‘Your next bucket list stop.’ Anna Maria Island beach named one of the best in Florida

Is there a destination you hope to get to as part of your bucket list?

For some, it may be Paris, Rome or London, but for others across America and beyond, it’s the sandy shores of Coquina Beach in Bradenton Beach.

Holidu.com, search and booking website for vacation rentals, listed the top Florida beaches for 2021 considered to be bucket list destinations and listed them according to Google ratings.

Coquina Beach ranked No. 4.

“Located in Bradenton Beach, at the end of Anna Maria Island, Coquina Beach is surrounded by the Gulf’s aqua blue waters,” the website states.

The website compliments the beach’s picnic areas and the ability to grab food or a cold drink at the nearby concession stand.

“Look no further than Coquina Beach when planning your next bucket list stop,” the website states.

However, there was no mention of long lines of traffic or that you might want to think about getting to the Coquina Beach picnic areas around 4 a.m. if you want any hope of getting one of the grills on a busy weekend.

There’s knowledge in being a local in paradise.

According to Holidu.com, Coquina Beach received an average rating of 4.8 out of five stars in Google reviews.

Topping the rankings was nearby Siesta Key in Sarasota, which frequently tops such lists. It also received a 4.8 rating, but had about three times as many reviews as Coquina Beach, with 16,755 Google reviews.

All of the Top 10 beaches are on the Gulf of Mexico.

Coming in second was St. Andrews State Park in the Florida Panhandle, and Destin’s Henderson Beach State Park finished in third.

Clearwater Beach came in at No. 5 and Pensocola Beach, No. 6.

Grayton Beach State Park in Panama City took No. 7 and Santa Rosa Island’s Navarre Beach Marine Park comes in at No. 8.

Rounding out the top 10 were Caladesi Island State Park and St. George Island State Park.

Also making the list from Anna Maria Island were Manatee Public Beach at No. 17 and Cortez Beach at No. 25.

This story was originally published June 23, 2021 at 1:52 PM.