zero-entry shallow end, five private rentable cabanas, complimentary beach setups, golf cart and bike rentals

• Attractions: Direct Gulf of Mexico beach access, Anna Maria Island's low-rise town centres a short ride away

The Pool, the Cabanas, and a Beach With Nesting Turtles

The resort's oversized pool includes a zero-entry shallow end alongside the main pool, and five private cabanas can be rented, each fitting up to five guests with two loungers and access to the rest of the resort's amenities. Out on the sand, the resort runs a seasonal program around the loggerhead sea turtles that nest on this stretch of beach each summer, clearing chairs and dimming lights after sunset so the turtles are not disturbed, a small gesture that says something about how the property treats the beach it sits on and the wildlife that depends on it.

Condo-Style Suites With Their Own Balconies

Every suite opens onto a private balcony or patio, and the condo-like layout gives guests a kitchen and living space rather than a single hotel room to work with over a longer stay. Interiors were fully remodeled, new furnishings and appliances throughout, which matters on an island where plenty of properties still show their age despite the view they happen to sit on.

Getting Around Without a Car

Golf carts and bikes rented through the resort cover most of what a guest needs on Anna Maria Island, from a run to the grocery store to a slower ride along Gulf Drive at sunset. Gulf water activities are arranged through the resort as well, which keeps a stay here centred on the water rather than the road, and on the island's own rhythm rather than a mainland one.