One of Destin's Beaches

Destin is home to virtually every water sport and activity imaginable.  The water is consistently warm with temps reaching 86 degrees in October. Vacationers can go boating, parasailing, jet skiing, or snorkel with some of the local marine life including manatees, dolphins and sea turtles.  You don’t even have to take a charter out of the harbor to find a great snorkeling location.  Local’s tip: snorkel on the jettys off of Gulf Shore Drive on Holiday Isle, where you can park for free and walk down to the water. The snorkeling here is amazing!

For other activities, there are dozens of golf courses, the Big Kahuna waterpark, the Gulfarium (mom and pop type aquarium that is popular with kids and families) or the Harbor Docks in downtown Destin, offering free parking and a variety of specialty shops, restaurants, ice cream parlors – a great place to rent boats and snorkeling equipment.

Destin is also known for its great dining and shopping.  On the East end of town there is the Silver Sands Outlet Mall, the largest designer outlet mall in the US, and in Mid-town Destin is the newly built Destin Commons, which is home to a Hard Rock Cafe as well as a 14 screen cinema and other retail shops.

The Baytowne Wharf in Sandestin, a bustling sub-community of Destin, has lots of shops and it is a great place to take the family or head out to for a night on the town.   At Christmas they even bring in an ice skating rink and put up lights!

Taken off of Dewey Destin's dock

For food, here are our picks:

• The Back Porch – known for their fresh seafood and oysters
• Dewey Destin’s (the town was named after his family!) – located on the harbor and serving up large portions of great downhome cooking
• Pompano Joes Restaurant – its right on the beach on Scenic 98, and also has outside as well as inside dining, casual entertainment and a casual beach bar
• Bonefish Grill – good service, consistently great food, and a nice, quiet ambiance – perfect for a romantic dinner or special occasion
• Donut Hole – a popular locals spot that has been a staple since the towns conception  - makes a great keylime pie
• Broken Egg – fresh and nutritional food, over 130 menu items, great for breakfast, brunch or lunch
• Jim ‘N Nick’s BBQ – great southern food made from scratch

Destin’s peak season runs from the end of May through the first part of August but “the luckiest fishing village in the US” as Destin is also known, hosts one of its main annual events in October – the annual “Fishing Rodeo” where the person with the largest catch nets $100,000 in prize money!

White Sand Beaches of Destin

What keeps people returning to Destin year after year for a great vacation spot?

We think it is the beauty of the water – it’s turquoise, clear and breathtaking, as well as the clean white sandy beaches.  People can’t believe it when they first pull up to the water.

It’s still family oriented. A quaint town – no crowds or high-rises – and the people are down to earth…good ‘ol boy people.

Destin has managed to maintain this small-town feel, yet is only 55 miles from the Spring Break-type of vacation one can find in either Pensacola, Florida and Panama City, Florida.

And the sluggish economy hasn’t hit Destin as hard as other popular vacation destinations – perhaps due to its central location on the Florida panhandle, making it easy to get to on not too much gasoline from southern Florida, and the neighboring states of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia.  Destin is also more accessible thanks to the addition of an International Airport.

Book your dream vacation now in Destin! Check all of our options from private houses with pools to beachfront condos with many amenities, on BeachHouse.com.