Editor Pick
Shell Factory
Southwest, Florida is synonymous with shells. If you don't want to spend the $6 it costs to cross the bridge on to Sanibel to find shells, you can go to the Shell Factory instead. The shell factory is not a factory, they get someone to go out to the ocean and pick up shells and bring them back. As much as many people LOVE shells, they realize that it will take more than the promise of "large shell variety" to get people to stay. Thus, they built this land of, well, everything.
The actual store, the factory, is filled with plain shells, decorated shells, and shells made into lamps, jewelry, or pen holders. You can find shells with your sign on it, and shells who have undergone a color bath. There are shell cleaning kits so that you can beautify shells picked up at the beach. Aside from the shells, there's areas for stationery, pirate paraphernalia, stuff a teddy bear, jewelry, beach-themed non-shell items, and keychains and magnets with your name on it.
When you are tired of shopping for your friends up north, walk outside and enjoy the other options Shell Factory has made available. There's a seafood restaurant, Capt'n Fishbones, and a coffee shop, Starfish Coffee, as well as a place to look at local real estate.
For the kids you can enjoy feeding the fish, playing miniature golf, or bumper boats. The Florida sun has faded these places, so they didn't look as vibrant or new as I would have preferred. There's also a nature park, but I'm not sure of the hours. We felt feeding the fish would be the most fun. We took a quarter, bought food and started throwing food in. It's entertaining to some extent to watch the fish and ducks fight for the food. I guarantee the excitement will run out before the food you throw in does, so don't be stingy.
The bumper boats looked quite boring. It was Christmas Eve (12/23), so I'm not too shocked that there weren't more people there. But, it didn't look like it would have been much fun with a lot of people.
I've lived in Florida longer than anywhere else. I knew going to the Shell Factory that it wasn't going to be my thing, but that doesn't mean it can't be your thing. It's free to go to the store, park, and walk around. If you like shells, you will not find a better selection anywhere. The shells weren't expensive, so if you don't want to get your feet dirty searching for your own on the beach, get them here.
From journal Ft. Myers, Florida: A Holiday in the Sun