We live in a large North American city where dealing with traffic, stress and frustration is a part of daily life. Boca Grande is at the opposite end of the stress spectrum....the antidote to big city living. The ocean, the beaches, the people and even the vegetation promote relaxation and a refreshingly slow pace. Prior to buying on Boca we'd looked and stayed at a number of Florida locations. We concluded that the east coast of Florida was much busier than we wanted, that Naples and Sarasota, despite their beauty, were too much like the city, and that Longboat Key, Sanibel and Captiva Islands, while closer to what we were looking for, just seemed that much bigger and busier than what Boca Grande had to offer. Boca is a very 'upscale' island, and while we really like it's 'Old Florida' feel we really appreciate that the island has all of the conveniences of modern living including some great restaurants. We're pretty active people and while Boca and the Club give us the opportunity to run, go to the gym, play tennis, golf, fish or go boating, it also gives us the opportunity to spend hours on the beach walking, reading or simply lying in the sun.....all pretty nice alternatives.