30a Seaside Vacation Recap
Ah, can someone PLEASE take me back to Seaside!! It's only been a little over a week since we been back from vacation and let me tell you friends, the struggle bus is REAL! I have yet to get my groove back and it seems I am just behind on everything but I am excited to finally have a moment to get this blog post together for you as I know several of you sent me messages asking to recap our trip so here I go with all the details of everything we did while we were there! Also, can we talk a moment to look at my adorable family and how patient they were with me as I wanted to take all the pictures and IG stories to share with you guys! They truly deserve an award for putting up with me! Ha!
We have been to the Florida beaches several times in the past but this was our first time heading into Seaside and I can tell why everyone just loves it there. I instantly fell in love with the area and the community within 30a! Before heading to Seaside, I got tons of recommendations from several friends who have been there in the past and I am so thankful for the suggestions as the area can get overwhelming and it was nice to have an idea of some of the places that we definitely needed to check out. After doing a little research and kind of slacking on booking because I ended up losing the house I originally wanted to rent, we stayed in a cute little condo in the Villages of South Walton and it was literally the perfect spot and within walking distance to so many shops, resturants and a 5 minute walk to the private beach. I also love that me and the boys were able to walk to the little donut stand outside our condos for donuts! Now let me mention, staying at the Villages of South Walton in Seacrest meant that we were pretty far from the Seaside Amphitheater and shopping center so we did drive out there each night and parking is VERY limited so keep that in mind. We ended up always finding a parking spot as it was too far to bicycle.
TIPS TO DO PRIOR TO YOUR ARRIVAL
1. I would definitely pre rent your beach chairs and umbrella if that is what you plan to do. They will put your name on your chairs so when you are ready to hit up the beach, you will know exactly where your section is. Also, not everyone needs a chair. We normally just rent 2 and we all share since not everyone is sitting in the chairs at one time plus it will save you money. On this particular trip, we packed our own chairs and umbrellas since our condo was so close to the beach which is also an option if you don't mine having to carry them down to the beach. They also have stores in Seaside that sell umbrellas that are pretty inexpensive if you decide you want to grab one while you are there. I would suggest if you have little ones that will be playing in the sand that you have an extra umbrella for them to block some of the sun.
2. Rent your bikes ahead of time! Mostly everyone that is visiting Seaside will be riding bikes everywhere. We rode bikes to most places but from where we were staying to the main Seaside area was too far for us to ride our bikes so we did drive down there each night. There is also an option to rent a golf cart too.
3. Make your grocery pit stop before you get to your condo. Most likely, you will pass the local grocery store before turning down into Seaside so I would suggest grabbing any type of groceries you want there as it will be cheaper and you will have more options. There are a few little grocery type stores in the area but they are not fully stocked with everything and the prices are higher. For the most of our trip, we decided not to cook any meals which if you don't want to cook during your vacation, there are TONS of great places to eat within Seaside.
We spent a lot of time at the main area in Seaside when we weren't on the beach and this spot is definitely one place you must check out. There are tons of cute little shops in this area, several food trucks and resturants and also this is where the Seaside Amphitheater is and they have entertainment every night. There were several cute shops in this area and I would highly recommend checking out Duckies which is the cutest toy store if you have little ones with you, Sundog Books which is a very cute little bookstore, and The Seaside Style where they sell the very popular Seaside tee that everyone gets when visiting there.
Outside of all the cute little shops and GORGEOUS homes in Seaside, there are also several great places to eat! On our first night, we had dinner at Great Southern Cafe which is known for their Ya Ya Grits and holy smokes, it was delicious!! Now, I do want to mention that every restaurant will get busy so if you have little ones, I would suggest eating dinner a littler earlier unless you don't mind the wait. We waited about an hour and a half to get seated at Great Southern Cafe but it was definitely worth the wait.
After dinner, there are TONS of various food trucks and vendors and some of our favorites were Frost Bites for snowcones, Five Daughter's Bakery for the paleo donuts, and Raw & Juicy for a delicious green juice!
OTHER GREAT PLACES TO EAT IN 30A
3. The Bay
4. Bud & Alleys - Breakfast or Lunch
7. George's
8. Donut Hole
9. Fonville Press - Breakfast and Coffee
10. Taco Bar
11. LaCocina
Gosh, I could go on and on about Seaside! In general, Seaside is such a family friendly place with tons of things to do and places to eat and we highly recommend planning a trip there! I do want to mention that the prices are higher in Seaside so plan for that if you are feeding a crowd because it can get pricey. I also wanted to mention that there is also the Farmer's Market in Seaside on Saturdays and they open at 9:00am and if you want to get some shopping done, you can also drive into Destin which is about a 25 minute drive and check out the Silver Sand Premium Outlets! I would also suggest downloading the 30a app so you can find out what events are happening during your stay such as music and movie nights for the kids! I hope this blog post was helpful in giving you some recommendations on what to do and where to eat! I also saved all my IG stories from our trip in my travel highlights via Instagram so be sure to check those out too!