Jaunted

Oysters

An Ode to Florida's Forgotten Coast

September 7, 2008 at 1:44 PM | 1 Comment

We've always been fascinated with Florida's Gulf Coast, which has all of the sun and surf of the Atlantic side, minus the crowds, expense, and attitude. Today's Washington Post travel section has a nifty item on the town of Apalachicola that makes us want to zip on over for an extended weekend of oysters and air conditioning.

The story's author, an Apalachicola resident herself, introduces us to John Gorrie, the city's most famous resident who invented air conditioning and refrigeration in the 1840's. While Gorrie died before his scientific breakthrough was fully appreciated, today the town - heck, the entire state of Florida - remains deeply indebted to him. Can you imagine Florida without air conditioning?

With a population of fewer than 3,000 people, you'd be surprised at the number of entertainment options in Apalachicola. Hepcats probably won't find the martini bar of their dreams, but the walkable city has 100 buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Places, 85 miles of designated hiking trails through the sprawling Apalachicola National Forest (do not feed the alligators, they will bite you), and more sublime seafood restaurants than you can shake a stick at.

It's all about the oysters in Apalachicola, which are some of the world's best, and the Owl Cafe is called out as the place to go for everybody's favorite bivalve, both raw and cooked. Try them both ways, sip the wine or beer of your choice, and savor the climate-controlled beauty of the "Redneck Riviera."

[Photo: Washington Post]

Related Stories:
· Old Florida on the Half Shell [Washington Post]
· Oyster Coverage [Jaunted]

Florida

Fark vs. Florida: Round 2

January 4, 2008 at 1:19 PM | 2 Comments

Visit Florida has unleashed a revamped website, gunning for the same kind of smashing success Philadelphia has racked up with its Web 2.0 initiative, uwishunu. After asking for a bigger budget last year, tourism officials are actually spending the loot on tourism initiatives that should boost visitor arrivals. Go figure!

The new Florida site offers all the usual suspects, including a trip planner tool that lets you save useful tidbits to your online profile, videos and an extensive events calendar. The site also offers blogs on 10 different subjects; arts and culture, shopping, golf, fishing and beaches are just some of the choices. On the beach and surf blog, for example, you'll find up-to-date beach reviews, a Google map mashup and a video about snorkeling.

Of course, this shouldn't be the only place you look for Florida info. Why's that? Because it's produced by the tourism board, who's editorial judgement we have to question:

Businesses listed on VISITFLORIDA.com are participants in the VISIT FLORIDA Partners program or are members of the Florida Restaurant & Lodging Association, the Florida Attractions Association or the Florida Association of RV Parks & Campgrounds. Partners must be at a Silver level or above to be listed on the site.

That gripe aside, it looks like Fark will finally have some good news to publish about Florida: The state has finally embraced the Internet!

Related Stories:
· Visit Florida [Official Site]
· Fark vs. Florida [Jaunted]
· Florida Travel coverage [Jaunted]

Car Rentals

For Just $24.75, You, Too, Can Get Carjacked

January 16, 2007 at 11:35 AM | 0 Comments

Payless Car Rental really knows how to run those jalopy promotions right. The "discount" car rental company (is that not an oxymoron?) has pulled out all the stops to produce this double whammy.

First, they've done Florida a huge favor with the minivan tie-in. Très sexy. Rent twice, get a free soccer lesson and coupon for a mom coif at participating Supercuts.

Then there's the Newark special, in which they clearly are suggesting that your vehicle take you not to the surrounding area, but straight into Newark proper. You'd think they'd lower the price if they really wanted to get rid of those cars and get you to explore the city. Remember: red for Bloods, blue for Crips!

Tourism Boards

Fark vs. Florida II: FLA Fights Back With Fake Beaches

January 16, 2007 at 10:33 AM | 0 Comments

Last month we told you how Florida earned its own category on news commentary site Fark.com. Furthermore, we told you that Florida Tourism was going to spend more money in 2007, to try and reverse the 2.4% tourism slip that occurred in late 2006.

How? Well for starters, The Greater Ft. Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau took over a building in New York City's Union Square for a week (Jan 10 - 16) and turned it into coast(954), a pop-up tourism store selling trips, offering free massages, virtual fishing, a sand box and a volleyball net. The Bureau also hired some ambassadors to welcome visitors and bring to life what Florida is really about: beach bodies, from what we saw.

We noticed bikini clad Lauren sitting on her "virtual beach," a fenced-in installation of sand where a heat lamp played the role of the sun, and decided to liberate her from the monotony of oglers with a quick interview, letting her tell you directly why you should visit FLA, and more specifically Ft. Laud. Why should one visit Ft. Lauderdale and not arch-rival Miami? Because, as she points out, Miami has gangs while Ft. Lauderdale keeps it classy.

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Florida Tourism

Fark vs. Florida

December 19, 2006 at 9:34 AM | 4 Comments

Update: Damn. Those Farkers can bring a server to its knees. Think we got it licked now. Sorry for the down time Enjoy.

According to the Sun-Sentinel, Florida tourism officials want to more than double the amount they get from the state for marketing Florida tourism. Their claim: $24.6 million ain't gonna cut it--it is time to take it up a notch over at Visit Florida.

Florida currently earmarks 15.75% of the $2 a day surcharge on rental cars to funding Visit Florida, which mainly runs the website (and other marketing efforts) of Visit Florida. Only Hawaii, Illinois, Texas and Pennsylvania spend more on tourism than Florida, according to a Travel Industry Association 2004-05 comparison.

Apparently, FLA tourism slipped 2.4% in the third quarter of this year. Why? Who knows, but maybe the folks at Fark.com, a popular website where users categorize and comment on wacky news, have something to do with this.

Because the site has turned making fun of the state into a sport, "Florida" has become its own category on Fark, next to tags such as "asinine," "ironic," and "stupid." Farkers currently tag approximately two out of the fifty stories they post daily as "Florida," and the stories themselves don't exactly scream "Visit Us."

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