Practice trip report- Camp Gulf, Destin with pics

[ruthies12]

First time doing any kind of trip report and since there had been discussion about campgrounds at Destin I thought I'd practice up for my trip to the Fort. This is Camp Gulf. It was overall a decent campground, showing it's age in some places but looked like they were doing some upkeep. They were renovating the bathrooms when we were there and the finished ones were pretty wow-worthy actually. There are two pools, which I unfortunately did not get pictures of. There are also two camp stores with some camping supplies and some souvenir stuff, a common game room, and they had lots of activities scheduled of which we went to none cause they were all during the day while we were at the beach.

Dear ocean, I miss you!


The lake next to the game room.


A campsite that backs up to the lake.


One of the ocean front campsites. There is a concrete pad under all the sand. It is water and electric only but they have a pump out service for 10 bucks a dump. They don't give you a lot of room between your campers but there was plenty of space in the front of the campers where a lot of people had set up easyups.


You can see the front of the campers on the right and how much space there is in front of just beach.


An empty campsite. The sites further away from the ocean did have some trees and shade, and less sand.


And last but not least, in honor of the feet on the porch railing thread-

 

[ilovedisneymm]

Thanks for the share Ruthie! Those RVs looked pretty well packed in there but I would trade my cornfield view for that ocean view today

 

[bsjs0708]

Great first time trip report!

 

[themojosupreme]

We're adding another place to visit based on your report especially the pics! Thanks for taking the time to post.

 

[PrincessCooper's Mom]

Don't forget the outlet stores are a few miles down the road.

 

[themojosupreme]

If there was any hesitancy going, the outlet stores close by just removed that!

 

[Napria]

Thanks for the pictures/trip report. Last year we were camping somewhere nearby, but I had been intrigued by Camp Gulf, so we stopped in to see it. The people in the camp store/check in counter were very nice and accommodating. The camp store was well-stocked. The park itself was too close packed for our tastes. And the Gulf-front sites were not only close together, but each site seemed to have people cutting through to get to the water.

I'm glad we checked into it for ourselves. I know this doesn't bother many people, but we realized it wasn't the place for us.

 

[Teamubr]

Love this place. We've been there 4 times and had to drive through in June when we were staying in Panama City Beach. The beach front sites are tight, but there is nothing like camping on the beach.

Thanks for the pics.

And if anyone thinks the Fort is expensive, those beach front sites are $192/night and they don't have sewer.

j

 

[bama_ed]

ruthies12, I have a serious question for you.

In the 4th picture down (the one showing the sites on the beach and space in between), you mention that there is a concrete pad underneath the sand.

Dumb question: when backing into the site, how does one know they are still on the concrete pad? Is anyone worried that they might go too long or not line up straight on the side and drop tires into the soft sand off the hard concrete base?

Bama Ed

PS - RV sites down in the Florida Keys are expensive too depending on the season.

 

[Teamubr]

In the 4th picture down (the one showing the sites on the beach and space in between), you mention that there is a concrete pad underneath the sand.

Dumb question: when backing into the site, how does one know they are still on the concrete pad? Is anyone worried that they might go too long or not line up straight on the side and drop tires into the soft sand off the hard concrete base?

ED,

I never realized there was a concrete pad under the sand. The times I have been on the beach, they told me to line up the street side on the electric pole, including slides. There are also short telephone poles in the sand to keep you from backing out too far. We were down one year after some storms had added a bunch of sand to the beach and the poles were buried. The electric boxes were level with the sand and they just said don't go past the box.
The beach sites are also very narrow. You have the choice of using your street side slide out OR the awning, but not both. Doesn't really matter since most people sat behind/in front of their RVs so they were facing the water anyway.

I looked for some pics, but it looks like I have them on my archive server and I can't find them right now.

j

 

[SouthAlabama5er]

Ruthies12, great looking pics!

Dumb question: when backing into the site, how does one know they are still on the concrete pad?

My luck I would miss the pad and sink up to the axles and then I could add another post to Tiggerdad's Camping Mishap thread...

