Last year took the family (4 year old twins and a 5 year old) to Gulf Shores and LOVED it. Flights were expensive from our home in KC and looking for something more convenient.

Any suggestions? I see Tampa is a much cheaper flight and Clearwater seems nice. We stayed in a condo that was very nice with several amenities in Gulf Shore.

Never been but have heard great things about Marco Island.

Clearwater is nice - they have a nice big beach and the nightly Sunsets at Pier 60 celebration are a good experience, but nearby Siesta Key Beach is the best beach I've been to domestically. Siesta Key is just down the coast (a little over an hour from TPA) and features white baby powder sand. It's a clean beach and is less crowded than Clearwater, but doesn't have quite the same amenities, though Sarasota and St. Armands Circle are nearby. St Armands is perfect for an shopping excursion or a night out.

Gulf Shores is hard to beat though.

Anna Maria Island, FL

(As mentioned above, Siesta Key is great as well).

Clearwater isn't bad, lots of amenities around the beaches, but pretty congested and water isn't as pristine as beaches a little bit south (Anna Maria, Coronado, Siesta Key, Holmes Beach).

If you do decide to stay closer to Tampa, I'd recommend St. Pete Beach and the Tierra Verde / Fort DeSoto Area over Clearwater.

The beaches above Naples remind me of the ones in Destin, but flying to Fort Myers probably isn't any cheaper than the airports in and around Pensacola or Mobile. For cheap flights you will probably have to stick with Tampa, FL or Miami.

Marco Island beaches were great when I was there, but that was pre-hurricane. No clue how they are now.

Out of curiosity, I did some Kayak searches from MCI to TPA/MCO/PNS around this upcoming Spring Break, and the lowest fares were all within $30 of each other. That's only $150 for your family of 5, so I'd just fly to PNS and head east to 30A for the best beaches in the US. I'll add another vote for Siesta Key, though, if you decide to fly into Tampa.

That's awesome that you looked into it! Aren't Aggies great!

We are looking to go in June after school is out.

There's also a direct to Tampa...much easier with 3 kiddos.

Took the family to St. George Island, Florida a few years back & rented a house. Super low-key, no high rise hotels or fast food joints & bars. Not the place to go if you want to be spoiled.
However, if you are into amazingly pristine white sand beaches & a completely chilled out family friendly place.... it's hard to beat.

Also, drove into Apalachicola & did some bay fishing one morning which was a blast. Let me know if you need a recommendation.

Oh yeah, if you want to do "Old Florida" and have a laid back time without all the touristy junk, that whole area from like Mexico Beach all the way to Cedar Key is super cool. In addition to the bay fishing, if you go from July-Sept. scalloping in Apalachicola/Port St. Joe is an absolute blast. We would usually just go over for a weekend and primitive camp at the State Park, but one of my golf/fishing buddies used to take his family every year and rent a multi-room townhouse on the water with a slip for really reasonable rates.

Siesta Key

I would avoid the beaches south of the Caloosahatchee in June. The water quality around Sanibel, Fort Myers, Bonita, Naples, etc fluctuates based on rainy season drainage from Lake Okeechobee.

Wilmington, NC has really pretty beaches, but the water is colder than you would expect.

I strongly agree with TampaBayAg....

Anna Maria Island is our annual destination every May. Our preference is the town of Anna Maria along the Gulf side of the Island (rather than in Holmes Beach or Bradenton Beach, which are communities on Anna Maria Island).

My only 'heads up'....we went one year in June...and didn't know the rainy season begins at that time. It rained all but one day that week. It still was nice...but we missed all but one sunset.