Need Destin, Fl where to stay, etc..

[bnsilly]

Family of 5..me, husb, ds 17, dd 13, dd 11
Where to stay and what to do for one day in Destin, Fl?

 

[Kies99]

Family of 5..me, husb, ds 17, dd 13, dd 11
Where to stay and what to do for one day in Destin, Fl?

Kind of depends on what you WANT to do.

Shopping:
There is the Silver Sands Outlet Mall (Disney outlet store).
Destin Commons - Upscale, outdoor shopping (Hard Rock, Bass Pro Shop)

Play:
Big Kahuna's Water Park - http://www.bigkahunas.com/
The Track - http://www.destintrack.com/
Multitude of beaches

Sightseeing:
Dolphin cruises
Deep Sea fishing
Boat rentals

Eating:
To many to list

Golf:
Plenty of golfing. I recommend Regatta Bay (cheap after 3pm) - http://www.regattabay.com/ (Then again I'm biased as my family lives in Regatta Bay and I've played the course).

For a more leisurely pace, head towards Panama City and turn down 30A. You'll go through some nice towns, including SeaSide and Rosemary Beach, that have lots of quaint shopping and beaches. There are somewhat quieter beaches along here as well.

 

[bnsilly]

We are just interested in enjoying a nice beach with calm waters for the kiddos...

 

[Kies99]

The beaches in Destin can get pretty crowded. If you head out Highway 98 towards SanDestin and Panama City, hang a right onto 30A. Go down that road less than 5 miles (maybe around 2) and you will come to a small parking lot on your right (on your left will be a lake). Pull in there and it's a nice public beach. There are relatively new bathrooms right there as well. There's a low ramp up and over to the beach. As the parking lot is small it doesn't get as crowded as the beaches in Destin (though people park on the street and there are rental places around it). My other suggestion is to go a little further on. There is a restaurant/fish market on your right called Goatfeathers. Make a right and head to the end and you'll find another nice public beach access. Again, some rentals here, but when you go on the beach, head to the left. Maybe 100 yards down you'll find an area where a lake has an outlet to the Gulf. Great place for kids as lots of small fish and crabs get caught up in the outlet.

 

[FeeFeeWhite]

Does anyone know if you can use rewards there at the disney outlet?

 

[kangareaux]

The ocean (OK...Gulf...) can get pretty rough there for Kiddos. You might look into seeing if there's any beach on thebay side. Water is just as pretty, but calm.

 

[SnowWhite12]

Staying at the SanDestin resort is nice. A lot more to do in Panama City, though. But I do enjoy eating a shrimp po'boy at Fuddpucker's in Destin!

 

[rcraw45425]

Just back from Panama City/ Destin area. We stayed in PC but drove to Destin yesterday to shop before returning home. Interesting note about the Character Warehouse (disney outlet): the merchandise was really low, I asked and the girl said that until a few days ago they were told they were CLOSING! But they got a truck of merchandise in so they figure they'll be open at least another 6 months. Dont know about using rewards there though. I can say though that the traffic in Destin is awful, even compared to the two lane front beach road in Panama CIty. It took us 45 minutes to go from the bridge over the bay at McGuires Irish Pub to the turn for Destin Commons/toll road. Right now the beaches in PC were not too crowded and the surf was calm, green flag both days we were there. When we were there in April it was red flag no swimming at all the whole time.

 

[disneyjunebug]

Last summer, we went to Cape San Blas and it was heavenly! My extended family of 12 + 1 yorkie and 1 dachshound rented a house on the beach for a week. Now, this area is pretty remote, but very nice places to rent. There are NO minigolfs, etc, etc in Port St. Joe or Appalachiacola. There is the Gulf on one side and a Bay on the other and both were very calm and easy to swim in.