Facts:
With its zoos, museums, restaurants and fun-filled occasions, there is no mistake that Naples, Florida is one of the best cities in the country. This city is where the magic happen – a place where the beaches, the art, the culture and the people come together yet still retaining that ‘small town’ feel. All the beauty of the city is congregated in the downtown area where shops, restaurants, establishments that carve themselves out of the neat traditional architecture are truly jaw-dropping. There are lots of activities you can do in the city aside from enjoying the beach. And the best part is, these other activities are, in some way or another, objectively better compared to doing these same things in other places in the country. For instance, Naples has been dubbed as the “Golf Capital of the World” because of the quality of golf courses in the city and the skill level of the players who take part its golfing events. Naples also has a very productive art scene where galleries exhibit pieces from local and international artists all year round. Performance theater art is also alive with just one art center Artis-Naples already producing around 300 concerts a year.
History:
It is very likely that human trade and interaction existed in one form or another in the exact location of Naples even before the late 1800’s. However, Naples seen much of its development and thus human activity, when pioneers like Baron Gift Collier, General John Stuart Williams and William H. Halderman who fell in love with the beauty of Naples and saw its potential to become a thriving city and began investing in this sparsely inhabited piece of land that’s close to the beach. They were the ones who built the first structures here in the form of summer vacation homes, a pier for the delivery of otherwise immovable goods, a general goods store, a post office and a humble hotel. There was not much human activity in those early years but it was considered a refuge from the winter cold by some well-off people at that time. At the turn of the century, Naples begun to see more progress as more buildings and roads were constructed. By 1927, a very ambitious project that would today be known as the Tamiami Highway took place and it connected Tampa to Miami crossing through Naples. This opened Naples, Florida to more trade and commerce which bolstered its rather shaky economy of that time. And by the Second World War an airport was constructed and was used as an airbase to help in the war effort. We now know this airport today as The Naples Municipal airport which serves hundreds of thousands of tourists up to this day.
Tips:
- There are pet friendly beaches and parks around the city and even in some hotels too just as long as you notify the management before checking in.
- Walking around downtown to see the elegant clothing shops and to appreciate the architecture of the homes and other public areas is already a worthwhile activity in itself.
- The hotels are from big and trusted names and you can assure yourself of the quality of their rooms, amenities and service.
- Don’t forget to walk by Naples Pier and catch the breathtaking sunset.
