Family Vacation - Allen,TX

I took my 2 yr old to Destin in early September, and we stayed at Edgewater Condominiums. It is very close to the San Destin area, and it is on Miramar Beach. It was perfect. The property is "dated" looking from outside, but the condo we stayed in was renovated, and met all of our needs. They have grills on the property, a kiddie pool, and it is right on the beach. Because of the design of the condos, they all seem to have good views. Destin is very crowded during the summer, but the further you go toward the San Destin area, the less crowded it will be. If you can wait toward the tail end of the summer, you would be better off. We went Labor Day weekend and the following week right after the rates changed, and most of the people there were families with young children who were not yet in school. Have a great time!

We have stayed at Destin West condos the last 2 years in a 3 bedroom/2 bath condo. The pool is great for little kids because they have a large part of the pool that has "beach entry" so it gradually gets deeper. My boys were able to sit and drive their trucks in that part of the pool and throw the ball etc. They also have a lazy river around one of the pools.

We go to Sandestin (slightly east of Destin) every year. We always stay at the Hilton Golf Resort and Spa and LOVE IT. We are heading back this year for Spring Break.

There are a lot of condos in the gated community where the Hilton is located. I don't know the names of them but they look very nice. If you find VRBO and it specifies Sandestin and gated community you're probably looking at the area I am talking about. Lot of golf, biking, mini golf, spa, pools, etc.

The Hilton is located about 5 minutes from the outlet shopping center, minutes from lots of things to do. The Village of Baytown Wharf is minutes away and lots to do there as well. We have a 15 yr old girl and she always brings a friend. Some places shut down early and have highly supervised teen nights and they love it. I realize your little ones are too young for that.

I'll be glad to send the actual names of condos when I get down there and March. I'm not sure if that would be too late for your booking or not.

If you haven't been there, you are sure to love it. Very family friendly. We fly into Fort Walton Beach, rent a car and drive less than an hour.
TF

We enjoyed Sand Piper Cove.

Hi L T, I don't know of any condos, but we got to Gulf Shoes each year and always use the web site VRBO.com (Vacation Rentals By Owner). We have had the best luck with it. They have descriptions and pictures and you can get a better price too. They have listings for places all over the country. Good luck, God Bless and have a great time in Destin!!

We stayed at the Silver Shells property last year - the St. Lucia building and really liked it. We rented a 3 bedroom/3 bath condo through VRBO. We had a semi-obstructed beach view, but were within walking distance to the beach. There was a great family-friendly pool that we spent a ton of time at also. Our kids were all 2 and under and really enjoyed it!

We went about 5 years ago to Destin and we stayed at Hidden Dunes Beach & Tennis Resort - www.resortsrealty.com, 9815 US Highway 98 W, Destin - ###-###-####. It had been recommended to us by some friends that had gone there many times. We loved it! It was a beautiful, gated community with several options for highrise condos on the beach, cottages, etc. We stayed in the cottages (condos that are not highrise). We were not right on the beach, but a short walk through the property to the beach. They had several nice pools and a beautiful beach area. They did have grills available. Since your children are not school age, you can go during the off season (end of August) and it is about $50 a day cheaper. That is what we did and there were lots of families with young children there. We did not play tennis, but if you are interested in that, they have wonderful clay courts that are hardly being used. It was right on the main highway, so close to the hub of Destin. We went on the Dolphin cruise and really enjoyed the Emerald Isle Science Place in Fort Walton.

We've stayed at the Pelican Beach Resort two times. (not since we've had kids though...) But there are lots of kids there. They have really great pools, good service on the beach with umbrellas, chairs, etc. The condos were always very nice. We booked thru ResortQuest.
When are you going?
We are considering a family vacation soon too. I just don't know about the drive. ugh. I have 2yr and 8mo boys.
Since it's been a while since you posted....what did you decide?