Club Destin
Hi DebbieC167:
Just email me and I will be happy to answer any questuions you have about Club Destin and the surrounding area. Restaurants, things to do, shopping, scenic drives, the beach(and there is some important information you need to know about the beach, believe me) I own a week of timeshare there and just got back June 18th, 2007 so I can give you some pretty accuracte and up to date info. I'm thinking of going down there again July 22nd. You can email me.
Pat
Patrick M.
Last edited by patrace on Jun 25, 2007 09:55 PM
patrace wrote:Hi Pat- Please e-mail me and let me know what beaches you recommend, and also what restaurants are good. We were planning on going to Navvare Beach and also Henderson State Park. Also if you can let me know what you think about Club Destin that would be great. Thank, DebbieHi DebbieC167:Just email me and I will be happy to answer any questuions you have about Club Destin and the surrounding area. Restaurants, things to do, shopping, scenic drives, the beach(and there is some important information you need to know about the beach, believe me) I own a week of timeshare there and just got back June 18th, 2007 so I can give you some pretty accuracte and up to date info. I'm thinking of going down there again July 22nd. You can email me at patrace@yahoo.com
Pat
Debbie C.
susies24 wrote:where is the best place to go to the beach. savagesm@msha.com we will be there last week in May thru June 1.Best place to eat? Fun things to do?
Can you let me know how your experience was at Club Destin and the best places to eat, shop, etc. My email is daneq8@hotmail.com We are leaving on Tuesday, April 29th and would appreciate any advice. Thanks for your help.....Denise
Denise J.
denisej57 wrote:Please let me know any information you have about Club Destin. I own a week and have not been there in four years. Also, best restaurants, shopping, entertainment, etc. Thanks....Denise
Hi Denise:
OK Here is the low down on Club Destin and Destin itself from my Perspective. Club Destin Appears to be a renovated Hotel that was turned into a timeshare, or maybe it is not but it appears that way. Now before you panic that is not necessarily a bad thing. It is very clean and they are very hospitable. It is no where near as nice as Wild Dunes appears to be. But if you google Club Destin and check their site you get a pretty accurate description of the place and pictures. Gary Gasper is the Resort Director and Jason Jamison is the Resort Operations Manager and they do everything they can to ensure that you are happy. If you need anything or have any questions do not hesitate to stop by the front desk and ask and they will happily do all they can to help you. Club Destin has a nice indoor heated pool, hot tub, small putting green, shuffleboard court and many table and chairs around the pool. I think they also have WI-fi because I have seen people sitting down there on their laptops. All of this is under cover so the weather won't have a negative effect on it. Club Destin does not have a tennis court or lazy river or nice grounds to go walking around on like some of the more elegant resorts around Destin. However, you don't pay $2500.00 per week to stay at Club Destin either. I myself would rather pay less for a nice place to stay than more for a great place to stay and be able to spend the money left in my pocket that I saved on accomodations on some of the many other fine things around Destin. But that is just me. They also have a movie room just off the lobby that you can pick your choice of movies at the front desk and ask them to play and you can go in and watch it for free. They have a small work out room and a small game room. There are also grills and picnic tables on a small patio out front that you can utilize. There is also a shower out front on the edge of the patio to wash of the sand and/or salt water before you go back up to your room after your time down at the beach. I also believe they have some coin operated washing machines and clothes dryers available, but I have never used them myself so I don't know more about them. I hope that you have at least a 1 bedroom. It will have 1 or maybe 2 bathrooms, the units are different. The main bedroom will have 2 queen size beds. The living room will have a sleeper sofa. Then you will have a kitchen with a full size refridgerator, a stove top, a microwave, a dishwasher, and all the cooking utensils, plates and silverware you should need. All your linen and towels are provided and you can go down right next to the lobby and do a towel exchange daily during set hours which should be in you checkin information packet. If you have a 2 bedroom the other bed room will have a kingsize bed in it and you will also have an oven. If you have an efficiency then you are in trouble because you are going to be very very crowded with 4 people and you should ask for an upgrade to a 1 bedroom ASAP. There is a Walmart 2-3 miles down the road if you turn left coming out of Club Destin onto Highway 98 where you can get your groceries and whatever else. There are a couple of places right next door to Club Destin to the right if you are walking toward highway 98 where you can get swim suits flipflops beach chairs etc. if you need them or you can get those too at Walmart. If you don't feel like cooking in and want a quick close not fancy meal there is a place right in front of Club Destin Called The Destin Diner(kind of like Mel's on the old Happy Days TV show). It is nothing fancy, just a good burger, fries and shake place, oh and good hot fudge sundaes and banana splits, and good breakfast. LOL But check their hours because sometimes they close in the middle of the day and don't stay open until night. Now for places you should go to eat in my humble opinion. You can get directions to these places from them at the front desk. Pompano Joe's-seafood and steak. Dewey Destin's-Seafood. Captain Dave's-seafood and steak. Hogs Breath saloon-the closest thing you will get to BarBQ down there if you like BarBQ.