[Archived]

Our home for the past 34 years, except when we’re traveling, is in Hollywood about 4 miles inland from the Atlantic Ocean. It’s slightly south of due east from Naples, so the weather is probably fairly comparable. “Winter” temperatures can vary from year to year — sometimes I get to wear long jeans, and sometimes it’s got to be shorts — and when the cold fronts go rolling across the country every week or two we sometimes get the tail end so you might have to get a sweater or light jacket out of the closet. On the other hand, now and then we get a cold spell for a few days when you’ll actually want a coat and the local news media will go nuts about covering your shrubs and bringing your pets inside.

Plenty of small dogs around. If you own one or more, don’t let them run loose off leash because hawks and coyotes like them. Alligators will go after any size dog or cat if it’s close enough to the water line. The gators can’t climb seawalls and mating season (when they can come knocking at your door) doesn’t start till early April.

Mosquitoes will breed in standing water year-round though they are less prevalent in the winter. More troublesome in the evening rather than in sunlight. Have some repellent handy.

Sunshine is unrelenting… use sunscreen and sunglasses, and enjoy!

Linda

[AL]

We’ve lived in Florida, near Orlando for 15 years prior to fulltiming. We winter there every year and just picked up a lot in Riverbend. Since we are only there from Dec thru March we decided to go south and west. It’s normally a few degrees warmer in LaBelle/Ft. Myers than the Orlando area. At times it can be much warmer 20+. If warmth is what you are looking for I wouldn’t go north of Sarasota.

LaBelle is inland 30 miles, which we first thought was too far. But as the season gets going you’ll appreciate the lack of traffic.

Riverbend is great. Condo amenities/activities but you bring your own condo. (RC track, pickleball, fitness, boat docks…) On a seasonal rental you can get access to a small shed Coach house, (a few are newer). There are 315 lots, 59 or so in the rental program and more available for private rental(check Facebook page). They were fully booked feb and lots of seasonal renters, so booking now isn’t a bad idea. You’ll also want to check that the lot you are renting isn’t for sale, and if it is how does it effect your rental.

River Landings is right next door and they have some rental lots. If you were buying they have more spacious/luxurious Coach house options and will offer similar amenities with fewer lots 60 or so. The rental lots were just pads, and they are just starting on the amenities, but it’s a good try before you buy option.

We looked a the resorts in Naples. Pelican Lake and Motorcoach. Both were great, we just prefer less traffic/congestion. Motorcoach also had a 10 year age policy regardless of type. (We didn’t verify). Both of those are much closer to a big town, beaches and water sports.

We also enjoyed Everglades City. Great park on the water there.

The east coast has options in St. Lucie, Jupiter and the keys.

-jeff

[Archived]

Not to cast any aspersions on Florida (I like it, too) but this February in Arizona has been the coldest and wettest of my 40 years here.

[Bernie]

Motorcoach doesn’t want you if you’re over 10 years. A few years ago we cancelled a 25 Coach Rally because of their rules as well as the managers arrogant attitude. One of his comments was he would ask for the vehicle registration to enforce the rule.

[Bill]

Roy,

We stay in the SW desert of CA for the winter as hundreds of coach people do. Our weather is the best in the USA for 4 to 6 months.

By the time it gets to AZ it gets a little more violent then when it hits us first and AZ is more prone to extremes or violent storms.

I’ve been doing this 13 years in the desert and have never seen a winter as bad as this year, everybody got it bad.

I sure wouldn’t pull roots and go to the swamp for 1 bad winter.

Just my thinking.

Later

bv

[Bill]

Roy, we have been wintering in Naples the last few years and planning to try Arizona next winter. Never been there.

We have been to River Bend, River Landings, Pelican, Naples Motor Coach, and Crystal Lake RV Resort. Our favorite is the latter considering Lot size, bugs, house keeping, friendliness. But high humidity, hence Arizona for a try.

[Bill]

Since I am not God, I can’t apologize for the weather you experienced in AZ this year. It was NOT a normal AZ Winter. However, 99.9% of all Winters in AZ will beat the holy C**P out of any Winter in FL. If you like change then you should try multiple Winter locations including S. TX, FL and AZ. FL has had really crappy Winter seasons as well and as Global Warming continues to screw with what we used to consider normal you are going to find wilder and wilder (but not likely milder and milder) weather as each year passes by.

