Last week I had the privilege of spending an extended weekend with 23 of my favorite blogger girlfriends in the always beautiful Destin, FL. It's really not fair to call these ladies friends, as I feel that they have become part of my extended family. Brandcation will do that to you!
There's Nicole (
Good Golly Miss Blondie), Joy (
Joyful Musings), Trisha (
MomDot), Lyndsey (
Moscato Mom), Kim (
What's That Smell), MaryBeth (
Baby Savers), Jen (
Life with Levi), Denise (
Shopper Strategy), Maria (
Blogging Babies and The Bayou) and Paula (
Frosted Fingers). I also had the privilege of meeting some of my new favorite people like Mickey (
A Helicopter Mom) and Summer (
Dirty Floor Diaries).
We stayed at the beautiful
Emerald Grande at Harborwalk Village.
All Luxury Condos Include
Spacious Floor Plans
Private Balconies
Daily Maid Service
Large Plush Beds
Flat Screen TV's
Free Wi-Fi
Gourmet Kitchen
Viking Stainless Steel Appliance
Granite Countertops
Relaxing Garden Tub
In Room Safes
Washers/Dryers in every unit
Full Service Concierge
There aren't enough cool things that I can say about this resort but I'm going to try. I've stayed in a
condo in Destin before, which I assume many of you have, but what I liked most about the Emerald Grande was that we never really left the property the entire weekend - and there was more than enough fun things to do (and eat).
Good Eats
Here's list of the restaurants that we dined at during our stay. These are all on the property and within walking distance from your condo. I found the prices to be reasonable and most of the portions that I had were shareable. Ocean views at each weren't too shabby.
La Famiglia, family owned Italian cuisine and pizzeria
Harry T's, seafood and spirits
Starbucks, coffee
Crab Island Cantina, Authentic Gourmet Mexican Food
Water Activities
If you're vacationing in Destin, you're probably looking for fun-in-the-sun. Whether that means catching rays on the beach or Snuba diving (for the more adventurous) Harborwalk Village provides it all.
Snuba Diving and Snorkeling - Destin Snorkel
What is Snuba Diving?
It's a form of shallow water diving where the swimmer uses swimfins, a diving mask, weights, and diving regulator as in scuba diving. The air, however, instead of coming from tanks strapped to the diver's back, comes through a long hose from tanks on pontoon rafts on the surface.
Emerald Grande at Harborwalk Village private beach - The Emerald Grande provides water taxis every 30 minutes to and from their private beach.
Pools - indoor and outdoor
Jet Ski’s
Pontoon Boat rental
Paddleboarding
And more....
Shopping
I have to admit that I'm not a huge shopper however I did pick up a nice sun hat at Dalton & Company in Harborwalk Village. It's nice to know that you forget something at home, there's an excellent chance that you'll find it at one of the 19 retail stores along the way. You can also do your souvenir
shopping there as well.
Family Fun
Although we didn't bring our kids along, I wanted to mention the many activities available to keep your little ones busy.
• Bungee Trampolines - my kids would LOVE this
• Aqua Spheres - like big hamster balls in an inclosed pool for safe fun
• Dual Mechanical Surfboard ride - the Ultimate Surfboard Challenge!
• 500-foot Zip Line - coming soon
• 40-foot Rock Wall - coming soon
• 80' Free Fall - coming soon
• Laser Maze
• Buccaneer Pirate Ship - aaarg!
• JetPack Destin - fly with this water propelled jet pack
• Harbor Launch Water Trampolines
• HarborWalk Village Mining Company- where kids can mine for gems and fossils
• People Painters Airbrush Tattoos
After Hours Fun
The Buccaneer adult pirate cruise was a much anticipated event on our trip. We all wore our own unique pirate attire and finished it off with flashy daggers, swords and pirates hats courtesy of
Flashing Blinky Lights.
As we sailed Destin Harbor and Choctawhatchee Bay, we cut loose and were incorporated into
interesting interactive games; one of which involved plastic wrap and balloons. Honestly, it was all in good fun and we ended the cruise by dancing until our feet hurt.
The Buccaneer also offers family-friendly cruises year round for a more tame atmosphere.
If sailing isn't your thing, there are a few popular clubs all withing walking distance from your condo.
Whether it's a girl's weekend or your family vacation, The Emerald Grande is a fabulous place to stay for your next trip to Destin. Did I mention the spa....
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