We are planning a trip with our 3 small children for late in May and would like to get opinions on these three. We are driving from Houston, so distance is a consideration. Just looking for nice beaches, and suggested places to stay.
thanks!
Gulf Shores, Orange Beach or Seaside?
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It's my understanding that much of Gulf Shores and Orange Beach are still under reconstruction because of the hurricane.
You probably should check before making plans for either of your first two options.
Seaside is up and running the other two had much more devastation.
We were at Seagrove Beach (right next to Seaside) last spring....LOVED it! Have been to Gulf Shores in the past, but never felt a burning desire to return. On the other hand, we would very much like to go back to Seagrove sometime. A very nice, broad beach. We had an excellent, on-the-ocean-with-a-view condo that I found on VRBO.
We've been getting lots of advertisements from both AL & FL panhandle beach areas looking for tourists to return. I think you can find something open in any of the places you are looking. Seaside/Seagrove/Seacrest/Grayton, etc are my favorites of the 3 options. Beautiful beaches, quiet areas, no huge highrises and just a quaint area in general. I've been to Perdido Key/Orange Beach once and stayed at the Perdido Beach Resort - a highrise, which I generally dislike, but very nice.
(I'm not trying to offend any AL residents!!)
Never been to Gulf Shores. Other than my one trip to Perdido - I don't consider it "the beach" until I hit Florida!
For info try:
www.perdidobeachresort.com
www.unwindonthegulf.com
www.cariberesort.com
www.beachfamilygetaway.net
www.graytonbeach.com
www.cabanaman.com
The Perdido Beach Resort (which I love too) apparently was badly damaged and is still undergoing reconstruction.
According to the website, Perdido Beach Resort will open March 10th.
The Alabama/ Pensacola, Florida areas were hard hit by Hurricane Ivan. By now this may not be as much of a problem, but at one point officials were warning about debris embedded in the sand, cautioning people to wear shoes on the beach. With small children that might be a concern. I'd suggest going further east. The Destin area is very nice and it just gets better as you continue east.
Here's a good article from the Times Picayune in N.O. from 2/20. It talks about the debris in the sand. I wish you could see the pictures. Though, it broke my heart so anyone in love with that area is better off NOT seeing it.
Seems like that work will be done by May. Though if you can stand the longer drive, I still vote for Seaside!
http://www.nola.com/news/t-p/frontpage/index.ssf?/base/news-3/1108884031180510.xml
I live very near G.S.--That said- on any given day I would rec. Seaside /SeaGrove and my favorite Grayton Bch. You must try The Red Bar / Picolos in Grayton Bch--Good for kids too. GB is the classic wide beach. not unlike Daytona-you can even drive on it!
http://www.graytonbeach.com/redbar.html
Gulf Shores and Orange Beach still have lots of damage and the beaches are not up to par. So among your three choices, Seaside is farther east from damage central and would be the best choice. Seagrove is also a good choice --anything from Grayton Beach to just short of Panama City should be ok. Even when there hasn''t been a hurrican, the farther east you go along the panhandle, the better the water and sand. That said, our family returns year after year to Navarre Beach. It took a hit, so we may not go this year. But its beautiful, quiet, uncrowded.