The city's beaches, famous for sugarlike sand and proximity to mangroves and estuaries still teeming with wildlife, are among the more beautiful in a state with 1,000 miles of beaches. For the tourist who loves to go to the beach, to art galleries or the opera, to fine shopping areas, restaurants and hotels, Naples is ideal. But, for golfers, it is pure heaven. That claim is made obvious by the astonishing number of banks and investment firms in Naples. They may even outnumber golf courses.
Fine restaurants are other clues.
The number of fine shopping areas is another strong indication of the wealth of both visitors and residents. Old Naples' Third Street and the Avenues shopping area, featuring everything from antique desks to champagne and crepes, is a lot like Sarasota's St. Armands Circle but covers a much larger area with more shops and restaurants. The Waterside Shops at Pelican Bay, anchored by Saks Fifth Avenue and Jacobson's, rival the finer upscale malls in Boca Raton. The Village on Venetian Bay, featuring shops, galleries and restaurants in long waterfront rows, would fit nicely in Italy. ON THE WILD SIDE Naples offers other things to do and see besides shopping, golf, beachcombing and dining.