A Dream Family Vacation in Destin, Florida
Posted in Destin on February 7, 2012
White sand beaches, deep sea fishing, and family friendly activities make Destin, Florida a great place for a family beach vacation. Destin is located on the Gulf Coast in between Pensacola and Panama City Beach. We live in Pensacola so a drive to Destin is just a short hour away for my family. We day trip over often and go shopping. Sometimes we play in the sand or meet up for a lunch with family. Every year, my husband and I talk about spending a week in Destin but we always seem to find a reason not to. I am hoping that this will be the year and I have been dreaming about getting a vacation rental right on the beach.
A Beach Rental to Call Home for a Week
The vacation home that we stay in doesn’t have to be huge, but I want it to be the perfect beach house. My dream family vacation will be spent in one of those beach homes with a large wraparound porch and a fun name like Tangerine Dream or Take me to the Sea. I want to wake up to the sun shining through my open balcony doors. I want to watch my kids run just a few steps from our door to the shore to splash in the water and build sand castles. After a long beach day, napping in a hammock would be the perfect way to spend an afternoon. I want to fall asleep late at night to the sound of the waves crashing.
One Way We Save While on a Dream Family Vacation
All of that seems so dreamy but expenses for a trip like this, even for a long weekend, can add up quickly. One of our biggest expenses when we travel together as a family is food. Now that my kids are older, sharing a meal between the two of them or eating off of my plate is no longer an option. We can’t get out of a fast food restaurant for less than $25 lately. If we are enjoying a nicer sit -down dinner, it usually costs us twice that. These meals can add up quickly.
To help defray the costs of our meals, we look for a vacation rental when we are choosing our accommodations. Most all rentals come with a fully equipped kitchen and a large refrigerator to hold all of our supplies. Purchasing our food at the grocery store and cooking it in the vacation home helps us save some money. But, who wants the same old meals on vacation that you cook at home?
Eating in Doesn’t Have to Make it Less of a Vacation for Mom and Dad
Use the vacation as a time to experiment with new meals. Give each day a different theme and make meals that go with that theme. Visit the butcher or fish market for a local delicacy and learn how to cook it just right together as a family.
Meal time is a family affair and being on vacation is no exception. We have fun cooking as a family and everyone is in charge of the cleanup. This helps me feel like I am on vacation too and not just cleaning dishes all week! We can grab a quick breakfast of cereal and milk and get out to the beach. If we have more time, we can cook an elaborate breakfast with all of our favorites like pancakes, eggs, and bacon. Picnic lunches can be packed to take with us on hikes or boat rides. We can enjoy a leisurely dinner on that wraparound porch while watching the sun set.
When we stay in a hotel, we often find ourselves choosing the least expensive food options and we miss out on a lot of great restaurants. We save money by eating in for many of our meals and that enables us to splurge on a nice dinner out. Eating our meals at home also allows us to try things that we might have otherwise skipped due to cost. While on this dream vacation to Destin, Florida, we would have room in the budget to try some new activities. I would like to take the kids on a dolphin cruise. We could rent a boat and cruise out to the popular sandbar at Crab Island, where we can dock and let the kids play. We might finally take them to Big Kahuna’s, the local water park on Hwy. 98, that we drive by at least once a month with the kids pointing it out from the backseat.
How do you think I will look in a parasail?
This post is sponsored by HomeAway, which offers the world’s largest selection of vacation rental properties online.
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