Panhandle purgatory 2017.. NOW COMPLETE!

[princess allie]

I have also enjoyed reading along, it’s nice to see some places we probably wouldn’t visit (we are probably not adventurous enough and dh doesn’t like too much driving on holiday) but do look very interesting. We have holidayed quite a few times with others and they have all been successful, but we mostly set our own itineraries and only come together for some pool days or for evening meals, it works well for us, but I know doing everything together certainly wouldn’t.

[cornishfrogboy]

Originally Posted by princess allie

I have also enjoyed reading along, it’s nice to see some places we probably wouldn’t visit (we are probably not adventurous enough and dh doesn’t like too much driving on holiday) but do look very interesting. We have holidayed quite a few times with others and they have all been successful, but we mostly set our own itineraries and only come together for some pool days or for evening meals, it works well for us, but I know doing everything together certainly wouldn’t.

See more...

With hindsight, separate itineraries but with some ‘together’ days is a good option and in fact how the vacation evolved.

We have done straightforward Orlando vacations with others, flying out and back together, but in separate accommodations. They also were not without snags!

I believe that because of what we seek, we are destined to do it alone in future!

[disneywiseowl]

Did you go to Seaside when you stayed in Destin? Weird architecture.

If you do go back in 2022, you might be interested in a boat trip from Panama City. (You did say, you like research/new places Lol).It’s only about an hour from Destin or you could just stay local.
We booked through watersportspc.

We went in 2017 (stayed in Cape San Blas) & it was a wonderful experience which I’ll never forget. We had a private tour with Captain Jen (so we could take the dog) & my daughter telephoned & got a good discount.

Here’s 2 photos so you can see why we loved it so much:

It was a huge pod of dolphins, they were everywhere, performing aerial gymnastics etc.

[cornishfrogboy]

Originally Posted by disneywiseowl

Did you go to Seaside when you stayed in Destin? Weird architecture.

If you do go back in 2022, you might be interested in a boat trip from Panama City. (You did say, you like research/new places Lol).It’s only about an hour from Destin or you could just stay local.
We booked through watersportspc.

We went in 2017 (stayed in Cape San Blas) & it was a wonderful experience which I’ll never forget. We had a private tour with Captain Jen (so we could take the dog) & my daughter telephoned & got a good discount.

Here’s 2 photos so you can see why we loved it so much:

It was a huge pod of dolphins, they were everywhere, performing aerial gymnastics etc.

See more...

They are great pictures.

When we went to Destin, we drove past the main city as Henderson State Park is on the East Side as you leave. Whilst we could see the built up area in the distance, along the beach, we never went that way again, preferring quieter beaches to busier ones. Henderson is really special, yet only a few miles from very built up Destin City.

Ann, Gary and George went back that way on the day we went to Eglin AFB, walked the boardwalk etc, but just like us got utterly and totally washed out by the very heavy rains and had the experience severely compromised.
The plan had been to have a good look at the City, after our day at Crab Island and have our evening meal there.. but clearly that event never took place.

Panama City was actually on my originally drawn up plan at the expense of one of the Orlando days/nights. But the group decision was to press on through to Tampa, then Orlando. As the other party had never been there. Maybe next time!

The Panhandle is a lovely place and I would recommend it to anybody. The only snag is distance, when you consider that imho many of the beaches south of St Pete’s are equally good.. and a whole lot closer to Orlando, the primary destination of perhaps, 95% of British visitors to Florida. The Panhandle came our way because..
1. Pensacola NAS Museum.
2. USS Alabama
3. Crab Island boating.
4. Our long held preference for ‘ribbon vacations’ , allied with having done Orlando to death (obviously not Disney fans in any way), seeking Florida Sun and weather, non the less. If we had not gone this way, then it would have been ‘fly into Key West then meander up the Tamiami and across to finish at Orlando… but we have done all that before. It was about ‘new ground’.
It is also worth adding that had it just been us, then there would have been more Panhandle and just, maybe 5 days in Orlando.. hence our restricted theme park choice (no Universal).

The Dolphins look great. Off Monterey in 2018, we saw a pod of over 500 plus Rizzo’s Dolphins and it was amazing. We also have a very regular pod of around 40 off the Cornish Coast that we see from time to time.

[disneywiseowl]

We like ‘ribbon’ vacations too! On the 2017 vacation, eldest daughter & I flew to New Orleans (for a week), then I drove to Cape San Blas (without a satnav) - the hire car’s didnt work but I had a road map (I often boast about this. Lol). Youngest daughter & puppy drove down from Virginia to join us. Week in a beach house, then we drove to Savannah ❤️ for a few days, then youngest went home & I drove to Atlanta for last few days. One of our best holidays.
I am now considering doing something similar with my husband as he’d love the military stuff in the Panhandle area but I’m sort of on a mission to visit as many states as possible so I’m looking at middle USA. Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma etc but the driving distances are huge. We are retired so can stay for longer but I sort of resent wasting whole days travelling if you know what I mean.

