Panama City Beach: Memories to Last a Lifetime
Panama City Beach is kind of like a second home to me. We started spring breaking there back when I was a little girl because my brothers traveled down there with their high school baseball team for warmer weather to practice. Years ago it was definitely a hot spot for spring breakers and partying but a lot of that has changed over the years. Panama City was hit by some devastating hurricanes that tore down all the old beach hotels causing Panama City Beach to reinvent themselves. Now Panama City beach is mostly covered with high rise condos bringing a more family friendly atmosphere to the beach. Don’t get me wrong, there are still the occasional groups of high schoolers that are looking to party but not like it used to be. The closer you get to the west end of Panama City Beach the quieter it gets. Grab a glass of wine, this is kind of a long one but I didn’t want to leave out any details
WHERE TO STAY: We have stayed all over the west end of Panama City Beach. Years ago when I was in middle school we stayed at what is called the sandpiper beacon. It’s one of the only original hotels still standing. This was always a hot partying spot back in the day. Then we moved down to Aquavista condominiums which in their hey day, were really nice. Aquavista is really nice if you’re looking for a condo but not a huge high rise. Lots of space, cute little pool, parking garage underneath and close proximity to grocery shopping and little local Restaurants. After Aquavista we moved around for a few years trying out various different resorts: Tidewater, Calypso, & Aqua, to name a few. Here’s the thing, they’re all fairly similar. We originally thought Tidewater was going to be amazing because they have an indoor pool. Perfect for rainy days right? In theory yes, however when you’re in a massive high rise and everyone has the same idea it felt more like a ses pool. Tidewater did however have a cute little arcade and outdoor pools as well, it just never felt overly clean to me. Calypso was always clean and well take care of, great location, walking distance to pier park. The only negative about Calypso is it’s very busy there. The beach gets packed!! And now Calypso has built a third tower across the street meaning even more people on the same packed beach. Aqua was kind of a nice in-between option because they have an indoor /outdoor pool, still fairly close to pier park and the beach but was a lot less crowded than calypso. They also have a hot tub which not all resorts offer. Overall if you’re going to choose a High rise in the west end I would probably recommend Aqua first. Note: Most all of the high rises come fully equipped with everything you need & they typically do beach service which gives you 2 loungers however we still bring our own beach chairs and umbrellas. Waiting for the staff to open and to get your chairs can be a pain as well as you can’t guarantee you’ll be by others if you’re in a big group. You also typically park in a garage across the street and they have a covered tunnel that takes you across to your unit on the third floor. The best aspect of renting a condo in a high rise is you are right on the water and you have the ocean view, on the flip side, you have lines for the elevators and parking can be a bit of a pain at times. I have always booked using VRBO or AIRBNB but you can book direct with most of the resorts as well. I find you get better customer service through VRBO or AIRBNB though.
WHERE WE ARE STAYING NOW: Now here’s the kicker, after all these years of staying in Panama City Beach we had never stayed at one of the most well known resorts that has been around forever…Edgewater Beach and Golf Resort. Back in the day I think we always assumed it was going to be too expensive and then we just got used to the convenience of being near pier park and just never gave Edgewater a thought because its a little more centrally located on “the strip” so to speak. That was until Covid hit! This Fall of 2020 we really wanted to get away for Thanksgiving and go somewhere warm and seeing as how we missed out on our 2020 Spring Break we decided to head down to Panama City. We ultimately chose Edgewater Beach & Golf Resort because they are walk out units on the golf course with no elevators and we were still being overly cautious about covid especially since we had my parents with us. We were so blown away by how much we loved Edgewater over Thanksgiving we booked it again for this Spring Break. We booked a 2 bedroom unit on airbnb and it was super nice, clean, updated and right on the gold course. There are so many amenities we loved about Edgewater but mostly the fact that we were in a gated community where it was really easy to get up and go for a walk in the morning or at night, go for a run down to the beach and never encountered any traffic. Normally you would be running on the side of a busy street but at Edgewater it’s almost like you’re in a neighborhood, and with kids this was sooooo convenient. Our littlest was 2.5 at the time and we packed his scooter which allowed him to keep up with everybody and get some energy out and the beginning and end of the day. We would take runs with the older boys and go over the little bridge that connects the golf course community to the beach and check out the water or look for dolphins. And because we were right on the golf course my dad would go out there with the kids and hit some balls and practice chipping and putting with them while we were getting ready for dinner or just whenever there was some down time. The boys loved it!
