Great Getaways Publication, “A Floridian’s Guide to Florida” - May, 2001 edition published by FLAUSA. Steve Winston, writer. Steve Winston is a travel and adventure writer for 20 years whose work has appeared in major newspapers and magazines all over the world. In pursuit of the story, he has dodged bullets in Northern Ireland, climbed in the Alps and the Rockies, jumped into an alligator pit in the Everglades and worked as a cowboy on a cattle drive in Arizona. Winston has written seven books on travel, and is a member of the Society of American Travel Writers. In this issue, he authors Book Lovers and part of our Romantic Getaways story. He lives in Parkland. We arrived at Villa Nina at night, and it was hard to see much. We walked around to the pool and opened the door to the River Room. As Andrea opened the door, I worried out loud, “I hope this place is good enough to write about.” “Don't worry, Stephen,” she said as she stepped inside. In front of us was a stunning swirl of white and soft blues, an eclectic mixture of the elegant and the funky. Our room had a twelve-foot ceiling and a king-sized bed with white-wicker headboard and huge pillows in the shape of brightly-colored fish. There were porthole mirrors and model ships on the walls, along with handcrafted little wooden houses. Recessed lighting, not only from the ceiling, but also from the floor, cast a soft-glow. Oversized white tile floors shone brightly and a Roman tub looked inviting.... One of the best surprises about Villa Nina, however, came the next morning as we walked outside and heard...nothing. It seemed to us the most wonderful sound in the world.

In addition, Villa Nina Island Inn received 4 1/2 stars out of 5 from 'The Unofficial Guide to Bed and Breakfasts of the Southeast' available in most bookstores, including Books A Million. See excerpt below. The Unofficial Guide to Bed & Breakfasts in the Southeast,1st Edition By Hal Gisenking, author of 14 books on business and travel. He is a past president of the Society of Travel Writers. Former posts include serving as consumer editor for Travel Holiday magazine and travel correspondent for CBS Morning News. Villa Nina Island Inn B&B Overall rating: 41/2 * out of a possible 5 “This is truly an outstanding bed and breakfast, a romantic setting for a honeymoon or anniversary. There are many things to do without leaving “home” with a heated swimming pool, a private pond, a path through a tunnel of trees to a beach on the Atlantic, and a short walk to a large state recreation area. Everything in the rooms promotes relaxation from the soft blue and white color schemes to a refrigerator for storing wine and sodas and a sitting area with thick notebooks filled with information about area attractions and restaurant suggestions. Everything seems planned for the guests’ convenience.” By Robert Tolf, Sun-Sentinel, The Inn Way, Travel Section Villa Nina on North Hutchinson Island is a captivating study in contrasts. Hiding behind a modest little white picket fence, it's reached by a crushed shell-gravel-sand drive leading off A1A to a surprise mini-mansion of a thoroughly modern house. Its neighbors on the horizon are high-rise condominiums soaring out of the sand, seemingly ages away in another world from the eight acres of Florida nature embracing the Villa. Behind the house is the Indian River, beyond a rolling meadow marching to Wildcat Cove, a protected manatee refuge, and Jack Island State Preserve laced with watery trails for exploration in the VIlla's canoe. Across A1A, reached by a nature trail flanked by a couple of gopher tortoise nests, is the endless stretch of oceanfront beach, usually deserted except during egg-dropping season for the sea turtles. Next month, Nina and Glenn (innkeeepers) will celebrate their fifth anniversary as innkeepers, but their pride and joy gives every indication of having been open only a few days, so perfect is the condition of the three bright, airy room and 1 suite, each with private bath, private outdoor entrance, TV with HBO and Cinemax, a profusion of pillows, queen or king bed, individual temperature controls. For a complete review, please visit the Sun-Sentinel Newspaper archive.