PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — Businesses along Pinellas County beaches were certainly bouncing back to normal after Hurricane Idalia and going into the long Labor Day weekend.
With the storm last week, Bob Conley was concerned they wouldn’t be able to visit.
"We’ve had this booked for about a month and were looking forward to it. It's our first family vacation in quite a few years,” said Conley.
He’s on vacation with his family from Ohio. In the end, they decided to make the best of it.
"It's just beautiful, love it down here,” said Conley. “It’s been actually what I thought would be very busy (but) it has not been. It’s been very open, very easy to get to and through, and not be elbow to elbow with people.”
Portions of Pier 60 had some damage, particularly affecting the fishing area at the end of the pier, so a section will still be closed to the public for now.
In Pinellas County, the Florida Department of Health lifted the public health advisory for Clearwater Beach Mandalay Park and Sand Key on Saturday. While down in Manatee County, the DOH lifted the countywide precautionary swim advisory for public beaches that it issued on Friday, though a no-swim advisory has been issued for Palma Sola South.
From the beaches to the businesses, Hurricane Idalia hit just before what you might expect to be a busy weekend.
"It was pretty thin on Thursday,” said Chris Tiemeier, the general manager at Frenchy’s Rockaway Grill in Clearwater. “We opened back up right around the normal time, and it was a pretty low business day, especially for all our beach locations."
Tiemeier said Friday was average in what can already be a slow month, but the weekend was back where it needed to be.
"Looking good so far. We got the parking lots full. We got a pretty good crowd to start off the day, so definitely better than a normal Monday,” said Tiemeier.
The unofficial end of summer can also mean a quick and cozy getaway for many families.
Barry Bartley, the general manager for Barefoot Beach Vacation Rentals in Indian Shores, said worried phone calls came in before the storm. But overall, he said the weekend ended up being very good.
"We probably had a few vacancies, but nothing. It wasn't horrible,” said Bartley.
