Panama City Beach Vacay
So many of you always ask for travel suggestions, so we’ll be sharing them here for easy access. These will be kept under our travel category. 🙂
Panama City Beach
My brother and sister, and their families, came down to Florida for vacation. We joined them for a few days. It was about a four and a half hour drive for us.
Enjoy the Short
If you aren’t subscribed to our Personal YouTube Channel, we often share shorts on there that we don’t share anywhere else. 🙂
Splash Resort
This was our first time staying at the Splash Resort. My sister has visited many times before. The resort has many rental units, each owned by different individuals. You can book through VRBO or Airbnb by searching for “Splash Resort Panama City Beach.”
There are two buildings that are connected. One has a small lazy river and pool, while the other features a pool, hot tub, and kiddie area. Guests have access to both. The resort is located directly on the beach, which is wonderful because you don’t have to cross the street.
It’s worth noting that the units are individually owned, so you’ll want to check the ratings before booking. We traveled with four families—three of us had beautiful units, while one was very mediocre.
St. Andrew State Park
One day we went to this state park. Once you enter the park, there are a few exits you can take onto the beach. We went ot the second one and the water was shallow on one side, perfect for the littles, and on the other side was a beach that the older kids enjoyed.
TIP: If you go here during the summer heat, the sun is hot and there is nowhere to hide, you want to bring with you some kind of protection from the sun.
We spent all day here. I will not discuss how burnt be got, though. (Mom of the year fail.)
Beach Necessities
Going to pause here and share some of my favorite beach must-haves.
- Beach bag – The quality of this beach bag is immaculate. We’ve had this bag for over 3 years and use it all the time, and it has no sign of wear and tear.
- Turkish blanket – We have two of these Turkish beach towels. They are really thin and easy to wash when you come home from the beach.
- Spike ball – The older kids and teens played this nonstop at the beach, definitely a game beach favorite, and it folds easily.
- Beach toys – Here are the cutest neutral colored toys because, well, who needs color, ha.
- Neutral beach chairs – if anyone else is about that neutral colored life, these beach chairs are so beautiful.
- Beach canopy – you definitely need protection from the sun, and these canopies with sand weights are great. I really like this one because it has extra pockets for storage.
- Beach towels – I love Turkish beach towels. They dry so quickly and because they are so thin, easy to wash. Highly recommend.
- Mesh tote – I have two of these mesh totes. I love that the sand just goes right through, and I’m able to keep things I don’t want in the large tote.
- Sunscreen – This is my favorite sunscreen.
- Waterproof bags – I love these clear bags to add all of the small things, phone, sunscreen, chapstick. You then just wipe the bag, and you’re done.
- Ladies, here are some of my favorite feminine must-haves. 🙂
Drive through 30A
And of course, you cannot go on vacation in the panhandle and not drive through Highway 30A and stop at all the beautiful places! We wished we had had more time to stop and visit more.
We stopped at Alley’s Beach, Rosemary Beach, and drove through 30A. Of course, we had to snap a few beautiful shots. We didn’t bring clothes for pictures, but it was too beautiful not to get some.
If you are ever in the area, just keep driving down 30A, and you will travel through the different communities – not sure how else to say it. It is truly breathtaking here.
Other Recommendations
- Parlor Donuts – you have to try these donuts, especially the coconut-filled. Out of this world delicious. No, do not look at the calorie count. We highly recommend.
Below are recommendations we did not get to try, but we had several of you recommended them.
- Gypsea Crepes – this was probably the most frequent recommendation.
- Panama City Beach Pier Park – this is right in the heart of the city. This is a very beautiful place to fish. Just walk around.
- Top Golf – Our older kids went with their cousins to Top Golf one night, and they had such a fun time.
- Shipwreck Island Waterpark – this looked so fun, but it was quite pricey; it was a recommendation.
I hope you enjoyed this small post of our trip. Would you enjoy most posts like this? We’d love your feedback in the comments below.
Question: What is your family’s favorite vacation spot? Doesn’t have to be Florida? We’d love your recommendations.
Fondly,
Tim+Valentina
