Each year, UAHS students travel south by the dozens to a small island off the Gulf coast of Florida, called Anna Maria Island, for spring break. Anna Maria Island is a two-hour plane ride or 15-hour drive from Upper Arlington, yet, in the weeks after spring break, the school is flooded with stories of students who spent their week off at this island. Anna Maria Island is known for its beaches, yet so are many other places in the state of Florida. So why are so many students and families choosing to spend their spring break there?
This year the popularity of the island is as high as ever, with many students planning to head south this spring vacation for the island.
“It was mostly because so many people from UA go there, and we wanted to see other people—I know of like six other groups who are going there this spring,” senior Kate Lehman, who will be going to Anna Maria Island this spring break with her friends, said.
The idea of going on spring break with friends senior year is a popular one.
“A lot of past graduates I know have gone there for their senior spring break as well,” Lehman said.
This is one of the primary reasons students from UA go to Anna Maria Island.
“My mom was looking for great places for spring break, and we all liked the vibe of the island,” junior Maddy McGeorge said. McGeorge went to Anna Maria Island over break a couple years ago and recounted seeing a lot of people from UA.
“I knew a lot of UA people go there. So, I told myself that I expected to see people I knew, but, like, I mean, everyone was there,” McGeorge said.
Many people from UA go to AMI with friends over spring break.
“My friends had been there, so we decided to go,” sophomore JoBeth Low, a returning vacationer at Anna Maria Island, said.
While she was on the island, Low noticed a lot of people from UA over spring break.
“There’s anywhere from 20 to like 150 UA residents,” she said.
As for what the island offers for travelers, answers vary from the beaches to the town and restaurants on the island.
“There’s a lot of good restaurants there, and there’s shopping and a whole main street,” McGeorge said.
Along with the restaurants and town, McGeorge talked about the natural beauty of the island.
“I liked the vibe of the island, and it was pretty—the sunsets were nice,” she said.
McGeorge also mentioned several other options the island offers for tourists.
“You can rent paddle boards, and my family rented a golf cart,” she said.
That being said, the beaches remain a primary attraction at Anna Maria Island. Low mentioned the community of the beaches on the island.
“We went down to the beach and would play games, and there’s people there from all over. So you meet new people, and it’s small too. So there’s a lot to do,” she said. “The water is really pretty, and there aren’t really big waves. So that’s nice.”
Another highlight she discussed was the restaurants and the town on the island.
“I spent a lot of the time eating at restaurants and staying at the house. There’s also a couple of boutiques and stuff,” she said.
She said the area surrounding the island was a plus.
“Right out of the island is Tampa—it’s only like 30 minutes away,so we went there for a day,” she said.
Lehman hasn’t been to the island yet, but has predictions for what the best parts of the trip might be.
“It’ll be warm and sunny [and] that’s something we haven’t had here in weeks, and I have never gone on a spring break with my whole friend group. So I’m really excited for that,” she said.
The island itself is fairly easy to get to from Upper Arlington.
“It’s not super difficult—you don’t have to take a ferry over. It’s still kind of a hike though,” Low said.“My family drove the whole way, there’s definitely a lot of traffic getting onto the island because there’s only one road but it was fine.”.
As Low said earlier, Tampa and Orlando are both close to the island. Anna Maria Island seems to be a huge meeting place for UA students and families every spring break, due to the warm weather that contrasts UA’s dreary March weather, the beaches, the community, and the geography of the island.
UA students keep traveling to Anna Maria Island because they hear from others who have gone or are going, hoping to see people from home far away in Florida. The island has solidified itself as a classic for Upper Arlington students over the past decade and doesn’t appear to be fading for the quickly arriving 2024 spring break.