The next best thing about Edgewater was the pools. So if you stay on the golf course, its almost as if each set of condos has their own little private heated pool. There are eleven pools in all! We counted them all to be sure on our walks lol! This was so nice for morning swims before we hit the beach or for those extra special night swims. Edgewater also has a huge resort style pool with two hot tubs and a kiddie area right down on the beach. This pool is not heated but really pretty with waterfalls and little areas to explore. It was a big hit with the kids! The other thing that was a big hit with the kids was the fact that there is a full service restaurant, Oceans Bar & Grill along with Edgies Corner Market where you can get ice cream and frozen icees, candy, sunscreen, Starbucks etc. Let me tell you Oceans Bar & Grill was such a pleasant surprise. We had a dinner there one night for sunset and all the boys got cool light up souvenir glasses they could take home and everyone enjoyed the food. We ordered lunch a few days to take down to the beach just because were feeling lazy and didn’t want to miss out on the beautiful weather by having to go back to the room and make lunch. They had some fun specialty cocktails that we felt it was or duty try since we were on vacation and they were all very yummy! Overall it was just a very relaxing vacation which is exactly what we were looking for. They have a couple large golf carts that will come and pick you up from your room and take you to the beach and vice versa. There’s no charge but we tipped our driver every day just to be nice. I should also mention they have a ton of tennis courts and what looked to be like a really nice gym along with shuffle board, pickle ball & a basketball hoop. Lots of stuff to stay active on vacation! My only concern about staying here over spring break is the traffic and potential noise factor at night. Like I said, Edgewater is little more centrally located which is nice in regards to the fact there’s lots to do near by. Local restaurants, chains, shopping, miniature golf and other attractions, however this also brings the traffic. So I guess we will find out! At least we won’t be waiting in line for the elevator for 10-15 minutes so we’ve got that going for us…which is nice. Keep scrolling for links to all the resorts.
WHERE TO EAT: We have a handful of restaurants we always go to every year.
- Sharkys – The food is fine but its more about the atmosphere. There is Abigails shark out front for pictures, a big playground on the beach for the kids to play if you have to wait or you want to have an extra drink. They also typically lly have live music or karaoke which is a blast. https://sharkysbeach.com
- Runaway Island – The food is delicious. Its right on the beach and has gorgeous views of the sunset. It kind of has an upscale beach feel tout so its kind of fun to get a little more dressed up than usual. We’ve gone here for Easter dinner or its typically our one “Nice night out” https://runawayislandpcb.com
- Shuckums – Great Oysters and fried seafood. They also have Karaoke and dancing. My kids look forward to this every year. They’ve karaoke with their friends and danced along to the DJ. Its a fun place for teenagers to hang out with heir parents too. The earlier you’re there the more family oriented it is and the later it gets the rowdier it gets.http://www.shuckums.com/#/index.html
- Hook’d Pier bar & Grill – The fish tacos are amazing and they make an awesome Pina colada! Yummm!!!! This is right across from Pier Park and also has amazing sunset views. Can you sense a theme here? Lol. https://www.hookedpierbar.com
- Wicked Wheel, Pineapple Willys, and Saltwater Grill are some others we’ve frequented in the past as well. There are so many restaurants popping up I can’t keep ups but these are some of our tried and trues.
WHERE TO SHOP: Pier Park is a really nice outdoor mall with shopping and dining options. Its a mix of regular stores you’d see at the mall along with some more boutique style and southern stores you would never find in Michigan. I love their Dillards, they have the best selection of bathing suits! They also have a Lilly Pulitzer store called Pink Narcissus where I could spend all of my money! Hy’s Toggery is another favorite of mine. They have lots nautical brands like Southern Tide, Vineyard Vines, Fish Hippie,Hook & Tackle etc. If I could only pick three stores to go in, those would be my top 3. Pier park also has a movie theatre and a Dave & Busters if you’re looking for rainy day activities. https://www.simon.com/mall/pier-park.
Overall, Panama City Beach is a really great option if you’re looking to head south but you want something drivable,(it’s about 15.5 hours), you want something reasonably priced, and you want a beach vacation. Just like any place else in Florida, you can spend as much money or as little as you like. Eat out every night or stay in and cook. Enjoy the beach and relax at night playing games and watch movies, or hit up attractions like parasailing and air boat rides. You can tailor the trip to your families needs. There are piers to fish on, deep sea fishing, pontoons for rent, dolphin tours, you name it they have it. Panama City Beach has brought my family so many memories we will have forever and I hope you get the chance to create some of your own with your family.
Afterthoughts worth Sharing:
- Frank Brown Park: This is an awesome park right behind Pier Park with lots of Baseball & Softball fields, tennis courts, walking trails, & the coolest playground I have ever seen. We usually go there in the morning and use the fields to practice on. Gotta get ready for little league and travel ball! #Boymom
- St. Andrews State Park: This is just a really cool place to go explore. Look for alligators, walk the trails and find shells on the beach.
- Cool Places to stop on the way down: Indianapolis Colts Stadium, Louisville Slugger Museum, Mammoth Caves, Tennessee Titans Stadium.
- If you plan on putting up for the night on the way down, be sure to book your hotel in advance! We usually travel during the day since we only have two drivers and we typically stop around Decatur, Alabama along with everyone else from Michigan, Indiana, Wisconsin and Kentucky LOL.
Links to condos The Sandpiper Beacon https://www.sandpiperbeacon.com, Tidewater https://southernresorts.com/resort/TidewaterBeachResort, Calypso http://www.calypsotoweriii.com Edgewater Beach & Golf Resort https://www.resortcollection.com/resorts/edgewater/ https://www.vrbo.com/ https://www.airbnb.com/
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