Family of 3 will be there in June for 1 week. Pros & cons to any of these places would be great. Also, have a 14 yr. old & wonder if there is enough to do at Rosemary Beach & that end, E. of Seaside, etc. We've been to Seaside many times but not in last 7 yrs., their cottages are starting to look tired and in need of some TLC. Any advise? Thanks!

My experience is that the 14-year-old boys enjoy the goofy golf and game arcades, the girls the shopping and malls of Panama City Beach. The advantage of Seaside to all those other area developments is the "downtown" area, and the pool. I've not visited Seaside in a couple of years but am curious at your assessment that it's looking "tired". What have you seen? Photos? Have you been through there lately? These other developments are newer for sure but Seaside continues to set the standard.

Thanks, Tandoori Girl. Yes, it has been my assesment of photos on their website (which is sub-par), plus their unwillingness to reply or take an interest; they don't reply to inquiries/questions re: cottages that can't be answered via thier site. So I've come to the conclusion that the other, newer developments are possibly putting them to shame. Seaside is certainly not what it was when it was 1st developed. We haven't stayed there in 7 yrs. and are very sad. Thus, we're searching for other properties. If we're paying $900 for airfare, plus car rental, & another $3,000/wk for cottage, it had better be good!

That's too bad. There's no reason for them to be unaccomodating. Are you using VRBO.com and vacationrentals.com, as well as the Seaside web site? Almost all of the properties are individually owned.

With the teen, I'd be looking for a pool as well as beach, if possible. Sorry I can't give you any more advice. Top your post if it gets too far down on the list. Maybe somebody else has some other observations.

That whole area is going through huge changes, including Panama City Beach which is becoming more upscale with quite a few 30-story condos going up.

Garrett Realty (www.garrettrealty.com) is who I always use for condos in Seagrove (so close to Seaside). I think they have properties in Rosemary as well. They are very reasonable. 5

Thanks again for the info. I knew things were changing. Our 14 yr. old son was one of the main reasons for wanting to stay at Seaside, i.e., beaches, pools, nice & safe community setting, etc. It may well be that Seaside will always monopolize the area. (Also, I do search all the other sites & realtors.)

I live in Tallahassee and frequent the 30A beaches. I also have teenagers. I have found that staying near Seaside, if not in Seaside, is best with teenagers since Seaside does offer more for them to do. We have stayed in Watercolor (next door) and like the amenities. Guests get free bicycles as well as free use of canoes and kayaks for the lake. There is a big pool and towels are provided there. (There is also an adult pool near the boathouse.) There is a nice, mostly shaded, walking trail around the property. The propery is quite large-much bigger than Seaside. There is also a very nice new Publix just outside one of the Watercolor entrances.

Rosemary is beautiful and does have a downtown area with things going on though probably not as much as Seaside.

Watersound is fabulous but a teenager would be bored to tears there. In a few years when the development is further along, that might change.

As was pointed out, Panama City is close and so is Destin which offer lots of entertainment.

Hope this helps.

Thanks to everyone! This has been most helpful!

Topping. Can anyone give updated advice on comparisons among Rosemary, Seaside, Watercolor -- and are there any even better options now? -- for a family with teenagers?

Those areas are all considered part of the Beaches of 30A and all kind of run together with Seaside being the original development. I much prefer them over the Destin area which is the area teenagers prefer--it has all the congestion, shopping and commercial beach stuff that the teens love. If you prefer a gated resort type of vacation, this would not be what you are looking for. In this area, Sandestin is more that type of place.

I prefer to stay outside of Seaside and get a house/condo on the beach side of the street. When my husband and I visited without kids, we used to rent out the beach honeymoon(?)cottages right on the beach--don't know if they call them that-- at Seaside (in the offseason). I just loved those cottages. The beaches here are really my favorite in the whole US

When we travelled with our teens, I decided that I would first choose a place my husband and I wanted to visit--the teens always seemed to adapt. This area has a great bike path that connects the beaches, they love the beach, a pool is always a plus. IT was not our "be busy every minute" vacation. It was oru chill out at the beach vacation. Now, I suppose, you also want to make sure you have internet access--all the cottages seem to offer this. What would they do if they couldn't check their facebook page for a week?

I also found that our teens loved vacationing with family--if they have cousins that are about the same ages. We also travelled with a few other families that had teens the same age. We are totally picky though about friends we vacation with. You can have great friends who just do not make good travelling companions--and if you don't enjoy their children or their style of childrearing--it will drive you crazy.