Seaside/Beaches of South Walton Area

By Catherine O' Neal

Published: March 14, 2008

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Walton County is an anomaly along northwest Florida's Highway 98, a demure sigh between the exciting amusements of Panama City Beach and Destin-Fort Walton Beach. It remained relatively undeveloped for many years. But recently, posh and progressive housing and resort developments have sprung up alongside the natural wilderness. Even with all the new development, however, the beaches along South Walton County will remain largely state-owned and preserved in their natural state of sand pine forest, freshwater lakes, emerald green Gulf waters, and those knock-out, snow-white sand dune beaches.

The serious development began with the town of Seaside, a wildly successful experiment in "new urbanism." The stage set for the movie The Truman Show, it mirrors the perfection of its portrayal with hometown, pedestrian-friendly streets, pastel residential and rental cottages and palaces of Victorian style framed in picket fences, art galleries, an outdoor market, pleasant restaurants, recreation and easily accessible beach.

Sitting at Panama City Beach's doorstep, Seaside couldn't be further away in ideals. And from its cues, the coastline develops in a tone that combines Southern manners with beachside creativity. Rosemary Beach, nearby, follows the same successful blueprint developed by Seaside but instead of Seaside's patent look, Rosemary Beach has gone with a blend of colonial St. Augustine, New Orleans and West Indian styles in natural tones. Like Seaside, it offers vacation rentals to short-term visitors. WaterColor is the latest to follow this pattern with distinctive style.

Heading westward, a continuum of beach communities ranges from the state's oldest beach town, Grayton Beach, to the modern, full-service golf and marina resort of Sandestin and newest beach addition, Watersound. Laced through the 26-mile stretch, parks and preserves provide opportunities for recreation on land and sea, excellent restaurants sharpen the edge on local cuisine, and shopping is unexpectedly varied - from quaint garden shops and antique boutiques to the hautest of couture. Rent a furnished condominium or steal away to a charming bed and breakfast: your perfect getaway awaits you.

Grayton Beach is known for its artists community, which evolved from its hippie days. Nearby Grayton Beach State Park was named America's best beach by coastal geomorphologist Stephen Leatherman, a.k.a. Dr. Beach in 1994. Other area parks include Topsail Hill Preserve State Park, named for its towering dune, and Deer Lake State Park, where you can gaze at the dense range of sand mountains and valleys. Monarch butterflies invade the parks and places of South Walton County every fall en route to migration's end in Mexico. Festivals erupt upon their serendipitous arrival.

Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort has carved its own town out of the coastline. Hotels and condominiums accommodate visitors on the beach, at the marina, near the tennis courts, and around its four championship golf courses. Like a town, it offers shopping centers and restaurants of vast variety. Marina-side, it owes greatly to the area's sailing reputation with a rental fleet and classes for kids. Beautiful Choctawatchee Bay and River lure watersports enthusiasts of every ilk, from anglers and bird-watchers to kayakers and jet-skiers. Overlooking the bay is Sandestin's new Village of Baytowne Wharf, which features specialty shops, restaurants and nightclubs.

Inland, Eden Gardens State Park revolves around a neo-classic plantation-style manor straight out of the pages of Gone With the Wind. Gardens bloom wildly with camellias and azaleas in springtime. Point Washington State Forest boasts 10 miles of trails through its 15,000 acres of sand hill and cypress swamp ecology.

To further escape the 21st century, head north to the Victorian heart of DeFuniak Springs. Home in the 1880s to the humanities-focused Florida Chautauqua Festival, an offshoot of New York's chapter, it retains an air of cultural sophistication in its handsome historic lakeside district of frilly homes and antiques shops. The Chautauqua has been resurrected in recent years, held in February and March. And although Interstate 10 passes by its door, the town remains a picture of the past with more than 150 buildings listed on the National Historic Register. Visit its winery near the interstate or take the short drive to Ponce de Leon Springs State Park, a genteel oaks-shaded park where families cool off in the springs-climatized (constant 68 degrees) swimming hole and picnic along its banks.

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