Fort Myers, Sanibel and Fort Myers Beach: the back story

About Fort Myers, Sanibel and Fort Myers Beach: the back story

By the ULTIMATE Naples Editorial Team

North of Naples, Lee County offers a day of history and beaches: Edison and Ford’s winter homes in Fort Myers, the shell-strewn beaches and lighthouse of Sanibel, and Fort Myers Beach, rebuilding after Hurricane Ian.

Edison and Ford

Thomas Edison built his winter home, Seminole Lodge, on the Caloosahatchee River in Fort Myers in the 1880s, and his friend Henry Ford bought the house next door. Today the Edison and Ford Winter Estates include the homes, gardens and Edison’s botanic research laboratory.

Sanibel

Sanibel Island, reached by a toll causeway, is famous for shelling, wildlife refuges and its 19th-century lighthouse. Parts of the island were badly damaged by Hurricane Ian in 2022 and have been rebuilding since.

Sanibel’s beaches are so rich in shells that collectors have a name for the posture: the Sanibel stoop.

Fort Myers Beach

Fort Myers Beach on Estero Island took the worst of Ian’s storm surge and is still rebuilding; it is also where the Key West Express ferry sails from.

Our advice: combine the Edison and Ford Winter Estates with an afternoon on Sanibel, and check what has reopened before you go.

Opening hours, prices and seasonal openings change, so please check with Fort Myers, Sanibel and Fort Myers Beach: the back story before you go.