The one thing that really should be stressed is that they do not allow any beach setups near the water. This is obviously so you will have to rent one of the chair/umbrella setups that they have ($35 a day). They literally cover about 75% of the entire property’s sand with their beach chairs and umbrellas....all the way end to end and from the water to about 75% of the way back to the beach entrance. I took a picture to show but I can’t post it on here. We found it a lot easier to just drag our wagon, chairs, and cooler to the public beach access a little ways down the beach.
Pros:
1) it was very clean when we got there except for mold/mildew on the shower heads
2) it is located on the beach and near many restaurants and shopping
3) cafe on property for food and drinks
4) does offer an ocean view but the room is probably 150 yards from the ocean
5) ample parking and we could usually get a shaded spot unless we got back really late
6) there is a washer/dryer combo inside the condo
7) there were plenty of towels and bedding as well as cookware, silverware, plates, cups, bowls
8) two different pools to choose from....one is indoor/outdoor which is good for bad weather
9) the sauna was clean and fits about 4 people comfortably
10) no key required...just punch the code into the keypad
Cons:
1) As stated before, no beach setups allowed near the water. Pelican Beach Resort has ruined their beach with all
of the unused chairs and umbrellas.
2) there are too many people there for the amount of beach frontage that they own....it was way too crowded for my
taste....like super crazy crowded in the water and on the sand
3) traffic in Destin is crazy now....nothing like it was a few years ago....took us over 2 hours to get to Ripleys Believe it or Not in Panama City Beach on a Tuesday....it used to take 45 minutes to an hour
4) Steam room was out of order
5) description said the 2nd bedroom had 2 twin beds but it was actually just one full size bed....really screwed up our sleeping arrangements
6) hair dryer in master bathroom started smoking when turned on/non-functional
7) only one hot tub for entire resort...seats about 5-6 comfortably
8) men’s room in reservation center next to pool smelled so bad of old stale urine that I started dry-heaving...avoid that bathroom at all costs
9) Panhandle Getaways would not allow early check in under any circumstances, which was inconvenient for the handicapped member of our party.