Florida Cities on TripAdvisor's 2009 Hot List

Englewood and Ruskin Make Travel Web Site’s Top 10

Nov 7, 2008

The travel Web site TripAdvisor released its top 10 list of emerging U.S. travel destinations for 2009 and the Florida communities of Englewood and Ruskin made the cut.

Using an algorithm measuring the search activity and posts made by members of the online travel community, the TripAdvisor TravelCast (a travel forecast) determined which cities are up-and-coming for 2009 and the results were released to the public last month. Florida and Hawaii were the only states with two cities each making the top 10 list.

TripAdvisor Ranks Englewood, Florida the #2 Emerging U.S. Travel Destination for 2009: Why?

This beach community on Florida’s Southwest Gulf coast sits on Lemon Bay and embraces nature with its accessibility to Blueway Trails for paddling a kayak, bird watching, fishing, and five beaches. Sea treasures in the form of fossilized shark’s teeth are found on Manasota Key at Stump Pass State Park. Golf courses are plenty, too.

Visitors to Englewood will enjoy the newly designated Lemon Bay/Myakka Trail Florida Scenic Highway. The scenic highway follows State Road 776 and features Englewood’s historical and natural points of interest. Highlights include Florida pioneer architecture in Olde Englewood Village and weekly bluegrass jam sessions at the historic El Jobean Bean Depot Café. Lemon Bay Park and the Venice Rookery are natural highlights along the trail.

Englewood’s mom and pop shops, restaurants, and lodging accommodations in the form of comfortable motels and condominiums are the heart of this Florida beach community. There’s a fun, funky feel on the town’s main drag, Dearborn Street. Plan a visit over the second Saturday of each month to participate in Saturday Night Live!, and enjoy live entertainment, festivities, and meet local artists between 6 and 9 p.m.

Englewood is reminiscent of what Florida vacations used to be with its uncrowded beaches, unpretentious attitude and endearing charm. It’s no wonder the TripAdvisor TravelCast ranked Englewood #2 in its Top Ten U.S. Emerging Destinations for 2009 list.

Englewood is located about a 90-minute drive south of Tampa and sits in western Charlotte and southern Sarasota Counties.

TripAdvisor Ranks Ruskin, Florida the #10 Emerging U.S. Travel Destination for 2009: Why?

Referred as “America’s Salad Bowl,” agriculture was the heart of Ruskin during the early 1900s and thrived through the mid-1980s. Agriculture is still important to the community and recognized with the Ruskin Tomato Festival, held the first weekend in May and dates back to 1935.

Another popular festival is the Ruskin Seafood Festival held the first weekend in November. Visitors who miss the Ruskin Seafood Festival and looking for hands-on seafood experiences can join Captain Gus’s Crabby Adventures, a four-hour boating and eating journey with a commercial crabber. Depending on the time of year, participants, referred as mates, will catch blue crabs or stone crabs. They’re taught how to bait and pull up crab traps and importantly, shown how to clean, cook, and eat crab.

Miss the romance of a drive-in movie theater? The Ruskin Family Drive-in Theater shows wholesome movies every night of the year and has been doing so since 1952.

The community of Ruskin is located about a 30-minute drive south of Tampa and marked its 100th anniversary this year. Being recognized as one of TripAdvisor’s Top Ten Emerging Destinations for 2009, new visitors will discover Ruskin, embrace its unique personalities, and ask themselves why it took so long to discover it.

TripAdvisor Ranks Other Emerging U.S. Travel Destinations for 2009

St. George, Utah topped the TravelCast list while other U.S. cities ranked as follows:

Travel to the warm temperatures of Florida this winter and discover another side of the Sunshine State. Visit Englewood and Ruskin, located an hour’s drive apart, and see why TripAdvisor ranked these communities as emerging travel destinations for 2009.

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