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Boca Grande is located on the Gulf of Mexico at the entrance
to Charlotte Harbor. As you cross the Gasparilla
Island toll bridge driving to Boca Grande, the quiet beauty
of this island community is immediately apparent.
Residents carefully protect the "old Florida" feel of their
community. Development has been restricted to low-rise
condominiums and single-family homes. The small
downtown district, anchored around the old train station,
has no fast food restaurants or major chain stores. Boca
Grande became a northern tourist destination when the
railroad (no longer in use) was built to access Boca
Grande's deep water port on Charlotte Harbor. Famous
families, such as the DuPonts, built winter homes on the
island. From January through April, "social season"
part-time residents and visitors more than double Boca
Grande's summertime population.
The island is also famous as a fishing destination,
especially during the May-July "tarpon season" when tarpon
gather in Boca Grande Pass. Throughout the year,
guides and locals fish the nearby Gulf and the backwaters of
Charlotte Harbor for redfish, snook, trout, mullet, grouper,
and other game fish.
The quiet, upscale appeal of Boca Grande, combined with
the limited available property on Gasparilla Island, cause
Boca Grande's real estate prices to be higher than those in
surrounding Charlotte County communities and more closely
aligned to island prices in Sarasota or on Sanibel Island.
By car, you reach Boca Grande by crossing the Gasparilla
Island toll bridge from Placida on the north side of
Charlotte Harbor.
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