I'd love Camping on the Gulf in Destin and PCB and live 3 hours away but I wanna head down south to Key West one day it's on my bucket list.

 

[CJHokie]

We went there this past Spring Break (Easter week) and loved it. I'll try to add some info on some of the questions/comments I read.

We were on the first row of beach sites (not beach front), so we had sewer. One thing worth mentioning that I don't think I saw in your report is that dogs are not allowed on the beach and therefore not allowed on beach front sites. So, no pets, no sewer, most expensive. But incredible view and those people just kept their sun tent thingies up the whole time, which was convenient. As the pic showed, the beach is very wide, but it never felt crowded. We found it odd that the beaches are private, so to each side of the campground there are like no trespassing signs. There are two walkways for people not staying beach front, and we never saw anyone cutting through campsites.

We had a concrete pad and some sand, but the entire road separating us from the beach front sites was covered in sand and you could not see any concrete pads on the beach front ones. I saw an old pic that showed that row before it was covered, and there were indeed pads there. I think the people who work there just know where to put you. Those sites and the ones on our row were indeed cramped, but we were in site 700 on the end, so we had quite a bit of room.

All the employees we met were incredibly nice, welcoming, and helpful. We met two big groups - one was from IN and had been going there for 15 years. The other were from various places (Chicago for one) and they had been going there for 20 years. We are going back next spring break with 3 other families and are staying near the lake and bball court/playground.

We did not use the pools as it was a little chilly. They had one covered, but my husband said the chlorine smell was overwhelming.

The only real negatives we would say is, you turn off and on a big road with a lot of traffic, so it was hard to find a break to get our motorhome in. Also, there was quite a dip when we left and got back on that road. Our back end actually drug coming out of the campground.

We are usually East Coast beachgoers but are spoiled now by the beautiful sand and water in Destin. I will add though, that a friend of mine went (not to Camp Gulf but one of the nearby state parks) last summer and the seaweed was so bad, they were still finding it in swim trunk pockets months later.

 

[ruthies12]

I'm glad other people were able to answer about the beach front sites, we actually were on a site right across from the lake and not beachfront.

We used to camp for years at Ocean Lakes Campground in Myrtle Beach so the size of these sites wasn't bad for us. Cramped but not much smaller than what we were used to in the HH section of Ocean Lakes. Last year was our first time on the gulf and the difference in the water was incredible. Being able too actually see your feet has made me a gulf lover for life I think. I doubt that I ever go back to myrtle.

Last summer we stayed at Topsail State Park in Destin. It was very nice, the campsites were really shaded and pretty, but the walk to the beach was about a mile with a shuttle that only ran once an hour. We biked it and hauling all our stuff, cooler, chairs, etc. plus two small kids was too much.

The one thing I did not like about Camp Gulf was their prices. I spent close to $1000 for a one week stay compared to the $300 I spent at Topsail for one week. I think Camp Gulf is highly highly overpriced. However, being able to walk to the beach made it worth it for me. When my kids get old enough to ride bikes by themselves, though, we may be going back to Topsail.

If you look at prices in Destin, the cost of hotels and campsites goes down mid-August, that is because that is seaweed season! They do get a bad season of red seaweed that comes in to the beaches in giant waves of the stuff from what I understand. You definitely want to stick to June and July or late Sept/October. We have decided next year to try the second week of October. My one dd that is school aged gets an entire week off for fall break and I read that the average temp is 80 during the day and the water stays at a warm temp until November. Friends of mine said it is a great time to go and since the beachfront sites go down to $105 a night we are thinking of trying beach front for that trip.

One last thing- Camp Gulf does offer a Good Sam discount. Saved me 90 bucks!

 

[Teamubr]

We used to camp for years at Ocean Lakes Campground in Myrtle Beach. Last year was our first time on the gulf and the difference in the water was incredible. I doubt that I ever go back to myrtle.

We've camped several times in Myrtle Beach. We stayed part of our honeymoon at Ocean Lakes. Been back 2 other times and stayed at Pirateland next door. I agree with the beaches. I've stayed a number of places on the Atlantic side, but I really prefer the Gulf. Anywhere from Gulf Shores to Ft Meyers.