(it can be hit or miss but I've always had good luck with them, good T-shirts for your son.) McGuire's Irish Pub-Great food(steaks, ruebens, what you'd expect with a fun Irish ambiance etc.) and good variety of beers, can get a little on the pricey side though. I guess you should take your son to Fudpuckers-it is a burger joint that the teenagers love. Has bands and T-shirts and stuff they like. I also like a place called the Back Porch which is only about 3/4 of a mile from Club Destin. I like to go there and get steak and shrimp and it has a good view of the ocean. Some don't like it and say that there is nothing special about the food but once again I have had good luck there and they are reasonably priced. Get there early, by the way this is the same pretty much every where, like 4:30 - 5:30 to eat or you could be waiting a while to be seated. AJ's Seafood and Oyster bar-seafood and for the sunset and just some family fun, band in the evening. Understand that there are nicer and fancier places to eat in Destin than these but I also took my son and my consideration was mainly for him and we both enjoyed these palces and I think you will too. Now to the beach. Club Destin has their own private beach access across the street. Use the stop light crossing in front of the resort. Then walk down to the gated entrance and punch in the combination that they will give you at the front desk. You then walk down a walk way to the beach. Jade East Towers will be on your right and Silver Beach Towers on your left. You will probably not have any problems but should they arise knowing how to handle them is the key. Club Destin only has about a 20 foot wide easment down to the water front between these 2 properties. The City of Destin holds that the water line plus 20 feet is public property. Jade East and Silver Beach Towers have what they call beach vendors set up umbrellas and beach chair set ups on their property that they rent out to their guest for $20.00 per day. They, by city ordinance, are not allowed to set these up any closer than 20 feet to the water or they can be cited by the sherrif's department. So you can set your chairs and stuff up in Club Destin's area or in the area within 20 feet of the water, I always set up about 15 feet to be safe, and you are not on their private property. On occasion one of the beach vendors will be a jerk and tell you that you are on private property and that you will have to move or they will remove you or have you arrested. The City of Destin takes a very negative view of these beach vendors harassing their guest and they do not like it. If this were to happen to you do not fight with them. Simply get their name and who they work for and go back across the street to Club Destin and ask for Gary Gasper, who by the way has personal friends in the Sheriff's department, or Jason Jamison and tell them what happened and they will happily call the Sheriff's department who will happily come down and go over and talk to the beach vendor and straighten things out and you will not have any more problems the rest of the week. THIS SHOULD NOT HAPPEN TO YOU BUT IF IT DOES now you know what to do just in case. Just be sure that you are within 15 feet of the water like I do. In all my years going to Destin it has only happened to me once. There is also the Henderson Beach state park just 2-3 miles down the road to the left that I hear is great. I hear that it cost $4 to park your car there and the beach is really nice but I have never been there myself. The constuction going on will be by the City of Destin on Airport road, which is right next to Club Destin, to widen it. Club Destin has 2 entrances to the parking lot on that road and I hear that the construction will make it so that you can only use one of them. That should be your only situation with that. Down the road to the left coming out of Club Destin on Highway 98 about a Block is a place called The Track. Go-carts, Miniature Golf, Bumper Boats, Bungy Jumping, stuff like that if your son is interested. Down the road a few blocks to the right is Big Kahuna's Water Park. There is a place called Shake's Frozen Custard about a block and a half down the road to the right on Highway 98 that I like to walk down to in the evenings and get ice cream at. They are a little pricey but they have really good sundaes and such. Just something else to think about doing at night. If you want to go snorkeling I would recommend considering taking a short cruise on the Nataniel Bowditch. It is a sailboat cruise. If memory serves me right you can bring like your own small cooler with drinks and snacks and it is about 3 hours. He will take you over to a place close to shore where you can go snorkeling, he provides the snorkeling gear, for about 30 minutes to an hour and then you also go on a nice sailing cruise. Call him and ask questions. You can get a Brochure down at the docks by AJ's where he docks. Make sure you take a walk around the dock one day. I usually go down there around 11:30 -12:00 and watch the boats come in from their deep sea fishing charter and check out what everybody caught. You can park somewhere there in AJ's parking lot and walk down. Going on a deep sea fishing charter is something to consider also. Yes, take your son to the Gulfarium. It is about a 30 minute drive but if you like marine life it is as good as you get in this area. Understand that it is small and in no way can it compare to Seaworld but I took my son and we enjoyed it. You might also consider a cruise on the Original Sea Blaster, not the other one. I also recommend one day just taking a relaxing drive down the coast on old Scenic 98 to Seaside. It is a very colorful village type city. It is where they filmed the Truman Show movie with Jim Carrey in it about 10 years ago. Just site see don't buy souveniers as some of the prices can be rediculous. The drive is just beautiful. I also highly recommend that you drive over to Pensacola one day and visit the National Naval Air Museum. The Air force has one in the area too but I'm sorry we have been to both and it just doesn't compare to this one. It also has an IMAX theatre there. I would plan on pretty much the whole day for this trip but it is well worth it and I really think your son would love it. Finally, there is the shopping. All I can say is Destin Commons first and Silver Sands next. More stores than you can shake a stick at between the two of them. OK I've typed my little fingers off and I'm sure I have bored you to death but I'll bet that if you do this stuff when you get back you are going to be in love with Destin. Let me know what you think and I hope to hear back from you if you need anything else and to hear your thoughts about your trip. Pat
Patrick M.