I love lychees. Longans seem to be available more often, and while I don't like them as much as lychees, they're still pretty good. That said, I bought the best bag of longans I've ever had yesterday. They're soft, sweet, and super juicy. I really didn't know they could get so good. I think they're in season in Florida now. If you see them in the store, I definitely recommend giving them a try.

We went to my wife's friends farm in Brazil and picked lychee off the tree. I think I ate like 5 pounds of them. Sooooo good.

A Chinese restaurant in a nearby town always serves a plate of icy lychee for dessert.  YUM!  If you have never had a Lychee, you must try.  They are the consistency of a peeled grape.  Very sweet and floral in taste.  I wish we could grow them here, and I'll have to see if it's possible.  They might be a bit more tropical than we are here in zone 9b.  We fall into subtropical.  Guava, Mango, but not sure about Lychee..........

Trader Joes has them in August, I'm thinking.

Suzi

Ryan (IamKriya) and I just bought them a couple weeks ago.  I bought two mango and two lychee trees as well as a miracle berry and dragonfruit and Ryan bought Lychee, mango and longan and dragonfruit.  Trees were nice, 4'-5' tall.  I put mine in the ground but will have to build a hoop house over them for our winter.  Ryan left his in the pots because he chickened out:)   

Planted them Dave Wilson style, close together (34") apart but 15' between the lychees and the mangoes.  

There is also a fruit called rambutan that is very similar to lychee/longan.  I was actually able to buy some last summer at a local supermarket.  I recall that when I was looking into them last summer, I read that some species take a long time (e.g. 20-25 years) before they'll bear fruit.  Other species bear fruit much, much earlier.  So, if you're looking into getting some, read up a bit first.  I'm not 100% sure, so don't quote me on it...but it is something to look out for.
Jim
PS the rambutan were every bit as tasty as the lychee I've had, and they have the added benefit of being grotesquely freakish looking on the outside, as well as looking like an eyeball once you peel them.  Great fruit for Halloween!!

Lucky for me I'm in Hong Kong for work and lychees and longan are almost in season! If you have the opportunity, you should come to Asia and try the different varieties. There are so many different varieties here, and each one is so distinct. My favorite type of lychee is one with a tiny seed (about the size of a no.2 pencil's eraser) yet it is almost the size of a golfball and amazingly sweet. Of course, you pay more for the sweeter varieties. Longans are tasty too, but I feel lychees have much more flavor to them. Also, if you can, try Mangosteen (the "queen of fruits" as locals call it in Hong Kong, durian being the king).

Good luck with your new trees @WillisC

I recently got a Sweetheart Lychee and it's got about 22 bloom spikes on it right now. I've been doing some research on them and I will have to either leave them in a big pot or do like Wills and build a hoop house over mine. I do know they need to be protected from high winds in growth flush periods so some kind of permanent structure around them would be to the benefit of the tree for wind and cold protection at the drop of a hat. I've not eaten one yet but hope to this year!