I think Camp Gulf is highly highly overpriced.

It's incredibly over priced, but I don't know of any where else that you can literally back onto the beach and camp. I've looked. They know that and price it accordingly... Whatever the market will bare.

If you look at prices in Destin, the cost of hotels and campsites goes down mid-August, that is because that is seaweed season!

I always thought Destin pricing dropped when the schools started back. I've been down in late August when the "red tide" washed in. It smelled pretty bad, but thankfully, it only lasted part of the week we were there. I've also been down in October. Weather is perfect, water was still low 80's and there were no crowds. The only down side was most of the tourist things were also closed down or running on limited hours. It seems like the tourist stuff (mini golf, go karts, beach shops) are mostly staffed with high school/college kids. Once school is back, they lose their workforce.

j

 

[ruthies12]

I'm glad to hear of another report that October is great weather, thanks for that! We don't too much of the touristy stuff so I'm okay with that being closed down. Being able to actually drive and get to a restaurant would be a nice change from the usual destin traffic though!

I believe you are correct about them knowing they are the only spot on the beach and that is why their prices are so high. The price is definitely not in line with the amenities. It's pretty bad when someone can make Disney look cheap!!

I tell you what, as a campground I LOVE Ocean Lakes, it has such a resort feel to it. If only we could pick up Ocean Lakes campground and set it down on a gulf beach.........

 

[tiggerdad]

Looking good Ruthies, sorry I'm a little late posting on this thread. We have considered this location for future runs. Your pics are being very helpful.

Agree with Ed and SouthAlabama5er, where is that pad? My wife looked at the pictures and began twitching. She is a huge clean freak and the thought of all that sand getting into the camper was making her anxious. The one good thing about having a door from the outside leading directly into the camper allows for everyone to go straight in and into the shower to rinse off to help keep the sand in check.

 

[saw1810]

We haved camped here every year for the last 15years always getting a front row spot and always coming down in late oct, still warm and prices are half, now the last three years the kids hv been on a balanced calander so we get 2 weeks for fall break and it is great!! We hv reservations for this oct as well and cant wait, then the countdown is on for the fort in may of 2016!! And as far as the sand goes, ya u get some but rinse off before headn into the camper usually keeps the sand down

 

[Teamubr]

the thought of all that sand getting into the camper was making her anxious.

The sand is a bit of a deal. We put out our fake grass carpet and had a hose with a sprayer Y'd off the camper water supply laying by the door. We sprayed off before going in the camper. That helped a lot. We also have hard wood flooring in the camper instead of the carpet it came with. That makes it easy to sweep out.

j

 

[saw1810]

ruthies12, I have a serious question for you.

In the 4th picture down (the one showing the sites on the beach and space in between), you mention that there is a concrete pad underneath the sand.

Dumb question: when backing into the site, how does one know they are still on the concrete pad? Is anyone worried that they might go too long or not line up straight on the side and drop tires into the soft sand off the hard concrete base?

Bama Ed

PS - RV sites down in the Florida Keys are expensive too depending on the season.

To kinda add to some replies already, we stay there every year in the front row in oct, that front row has reallly hard packed sand underneath the softer stuff on top, as explained to me by a worker, its a thin layer of soft sand that has blown over it but ite really hard stuff underneath, and i highly recommend going in oct/nov cheaper rates and still warm water and weather and less people!!

 

[Napria]

Last summer we stayed at Topsail State Park in Destin. It was very nice, the campsites were really shaded and pretty, but the walk to the beach was about a mile with a shuttle that only ran once an hour. We biked it and hauling all our stuff, cooler, chairs, etc. plus two small kids was too much.

Looks like I'm the only one here who doesn't feel the gulf-frontage outweighs the tightness of the sites. And that's ok.

Topsail Hill is much more our speed. If Topsail Hill sites were gulf-front, I'd be willing to pay dearly! But we've gotta have our privacy and shade.

For anyone who does go to Destin, make sure you rent a boat and go to Crab Island. Not an island at all, it's an experience unlike any other we've ever had.