As soon as the farm got a big rain and Florida reopened their beaches and restaurants, we were outta here! Even though it was just a quick 4 day trip, it was a much needed break from being cooped up in the house for 2 months! Especially with our travel obsessed family!
Several years ago we had a really bad vacation experience in Destin so we have avoided it like the plague. We much prefer Panama City Beach, FL (the Holiday Inn Resort there has an awesome kids splash pad) or Gulf Shores, AL. This trip did bring a little light back to Destin for us but I still don’t think we would go back.
We drove down to the coast on a Friday and arrived in Destin just in time for dinner. Our first stop was the Back Porch restaurant. It was a pretty typical beach chain restaurant. The food and service was mediocre but the outdoor beach side seating offered a great breeze and views!
(These outfits are from Busy Bees Smocks)
We stayed at the Hilton Sandestin Resort which is actually in Miramar Beach, a few minutes outside Destin. This is a Hilton beachfront Resort inside a gated golf course community. The resort was very nice. We had a room with 1 king bed, 1 full sofa bed, and twin bunk beds. There was plenty of room for our family of 6. The resort offers 2 outdoor pools and 1 indoor pool. There is no kids splash pad. Sandcastles restaurant opens daily at 7am and offers a great breakfast selection. The poolside grill opens at 11am and has excellent lunch options and snacks. My main complaint with this resort is the beach area. The resorts designated beach area is relatively small and they fill the entire space of it with their rental chairs and umbrellas 3 rows deep. We always rent the chairs and umbrellas so that isn’t my issue, the worst part was that they were always full! You can rent them for a week at a time when you arrive so if on your first day there’s none available you’re just out of luck and there’s no other beach space for you to set up your own umbrella and chairs. Even with us out on the beach before 8am and the first people at the rental stand we were still stuck with the second row of chairs instead of the first which obviously didn’t kill us but wasn’t ideal.
(These swimsuits are from Little Britches Boutique)
We had dinner at the Crab Trap our second night. Once again the food was just mediocre but our service was good. The worst part was the parking! The parking lot is tiny and it’s shared with the public beach access so it’s basically nonexistent. My disdain for that situation was also exacerbated by the fact that I had a 3 year old who really needed to potty while we were trying to find somewhere to park!
(These outfits are from Sweet LaRose Boutique)
The next day was once again filled with beach and pool time. We had breakfast at the hotel restaurant Sandcastles and lunch at the poolside grill. That night for dinner we decided to try Dewey Destin’s Harborside. This was the best pick of our trip. The service was top notch and the food was the best we had the entire time!
(These swimsuits are from Classic Southern Smocks, the girls yellow dresses are from Sweet LaRose Boutique, Rhett’s shirt is from Walmart and his shorts are Carters)
Unfortunately we had to leave after 3 nights. We could have stayed an extra night because it was still raining at home but it was raining in Destin also and supposed to rain for the next few days so we decided to just come back. Overall it was a nice break and a nice return to some normalcy for us! We hope our Disney trips this summer don’t get cancelled!
(The girls dresses and Rhett’s shirt are Wildflowers. Rhett’s shorts are from Carters)
Raising Rowletts 
You are awesome! Thanks so much š
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