Suggestions for a vacation area with beach and bass fishing

[21TritonX]

At the end of this next week, I will have sold my business and I am retiring. My wife and I are going to vacation for a couple of months in Florida. She has no interests in fishing and I love to bass fish. She does like the beach and swimming so I want to find somewhere in the Sarasota, Ft Myers, Tampa area that she can enjoy the beach and I can drive a ways to find some good bass fishing. So I hope someone can give me some suggestions of where I might look.
Thanks

[SwampNinja]

That's pretty much the whole state Ft Myers and Okeechobee

[bassman271]

fort myers has nice clean beaches (we are having small bouts of red tide in the gulf) cape coral has several small lakes then there is Okeechobee and alligator alley and a 3 hour trip for pecocks in miami. lake placis is a hour away and has several deeper clear lakes and also istokpoga. I travel most of the state for work if I can help drop me a email or IM!! good luck and welcome to florida..

[jnaumuk]

Non-FL guy here, maybe try Palm Beach or Melbourne. Then you would be close to Stick Marsh, Garcia, Blue Cypress, Kissimmee, & Toho. Still within driving distance of Big O. Maybe somebody here can say how the beaches are over there, the fishing is amazing. I'm jealous of you, I love FL.

[1outlaw]

NAPLES but im a bit biased!!!....Most beautiful beaches and a beautiful city....Within a hour and a half of the Big O, less then a hour for the everglades and within 2 hours of all highland county lakes!!!

[perfect-storm]

On the east coast, which is better anyway, St.Augustine area gets her awesome beaches and gets you near the St. johns River. Down south if she likes quiet beaches, Hutchinson island, mcarthur beach state park (a personal favorite), Jupiter area, Sebastian, etc. That's within a reasonable drive distance to Okeechobee, stick marsh/farm13, blue cypress lake and even parts of the everglades.

[21TritonX]

Great stuff from all you guys, I really appreciate it. I can't wait to get to the warmer weather!!

[LexIS307]

like swampninja said the whole state, but if u live in south fl u can do miami, ft laud, wpb, and still fish the evrglades and the big 0 and have acess to the beaches