14 Easy Weekend Getaways 02
Destin, Fla.
EASY GETAWAY FROM Atlanta; Charlotte, N.C.; Dallas; Houston; Miami; Niagara Falls, N.Y.
WHAT YOU GET Emerald-green surf, Southern charm, family-friendly everything, dolphins frolicking offshore.
WHY NOW Even though its sugar-white beaches were largely unspoiled by the Gulf of Mexico oil spill last year, tourism came to a standstill at this laid-back resort town on Florida’s upper northwest coast. While visitors are now on the upswing — thanks in part to aggressive marketing efforts — rates remain low with hotels offering discounts of as much as 20 percent, according to Mark Bellinger, chief executive of the Emerald Coast Convention and Visitors Bureau. “There are a lot more package plans — stay two nights, get the third night free,” he said, and hotels are throwing in extras like golf or half a day of fishing to entice guests. Destin is also easier to get to thanks to Vision Airlines, a new low-fare carrier that will begin nonstop service March 25 to Northwest Florida Regional Airport from 13 markets including Little Rock, Ark., Louisville, Ky., and Asheville, N.C., with rates as low as $79 each way. It plans to add more routes by April 1.
WHERE TO STAY Jetty East Condominiums (jettyeast.net) is a beachfront condo-hotel with one-bedrooms from $137 a night on weekends in March and April. Sterling Shores condominiums (sterlingresorts.com) has a 4,300-square-foot lagoon-style pool, a 42-seat surround-sound theater and one-bedrooms from $169 a night. Looking for a more resort village feel? Eight miles east of Destin, the Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort (www.sandestin.com), a 2,400-acre family resort, has two-bedroom villas from $139 a night if booked 21 days ahead.
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