DETAILS: Apalachicola, Fla.

GETTING THERE: Flights from Reagan National to Tallahassee (the nearest airport) start at about $350. Tallahassee Regional Airport is served by most major car rental companies. Apalachicola is about 80 miles southwest.

WHERE TO STAY: The Gibson Inn (51 Ave. C, 850-653-2191, http://www.gibsoninn.com) is a lushly restored century-old hotel with 30 charming rooms in the middle of the historic downtown. Some rooms have baths with claw-foot tubs, canopy beds and sitting rooms. All are furnished with English and Irish antiques. Rooms from $105; suites from $215.

The Coombs Inn (80 Sixth St., 888-244-8320 or 850-653-9199, http://www.coombshouseinn.com) has three grand buildings. Many rooms have refrigerators, whirlpool tubs and lovely old furniture. Bed and gourmet breakfast from $99 per person.

The Best Western Apalach Inn (249 U.S. Route 98 W., 850-653-9131, http://www.bestwesternflorida.com) is in easy reach of the beaches, St. George Island and downtown Apalachicola. Per night from $85.50.

WHERE TO EAT: The Owl Cafe and Wine Room (13 Ave. D, 850-653-9888) is elegant but not stuffy, with lovely seafood, innovative salads and a jaw-droppingly long wine list. Dinner for two not including wine (but for goodness' sake, have wine!) runs about $50. The Night Owl Bar upstairs has a selection of fancy tequilas, fruity rums and interesting single-malt scotches.

Avenue Sea (51 Ave. C, 850-653-2193) was recognized in 2007 as one of Gourmet magazine's top 36 food destinations in the world. If you're tired of oysters, there's Anson Mills Carolina Gold risotto with peas, morels and Parmesan. Dinner for two without wine, $60. Closed on Tuesday and Wednesday evenings.

That Place on 98 (500 U.S. Route 98, Eastpoint, 850-670-9898) has a kind of roadhouse groove to it but throws down fine oysters Rockefeller and gulf fish. The view of Apalachicola Bay is spectacular. Dinner is about $40 for two without wine or beer.

Boss Oyster (123 Water St., 850-653-9364) features oysters every which way and lots you haven't thought of (with asparagus, with feta cheese, etc.). Excellent value. A dozen of the bay's finest runs about $8.95.

WHAT TO SEE: The John Gorrie State Museum (Sixth Street and Avenue D, 850-653-9347, http://www.floridastateparks.org/johngorriemuseum). The doctor is buried under an impressively curlicued monument across the street in Gorrie Square; $1. The Raney House Museum (128 Market St., 850-653-1700, http://www.apalachicolahistory.org), built in 1838 by a local cotton magnate, is furnished in period pieces, as is the Orman House Museum (177 Fifth St., 850-653-1209, http://www.floridastateparks.org/ormanhouse), a grand Greek Revival house on a bluff overlooking the Apalachicola River. Admission to the Raney House is free; the Orman House is $2. The Apalachicola Maritime Museum (103 Water St., 850-653-2500, http://www.ammfl.org) celebrates the shipping, fishing and seagoing history of the region. A 58-foot wooden ketch, the Heritage of Apalachicola, offers sailing trips. Call for rates.

WHAT TO DO: Apalachicola is the gulf's nature capital. Riverkeeper (23 Ave. D, 850-653-8936, http://www.apalachicolariverkeeper.org) should be your first stop for area information. Boat tours can be arranged to the St. Vincent National Wildlife Refuge on a barrier island in the western bay (Visitor Center, 479 Market St., 850-653-8808) as well as the St. Joseph Bay State Buffer Preserve. Wheelhouse Tours (313 Water St., 850-653-2177) can take you a couple of dozen miles into the marshy backwaters of the great river to see the flora and fauna.

SHOPPING: Downtown Books (67 Commerce St., 850-653-1290) is a friendly shop with a great Florida section. The Apalachicola Chocolate Co. (61 Market St., 850-370-6937) is home of the chocolate-dipped oyster.

INFORMATION: Apalachicola Bay Chamber of Commerce, 122 Commerce St., 850-653-9419, or http://www.apalachicolabay.org.

-- D.R.