[Archived]

Thanks to everyone for your input.

Just some background information. We have wintered 4 of the last 5 years at Palm Creek Golf and RV Resort in Casa Grande, Arizona. I know this year is unusual. Generally we have very nice weather out here. Warm to hot during the day and cool at night. A few 6 inch rains, that means the drops are 6 inches apart. No bugs and dry. I suppose we are really just curious about Florida. We live in southwest Missouri and we are in exactly equal distance to Arizona or Florida, so it’s kinda a coin toss.

We have considered a month in Florida, a month in Texas and them a month in Arizona to catch up with all our friends we have made here.

I can highly recommend Palm Creek. 18 hole par 3 golf course, big wood shop, sewing building, pottery shop, lapidary shop, silversmith shop and over a hundred clubs. Poker every night etc.

I suppose the grass is always greener on the other side.

Again thanks, for all your thoughts, good discussion.

Roy

[Archived]

I think the unusual weather in the SW might have been my fault….sorry….I’ll explain. You see, we had the worst and coldest harvest weather I’ve had in 44 years of farming, finally finishing on December 11th. Soon after we hooked up our little black cloud and headed for AZ, suddenly it started getting cold there aaannnddd it snowed in Scottsdale after we had fled to Indio.

We were just getting started, most( not all) of the time in the desert it was 10 degrees colder than normal. Aaannnddd I believe there was near record rainfall with some serious flooding right after we left for Vegas. As we were getting ready to head to Vegas I ran into Bernie as I hopped out of the bus in shorts and a t-shirt. He looks at me and says “You’re not wearing that outfit in Vegas, you’ll freeze your ass.” He was right.

Two weeks in Vegas, it rained, it did get to 60 once….but I broke out the long johns for the most part. Off to Paso Robles, it rained….kept the long johns handy, oh looked back at Vegas aaaannnnddd it snowed. I believe it shut down I15 in the area, first time in forever.

We’re now in snow country, yesterday we watched as the Bomb Cyclone hit the Denver area and where we are at in the Snowy’s in SE Wyoming. We have about a foot and a half of new snow on top of the bus, probably 3′ of new powder up on the mountain. Headin’ up shortly to go play.WooHoo

All i can say is it’s a good thing Truk has cancelled Petosky, because if we showed up I think it would snow in Michigan in August. The Floridians would lose their minds!!!

[Dick]

Picking a spot to winter in is kind of like letting it all ride on red… it’s a gamble. Weather patterns change year to year. Has been that way since forever. This year Florida was the sure bet. Next year?

It’s crowded here. All them northerners come here cause up north sucks every year in the winter. Further south the more crowded it gets, coasts are the worst. But they do have the ocean/gulf.

Gators don’t come into your back yard looking for lap yappers, but let any dog go swimming in a river is like putting a chicken on a hook near a seal rookery.

This past year where i am in FL has been mild with bugs. this coming year will be different (maybe more, maybe less).

Basically florida changes. Sometime it takes a long time, some time it’s minute to minute. Just got to go with it and now when you need to break out a snow plow things have really gone to hell everywhere 😉

[Harry]

While I agree with most everything Charles said about Florida, anyone who travels/visits/lives in any state that has alligators in the water should be aware that the gators can, will and have departed the water and come up on land to attack pets and sometimes humans. There have been human fatalities as well as non-fatal attacks. Authorities recommend staying at least ten feet away from the water’s edge if there is no seawall.

Personally, I think 20 million people in Florida is enough, so if we can spread the word about the area (a swamp, I think someone called it) and the dangers, maybe I can get through a traffic light in something less than 3 light cycles in the winter season.

Linda

[Tommy]

I’ll promise to stay out of Florida if the transplanted Floridians will promise to stop moving halfway back home and settling in TN.

[Dick]

Hey Jon, as my family goes back 200+ years in Tennessee, I think that you are a more recent immigrant.

It seems like you too only made it halfway to Florida. But that’s OK. You’ve seen the light. 🙂

Florida is a fantastic place to visit, but I wouldn’t want to live there.

[Bill]

No problem Les, we don’t want you to live here, it’s a nightmare getting to Walmart for the specials because of all you out of staters here to suck up our sunshine and clog up the line for the strawberry shortcake at the strawberry festival.

Got to go, need to turn down the A/C….

[Roy]

If yall stay out of my part of florida I’m okay with people coming here for winters 😉