3 Places to Take Your Belleview Inn Breakfast Picnic
After a restful night’s sleep amid the Victorian-era appointments of your luxurious room at the inn, take your caffeine and croissants to one of our favorite property picnic spots.
When it comes to what guests claim they love most about their stay at Belleview Inn, a 35-room historic boutique hotel in Belleair, Florida, you don’t usually get one unified answer. Some indicate the intricate gingerbread-house architecture and various touches that give a nod to the hotel’s previous Gilded Age glamour, others remark on the oversized windows with expansive views of the Intracoastal Waterway, and golf aficionados will definitely tell you that it’s the two Donald Ross–designed 18-hole golf courses. But when it comes to a particular thoughtful amenity they are most surprised by, everyone seems to agree: the bountiful breakfast baskets that appear outside the guestroom’s doors each morning, as if by magic.
Sure, the flaky, fresh-baked croissants, fresh juice, and locally roasted coffee make for a delightful breakfast in bed, by why not put that picnic basket to good use and enjoy your morning ritual against an equally delicious backdrop? Here, we highlight three picnic-worthy spots just steps away from your room.
1. VICTUALS & VERANDAS
While not original to Belleview Inn’s first hotel iteration built by Henry Plant in 1897, the broad verandas, lined with rocking chairs, are still reminiscent of the same bygone era. Running the length of the inn, the open-air, roofed porches are divided into two sections: The East Veranda, which looks out to the Grand Event Lawn, and the West Veranda, overlooking the Olympic-size pool and tennis courts. Enclosed by carefully milled wood balusters, railings, and moldings, they feature light blue ceilings common to Southern architecture – and the perfect place to sit beneath and rock a morning away.
2. BREAKFAST & BOCCE
The aptly named Grand Event Lawn is a popular location for an exchange of vows, whether it’s by day under the brilliant blue Florida sky or at night beneath the stars. Spread a blanket on the expansive manicured lawn for an awe-inspiring view of the Queen Anne–style Victorian inn, or challenge your partner to a few frames of bocce on the artificial turf. Winner decides what to do next!
3. PEDALS & PASTRIES
Put a new spin on breakfast when you take advantage of Belleview Inn’s complimentary bicycle rentals, and head out for an exploration of the surrounding area. Pedal north on the 50-mile-long paved Pinellas Trail bike path, considered to be the most scenic section of this unique urban pathway. Plentiful stops along the way range from parks and beaches to Dunedin Stadium, the winter home of the Toronto Blue Jays.
