There’s nothing I enjoy more than travel, except traveling with the people I love, who also love travel!  This is the case with my best friend.  We think alike, plan alike and often order alike.  We were looking for an easy and affordable girls’ getaway.  This year…we wanted beach time!

We decided on Florida’s emerald coast, after Labor Day weekend.  It’s an easy drive for us from Atlanta, the prices for accommodations on the beach drop considerably after Labor Day, the water is beautiful and clear and the fine sand is lovely and bright.   Total cost for our trip was a wallet friendly $350 per person for three nights.

We stayed at the The Palmetto Inn in Panama City Beach.  It was clean, comfortable and affordable with only a swimming pool between us and the beach.  We spent the daytime under a masterfully placed umbrella and comfortably cushioned chairs for an extremely reasonable $30 for two people for a day and a half.  We packed drinks and snacks for our beach time comfort and convenience and ventured out for hearty breakfasts and moderately priced dinners.   We especially enjoyed the friendly service and retro feel at the All American Diner.

Our only complaint about our stay is the lack of sidewalks.  We really like to park the car and walk everywhere to avoid the hassle of parking and lessen the guilt of eating whatever we want.  The Palmetto Inn is up the beach, West of the main eating establishments.   We did walk, but it  felt a bit treacherous at times.  Once we found our destination on Front Beach Rd. we would then find the  nearest public beach access and walk the beach back to the hotel!  So, all told, only half of our walking felt perilous!  That said, I think there will be other trips in the future to the Florida panhandle.