[cornishfrogboy]

Originally Posted by disneywiseowl

We like ‘ribbon’ vacations too! On the 2017 vacation, eldest daughter & I flew to New Orleans (for a week), then I drove to Cape San Blas (without a satnav) - the hire car’s didnt work but I had a road map (I often boast about this. Lol). Youngest daughter & puppy drove down from Virginia to join us. Week in a beach house, then we drove to Savannah ❤️ for a few days, then youngest went home & I drove to Atlanta for last few days. One of our best holidays.
I am now considering doing something similar with my husband as he’d love the military stuff in the Panhandle area but I’m sort of on a mission to visit as many states as possible so I’m looking at middle USA. Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma etc but the driving distances are huge. We are retired so can stay for longer but I sort of resent wasting whole days travelling if you know what I mean.

See more...

Your ideals are identical to ours.
This year it is (hopefully), SFO, Monterey, Madonna Inn, Pismo Beach, Universal City, Tucson (for Davis Monthan), Tombstone (Horseriding and Gunfight) , Winslow (To ‘take it easy’ with Jackson Browne, Eagles etc), Grand Canyon, Hoover Dam, Vegas... you will see the pre trip in my signature.

If there are only the two of you, do you consider some regional flights?
In the forthcoming one, we are dumping a car hire at Burbank, flying to Tucson and there, picking up another one.

On our last, we flew La Guardia to Dayton OH ( let your DH have a look at that one in my signature, if he likes aircraft!) and then from Cincinatti to Orlando after using a hire car in between. Neither flight was more than £80 pp (we were all hand baggage only).

We tend to mix up car hires, planes and trains, depending on which works best, for example Boston to NY works far better, better value and quicker on the AMTRAC than on a plane when you look at it as accommodation to accommodation... and save us needing a hire car at all.

[disneywiseowl]

I looked at internal flights as we really wanted to visit New Mexico. Our daughters have been to that area, Santa Fe & Taos etc & said we’d love it but the flights are indirect & expensive. I think we may have to forget New Mexico & head to San Antonio (for DH) & then North.

When we did the Pacific coast, we flew into L.A., stayed overnight & got the Coast Starlight train to SF. My DH loves trains so it was for him mostly but we thought it would enable us both to see the scenery as the car driver has to really concentrate on the PCH. Long trip - bout 11hrs but we had an en-suite couchette & nice meals included & it was quite nice to relax after travel day - instead of the early morning rush to a theme park.

Apologies if you already know - but the Thurs evening farmers market in SLO is fun, if you’re there on that date.

[cornishfrogboy]

Originally Posted by disneywiseowl

I looked at internal flights as we really wanted to visit New Mexico. Our daughters have been to that area, Santa Fe & Taos etc & said we’d love it but the flights are indirect & expensive. I think we may have to forget New Mexico & head to San Antonio (for DH) & then North.

When we did the Pacific coast, we flew into L.A., stayed overnight & got the Coast Starlight train to SF. My DH loves trains so it was for him mostly but we thought it would enable us both to see the scenery as the car driver has to really concentrate on the PCH. Long trip - bout 11hrs but we had an en-suite couchette & nice meals included & it was quite nice to relax after travel day - instead of the early morning rush to a theme park.

Apologies if you already know - but the Thurs evening farmers market in SLO is fun, if you’re there on that date.

See more...

We have been made aware of the farmers market, but unfortunately are there on Sunday and Monday.

Re New Mexico and the general area, Phoenix and Tucson are both around £70pp on average out of Burbank and even cheaper out of LAX, hence out hankering for Tombstone, Davis Monthan etc. Of course, Santa Fe is some distance further from Tombstone... like a 7.5 hour drive further!

Has your DH had a look at the USAF Museum, Dayton OH yet? Not too far away are Indianapolis Speedway, Cincinatti and...the Creationists reconstruction of Noahs Ark.. complete with the birds, the bees … and the Dinosaurs!

[disneywiseowl]

No, I don’t tell him anything until we get there. He might want to interfere with my planning. Lol. Seriously, he’s a bit more interested now but he used to have a very ‘busy’ job & only knew where we were going when we got to the airport. - I used to pack for him as well. 😂

I do like your last suggestion though - we haven’t been to Ohio so it is on the list.

[cornishfrogboy]

Originally Posted by disneywiseowl

No, I don’t tell him anything until we get there. He might want to interfere with my planning. Lol. Seriously, he’s a bit more interested now but he used to have a very ‘busy’ job & only knew where we were going when we got to the airport. - I used to pack for him as well. 😂

I do like your last suggestion though - we haven’t been to Ohio so it is on the list.

See more...

Mandie described it as the first time she had felt that she was in ‘real America’. It was strange to go in Golden Coral and to realise that the drinks waitresses knew practically everybody in there.
We really loved it there, although we cannot really explain why, other than we were absolutely off the beaten track. We didn’t feel that in Boston, NY, D.C., Florida or California.