By Caroline Cope

As spring break approaches, Bellbrook students and their families are preparing and finalizing their spring break vacation plans. The most popular destination for Bellbrook students — especially upperclassmen — is Siesta Key in Florida, which is located just south of Tampa.

Siesta Key is a gorgeous white-sand beach, and the average March and April temperatures range from the mid 70s to the mid 80s. The Dayton International Airport currently offers a nonstop flight to and from St. Petersburg, which is only an hour away from Siesta Key, making travel more accessible to students and their families. 

Siesta Key has been the destination spot for years, with different upperclassman friend groups meeting up for a week and spending time together in a warm, beachy setting before the school year comes to a close.

Senior Aly West is flying down to Siesta Key with her twin brother Andrew, step-brother senior Gabe Woods, and friend senior Cate Eberly. They plan on staying in an AirBnB near other Bellbrook friend groups.

“We’re really fortunate because we have one house in front of us, and then the beach,” West said about the accommodations. “We will have our own pool. It’s so nice.”

“It’ll be nice to have a group during the day at the beach, and then meet up with others, because there’s multiple friend groups going,” West said.

Bellbrook High School librarian Amanda Brenner went to Siesta Key last year with her son, Bryden, who was then a senior at Bellbrook. It was not Brenner’s first trip to the Key. She visited her brother-in-law in Sarasota previously. The two destinations are about 20 minutes apart.

“It’s a gorgeous area and a gorgeous beach,” Brenner said. “I could see why people enjoy going there for spring break.”

Brenner and her family shared a condo with other people from Bellbrook on vacation, and were in the same complex as other area families that were also visiting. 

Siesta Key was not Brenner’s first choice due to cost around March and April, but she let Bryden pick where to spend his last spring break with his friends.

As the BHS school librarian, Brenner had a few awkward moments when running into Bellbrook groups other than her own.

“It wasn’t awkward [to see all] of my son’s friends’ families because I know them all, but we ran into a lot of other Bellbrook families while we were there, so that was awkward,” Brenner said. “We all pretended we didn’t know each other. I was there off-duty as a mom, not a Bellbrook High School employee,” Brenner said. “I didn’t love seeing a lot of my other students while I was on vacation because the whole point is being away. Since I work in a school, I always feel that pressure of being a professional faculty member when I am around students. But I felt the most comfortable when we were in our group with my son’s friends and families.”

Bellbrook upperclassmen who go to the Key for spring break often travel together, stay together, adventure on the beaches together, and soak up the last moments of high school with their friends and family.

“I can understand why people choose the Florida destination, because [people] want to get the most people together in the most affordable way,” Brenner said. “Not everyone can afford getting on a flight to Mexico and not everyone can afford a cruise. The seniors’ days together are numbered, so I can see why they want to spend their last spring break together.”