There is so much that goes on during our trips to Destin, we decided to share all of the experiences here. Florida Girl's condo is located at Pelican Beach, right on the beach, It's in the heart of Destin with so much to do right nearby. But before you even get there, here's a couple of things you might want to do.
*Beach Chair Rental from La Dolce Vita. Depending on the season, there are sometimes 4 rows of chairs and umbrellas set up on the waterfront, available to rent. Book early to get a good spot. You can buy or bring your own, but you will have to set up behind the rows of rentals. Being able to just walk down and have a reserved spot without having to carry chairs down is fantastic.
*Grocery delivery from Walmart. The last thing we want to do on our limited vacation time is spend it grocery shopping. On the way down, when we know our appx time of arrival, we do grocery delivery from Walmart, and they bring it straight to our unit. This saves tons of time and you literally never have to leave once you get here.
Big Kahuna's Water Park. This water park is right across the street from our condo, with a crosswalk right out front to get to it. This was our first time exploring it. From the road front it doesn't seem that big, but its deceiving. Its twice as deep as it is wide, and the design of it has all sorts of crisscrossed walkways. In mid-May there weren't any lines for anything, so virtually no wait times. But it still took us all day to do everything, because there is literally so much to do there. We lost count of how many water slides we did. There's a surf ride, wave pools, and just about anything you can think of. Some of the walkways are even flooded between rides, so you are in the water all day. Most of the tube rides spit you out into a lazy river, which you can then use to float around the park to a new ride. There's a lot of bang for the buck at this water park. And you can even walk back over to your condo for lunch if you wanted to!
Most of our trip we spent at the beach in unbelievably clear water. We waded out about chest deep on calm days, and you could see your feet like there was no water there. There were also numerous fish that you could clearly see swimming around you too, some big and some small. Early morning beach visits we got to see some very large stingrays and dolphins. And then for beach service, you may get to meet Caitlyn, who will bring drinks or food straight to you from the Tiki bar, while you sit by the ocean. And don't forget to try the pizza from the snack shack at Pelican Beach. Its amazing! There's also a snow cone shack on the beach to the east within walking distance.
One fun thing we discovered this trip was the Lost & Found Toy Box on the beach. All abandoned rafts, chairs, and body boards wound up here. Also a lot of items that get abandoned before vacationers head back home. So chances are there are some fun items you can use from that box!
We also decided to venture to Crab Island this trip, which is basically a huge flat sandbar area that is all extremely shallow, usually 2ft or less. Its a fun area to explore and just have fun. And there are lots of.... you guessed it, crabs. But it can only be accessed by boat. There are numerous companies and boats that you can rent to make trips there, but being unfamiliar with that type of boating, we opted for getting a guided tour, booking a private tour with FunDestin Adventures, a husband/wife team Randy & Dena, captaining the "Randena" 24 ft pontoon boat. They have a slip we boarded at, and provided a cooler full of ice for our drinks/snacks for the day. Its a nicely kept boat, loaded with fun supplies for the day including paddle board, inflatable kayak, snorkel gear, rafts, splash pad and more! You bring the food/drinks & they supply everything else.
On our way to Crab Island, we had a couple dolphins jumping along side of the boat, but then we had the opportunity to observe a shark swimming 15-20 feet below us (yes its that clear). The next part was hopefully only a once in a lifetime experience. It swam near the surface for a bit, then disappeared. All of the sudden we feel something slam into the side of the boat, a huge splash, and tail flips in the air. It had jumped and hit the side panel of the pontoon boat. Then 10 seconds later, we feel a hard hit under the rear of the boat. It had actually bit the bottom of the pontoon, leaving teeth marks in the metal. A semi-friendly reminder we humans are only guests in their home. After a fun day at crab island, where there are even boats roaming around selling ice cream, we headed back to the docks, and even seen a monkey on a paddle board. There's no context to this, just a strange thing we seen. It was accompanied by a person, we just aren't sure who takes a monkey paddle boarding.
We were able to hit many more new beachfront restaurants including Dewy Destins, Tailfins, & Pampano Joe's. Many of the restaurants have daily fresh caught fish on the menu, which are some of the best you'll have. Red Snapper, Mahi-mahi, and Grouper are some of our favorites. Evenings can get busy, so try to beat the crowds. Pro Tip: We also learned to use back roads to get around the traffic on the main road, and use stop lights any time we need to turn left. Traffic depends on the season, but this a huge vacation area so expect traffic.
Then we had a couple of fun family events including mini golf at The Track, just a half a mile from our condo, but the ball was too good for it's home. Back at our condo we utilized our two pickle ball courts. We brought our own set of paddles and balls to learn to play this trip. There are actually 2 courts on top of the parking area to play. We usually did this of an evening when it was cooler.
Another day we headed back out on the "Randena" for a sunset cruise to look for dolphins again. No such luck that trip but it was still a perfect evening with great people. Book a trip with FunDestin Adventures for a fun evening out!
We also ventured outside of Destin to a place called Turkey Creek Park in Niceville, FL. If you are looking for a nice nature hike trail without getting dirty, this place is perfect. Its actually wooden walkways that stretch for an entire mile alongside of a beautiful creek. Lots of trees and wildlife. We seen quite a few turtles. No gators. There, we met local photographer Thomas Wulchak for a photo shoot. He's available seasonally for photos from only October thru April for a very reasonable price.
We also got a call from our realtor, Eric Christen to congratulate us on our 1 year anniversary of owning our new condo. He's one of the greatest people we've met in this journey. He knows his stuff and goes above and beyond for everything. The day we closed on our condo he even came over and helped us do some repainting. If you are considering any real estate in the area, this is the guy you want to talk to.
We did some more updates on our condo this trip too. We added 2 teal polywood chairs to the balcony. We opted for bar height so you can fully see over the rail, while dolphin watching right from the balcony. Then we also replaced the TV console in the living room with a small dresser. So if you have anyone using the pull out sofa couch, they have somewhere to put their clothes too. Florida Girl also added a couple new paintings to the rooms as well. We'll continue to make updates and improvements to our condo to make it one of the best vacation experiences ever. The outside of the condo resort has been completely renovated and repainted too. It looks like a brand new place!
We plan to make memories with trips for many years to come and will continue to explore the area for fun and affordable things to do. And we'll share what we find so you can plan memories for your family too! Is the beach calling you? Book Florida Girl's condo at PelicanBeachCondo.com
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