Been to Treasure Island which is pretty cool. Quintana is cool for a getaway as well. A bunch of us want to rent a villa by the beach. Where should we be looking at? Is Surfside good?
Last time I went to Surfside it was horrible. I was shocked by how bad is was. It might not be bad this time if year and a lot of the trash might have been due to Hurricane Katrina. I would look for beach houses down the west end of Galveston around Pirate's Beach, the closer to San Luis the better.
West end pwns East end. The further West you go, the nicer (and less crowded) the beaches become. My sister owns a place on Pirates Beach. Very nice and peaceful.
Surfside is kind of ghetto as far as beach houses go. West end of Galveston is the nicest, but figure another 30-45 minute drive to get there. The beach on East end of galveston is free and there aren't any beach houses on the beach...but then again, there's a night life on the Strand. Keep in mind that Mardi Gras is the next two weekends, so rentals will be pricey and hard to come by. Bolivar is kind of rural and quiet, as MM said, except on holiday weekends when it goes crazy- it's the only beach I know of that's close where you can drink legally and drive on the beach.
I have to echo ima's sentimants about the West end...close to the Pass and on the beach is where you want to be...say Bay Harbor or Terramar....innerpeace deluxe. You can lease through Sand N Sea Walk the beach,swim off the second sandbar,wadefish,peace with nature,,etc. Rent a place for an extended period and get on Island time. The places are fully furnished so you can just chill at the casa too...even work from your computer while watching the waves lap in or taking in all the movie/sports stations. In particular they have a place called Sandcastle.I've used it many times for up to 6 months before.It has two decks the lower of them is expansive and the top is off the master.It sits up to where you can see both the beach and bay side so you can catch rays or beautiful sunsets.
While it's not that close to Galveston, it's about 2.5 hours away from Houston. It's called Magnolia Beach in Port Lavaca, TX. One of the few beaches you can drive on, and it's very clean, and best of all, not very known. http://www.magnoliavacation.com/
Pops has a beach house in Isla Del Sol that has an unobstructed view of the bay. We like to fish, so there is really no reason to stay on the beach side, although we go over there with the kids and family sometimes. Its a nice
yup west beach. just keep driving till the water is a better shade of brown. Past SLP, Past Christmas Bay. If you hold off till spring the 4 a day tides will bring in cleaner water.
Most of the places recommended here I can't find on VRBO. Any other websites where you can rent villas from? How is Crystal Beach?
