Robert and I had a wonderful time celebrating his birthday in Naples and Marco Island. Great travel experiences must eventually come to an end, but we were so sorry when it was finally time to check out of our beautiful accommodations at the Edgewater Beach Hotel.

Naples Botanical Garden: We decided to make the most of our last few hours in the area by first visiting the Naples Botanical Garden.

This beautiful collection of diverse gardens included a Caribbean garden, an Asian garden, a Brazilian garden, a River of Grass, and a succulent garden. Click HERE to see the overall map.

 

And dotted within them was the exhibit “Origami in the Garden,” an amazing series of origami inspired sculptures made from museum quality materials.

 

During certain times of the month, there are “Dogs in the Garden Walk Days,” and that day we saw quite a few visitors happily walking their pets around the grounds.

 

Other Garden activities include “Yoga in the Garden,” a weekly yoga class.

The Local: Before hitting the road to the airport, we had a delicious early lunch at The Local .

Naples’ first farm-to-table and sea-to-table restaurant, The Local was founded by Owner-Chef Jeff Mitchell, a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America with 20 years of experience in the culinary and hospitality industries.

The menu had so many great options including a choice of Vegan Korean, Korean, Ceviche, and Blackened Fish Tacos.

The salads were gorgeous…

And we loved their pizza.

To end this memorable meal, we left with Chef Mitchell’s delicious hot sauce and special honey.

Wonderful vacation! We hope to come back soon.