Can You Recommend a Great Beach House to Rent in Destin or Seaside/Seagrove?

We go every year and for the past 2 we have stayed in a great house right on the beach with our own pool! It has stairs right down to the beach and our baby monitor worked while on the beach. We would lock the baby in the house and take the monitor down with us. It was GREAT!!! here is the link...

http://www.oceanreefresorts.com/rentals/beachhomes.php?id...

We've been going for years and we use to stay at Edgewater condo's. It was a building that had a bunch of condos in it and 3 pools. WE loved it there, but wanted something that was more private.

The house is called Sea Otz...has 4 bedrooms, 4 full baths, 2 living areas, 2 sets of washer/dryer, gourmet kitchen, beach views from every room, it's own pool, and 3 stories with huge balcony on each floor...we LOVE IT!! Just don't book for the first week in September...that's when we go! :)

Also, we love Seaside, but I think that you are better off staying in Destin and visiting Seaside one afternoon. That's what we do...we take an afternoon off from the beach and spend it in Seaside. The nice thing about having a house RIGHT on the beach is that you can quickly go up and get something from the house and not have to take a long walk...just my opinion. Also, if the kiddo doesn't like the beach (my nephews hated the sand) then you have the house close enough that people can take turns entertaining and not being so far away from teh beach...

Hi A.! I just moved from Destin to Dallas a couple of months ago. You should try VRBO.com (vacation rentals by owner) We own a condo in Destin and we rent it out by using this website. Very easy and many choices! I hope this helps! L.

Hi A.,

I spent July 4th in Destin last year and it turned out to be better than I could have imagined. We stayed at the Tivoli condos. We had a 2bdrm 2 bath and it contained EVERYTHING. It was our first vacation with our 1 yr old twins so my expectations were high. The condos were "a short walk" to the beach and the best way to describe the walk was probably from one end of Grapevine Mills Mall to the opposite end. It wasn't that far at all.

My sisters family went too and luckily got a condo 2 doors down from us. We had a family night dinner where we made dinner, it was like being at home! The washer & dryer made it so nice and convenient to come home with suitcases full of clean clothes.

I could go on and on. I hope you get as lucky as we feel we were!!

Good luck!
M.

Hello,

We went to Destin for the 1st time last year and LOVED it. We staying in a condo right on the beach, and not a house... but I definately think right on the beach is the way to go if you have kids. We plan on going back to Destin this year as well. I have boys ages 2 and 4, and they loved it as well.

It is such a family oriented vacation spot, with a TON to do. Our condo was located on Hwy 98, and it was a beautiful area.

Let me know if you have any questins about Destin in general.

Good luck!!

A.,
We went to Destin about 5 years ago, and are going again this Summer. We rented a house,not right on the beach, but close enough to walk to. We also had a neighborhood pool, which was a nice break from the beach. My sister has all the info, but if you want it I can get it for you. It is a great family oriented place for a vacation, which is why we are going back.
L.

Lsat year we went with our three kids (9, 6 and 8 mos. at the time) to Tradewinds in St. Pete's Beach. It's a little lower key than Destin, but the beach was gorgeous and we had a great time. The resort has so much to do that we never left it. There's a huge water slide on the beach, hammocks, water trikes, lots of restaurants, several pools with family activities throughout the day, a kids program, a pirate show in the evening, paddle boats that go through a waterway that runs through the resort, etc. It is right on the beach so me or my husband could easily take the older two to the beach while one stayed with the baby to nap or for a diaper change. So, if you're open to somewhere in Florida besides Destin, you might check it out.

A.,

Did you go to Seaside last summer? My husband and I are planning a vacation to the Destin area this summer. We've been to Florida before but never to the Panhandle area. It will be our first vacation with our one year old so we want it to be really special! We've narrowed down the area we want to stay in to either Seaside or Seagrove. We're not sure which to choose. We know Seaside is more expensive....is it worth the extra cost? We're hoping to rent a cottage on the beach. We also just heard about an area called Baytowne Wharf but I haven't had a chance to look into that area yet. Any advice is greatly appreciated! Thanks!