If you just need some rest and relaxation, then Coastal Florida is the place for you. Simply being there and adjusting to the slower pace of life may be enough to calm your frazzled nerves. But if you want to really relax, you'll need to spend some time lying under a palm tree on a quiet beach or letting all your muscles relax in one of South Florida's new spas.

Beaches

If you're a beach lover, you'll love Coastal Florida, especially the beaches around Saint Petersburg on the west coast and Fort Walton Beach in the Panhandle. The state abounds with fine beaches spread out along its miles of Atlantic and Gulf coastlines.

The white powder beaches of the Gulf attract thousands of people each year. Though resorts line many of them, there are some like Captiva Island that offer not only quiet seclusion but also spectacular shell collecting. Unexplored coves and quiet lagoons dot the shoreline, but you may have to search for them as development is growing at a frenetic pace.

Rainy season begins in late May and lasts until October, and between June and October, tropical storms and hurricanes occasionally hit Florida's beaches. Though you can enjoy Florida's beaches along the Gulf all year, except in the Panhandle where the temperature gets too cool to swim, the temperature of the Atlantic Ocean drops the farther north you are, and it can get quite choppy and dangerous at times.

Though all Florida beaches are public, getting to them may be another matter. Beach access is often limited by luxury hotels that make it seem as if the beach is all theirs. If you can get to the waterline on the beach, you can swim there. If you want privacy, there are plenty of secluded beaches on barrier islands up and down Florida's coasts.

But all of Coastal Florida's beaches offer something different. The following list will help you find the best for your interests:

Bird watching: Shell Key off Saint Petersburg Beach

Horseback riding: Amelia Island, north of Jacksonville

Kids: Siesta Public Beach in Sarasota

Sharks Teeth: Venice Beach, below Sarasota

Shelling: Sanibel Island, off the coast of Fort Myers

Snorkeling: Dry Tortugas, off Key West

Surfing: Sebastian Inlet State Park, south of Melbourne Beach

Tropical sands: Bahia Honda State Park in the Lower Florida Keys

Spas

Interest in fitness is on the rise around the world, and Coastal Florida is no exception. Ever since the 1880s when the rich discovered Florida's mineral springs, visitors have been flocking to them. Most are inland, but newer European spas operate at resorts closer to shore. Some of the top spas in Coastal Florida include:

• Avanyu Spa at Cheeca Lodge & Spa: Islamorada, Florida Keys. If you spend too much time in the sun, try the Soothing Sunburn Facial or Body Treatment, designed to cool your skin and replace needed moisture. (www.cheeca.com)

• Eden Roc Renaissance Resort and Spa: Miami Beach. This legendary spa offers chakra-clearing Reiki treatment and a Lavender Waves Aromatherapy Massage. (www.edenrocresort.com)

• PGA National Resort & Spa: Palm Beach Gardens. A spa famous for its Waters of the World mineral pools. (www.pgaresort.com)

• Stillwater Spa, Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Resort: Bonita Springs. Experience Watsu Freedom, a transcendent eighty-minute Japanese stretching massage given in a pool of warm water. (www.spahyatt.com)

• Sanibel Harbour Resort & Spa: Fort Myers. Receive a holistic, total-body experience with the Betar (Bio Energetic Transduction Aided Resonance) Sound Bed, a geodesic-domed platform that surrounds you with soothing music and aromas. (www.sanibel-resort.com)

• The Doral Golf Resort and Spa: Miami. A “your-wish-is-our-command” spa to lose yourself in for a day or more. (www.doralresort.com)

• The Pier House Resort and Caribbean Spa: Key West. This spa offers the Caribbean Coma, a soothing treatment to neutralize the effects of all-night partying. (www.pierhouse.com)

• The Ritz-Carlton Spa: Naples. Between a rose garden and the Gulf, this spa specializes in a Meranthus Ocean Synergy Progression, a mineral-rich skin treatment, plus a Spa Concierge. (www.ritzcarlton.com)

• The Don CeSar Beach Resort and Spa: Saint Pete Beach. The spa specializes in thalassotherapy treatments, using products of the sea. (www.doncesar.com)

Today, the word “spa” conjures up a wide range of health and beauty options offered by ultradeluxe resorts, including facials and massages, body wraps with herbs and mineral salts, yoga, tai chi, reflexology sessions, as well as beauty treatments like hair styling, nail care, sauna, and daily personalized exercise sessions.

Unfortunately, spas are becoming almost as prolific as golf courses in southeast Florida, each one boasting that it offers the best in therapies. And while they may soothe Mom and Pop for a few hours, their effects are relatively short-lived — and they do little for kids on a family vacation.