What to do after Power Tour, Florida or Texas?

[200WINS]

After Power Tour We are thinking about spending a couple of days or so along the Gulf Coast. My wife has never been along an ocean before. Any suggestions for a quiet beach to relax on before heading home? We were thinking around Pensacola or to head towards Texas??

[Orange95Z]

If it were me I'd head a little further east to the Ft. Walton/Destin, Fl. area.

[MikeInMobileAL]

After Power Tour We are thinking about spending a couple of days or so along the Gulf Coast. My wife has never been along an ocean before. Any suggestions for a quiet beach to relax on before heading home? We were thinking around Pensacola or to head towards Texas??

As someone from this area, here are some suggestions and some possible things to see along the way. I dont know your tastes, so some of the stops may not be what you're looking for.

Heading an hour south from Mobile on the east side of Mobile Bay takes you down to Gulf Shores AL and Gulf State Park. Beautiful public beaches and State Park beaches, hotels, condos, etc, and lots of people on a summer weekend, not so crowded on a summer weekday.

Heading 30 min east from Gulf Shores along the beach takes you past the legendary Flora-Bama Lounge into FL at Perdido Key State Park. Pretty much no development at all for several miles at the State Park, beautiful dunes and beaches. Quieter, more secluded because of the dunes and because parking is limited to certain areas, the further you walk down the beach from the parking area, the fewer people you see, and not quite so many people as Gulf Shores.

Heading an hour east from Perdido Key takes you inland past NAS Pensacola and the National Naval Aviation Museum, through downtown Pensacola, then south across Pensacola Bay and into Pensacola Beach at Gulf Breeze FL. Really crowded on a summer weekend, not so much on a summer weekday. Hundreds of miles of FL beaches begin there and go east.

Heading an hour west from Mobile takes you into MS. When you get to Biloxi MS, go south to Hwy 90 and drive along the beach past Beauvoir, the Jefferson Davis Presidential Library and Museum, and the casinos. Not really quiet beaches on a summer weekend, and the highway is only a few hundred feet from the water all the way through MS, so not really private at all.

Hope this helps.
Mike

[Vsolo]

After Power Tour We are thinking about spending a couple of days or so along the Gulf Coast. My wife has never been along an ocean before. Any suggestions for a quiet beach to relax on before heading home? We were thinking around Pensacola or to head towards Texas??

It's not an ocean, it's the gulf
When I was down there I was all confused, I grew up in Boston so the ocean (ok ok that bay haha) ran north to south.. Were as the gulf in FL,AL, MS runs West & East, so I'd be driving west thinking I was going north. did that make sense ?

Don't get me started on Tampahahaha It was all backwards from what I knew ;)

Pensacola has some really nice beaches too. http://www.visitpensacolabeach.com/

I'm not sure what is nice in Mississippi since I have not been down there after the recent hurricanes.
Fort Walton Beach http://www.destin-fwb.com/ & Destin, FL http://www.destincam.com/ has some nice beaches too.

I'll see if I can find any info (see above) if not Google it.

Also I agree with the post above, it has been over 30 years since I have been where they are talking about & it was nice back then. Well I guess he would know since his name is MikeInMobileAL I did not see his post till after I posted my post

Oh by the way that area is called the Red Neck Riviera I have had all of fun there in the past, come to think of it, I was in my same Camaro down there in 1976 & once again in the 80's. Local folks are real nice, even to a Yankee :D

[oletrux4evr]

If it were me I'd head a little further east to the Ft. Walton/Destin, Fl. area.

X2, or 3, or 4.

[BluLightning]

I think we might head to New Orleans for a couple days and maybe our Cajun friends can show us around.

[MikeInMobileAL]

It's not an ocean, it's the gulf
When I was down there I was all confused, I grew up in Boston so the ocean (ok ok that bay haha) ran north to south.. Were as the gulf in FL,AL, MS runs West & East, so I'd be driving west thinking I was going north. did that make sense ?

Don't get me started on Tampahahaha It was all backwards from what I knew ;)

Pensacola has some really nice beaches too. http://www.visitpensacolabeach.com/

I'm not sure what is nice in Mississippi since I have not been down there after the recent hurricanes.
Fort Walton Beach http://www.destin-fwb.com/ & Destin, FL http://www.destincam.com/ has some nice beaches too.

I'll see if I can find any info (see above) if not Google it.

Also I agree with the post above, it has been over 30 years since I have been where they are talking about & it was nice back then. Well I guess he would know since his name is MikeInMobileAL I did not see his post till after I posted my post

Oh by the way that area is called the Red Neck Riviera I have had all of fun there in the past, come to think of it, I was in my same Camaro down there in 1976 & once again in the 80's. Local folks are real nice, even to a Yankee :D

The MS coast has come a long way since Katrina. Pretty much the entire coast south of I-10 in most areas, and some areas north of I-10, was of course, flooded by the storm surge. Some areas were wiped out entirely, some just had flood damage. The casinos, previously confined to floating barges that were almost all destroyed in the surge, convinced the state that they wouldnt rebuild unless allowed to build on land. The state agreed and the casinos rebuilt pretty fast. Businesses have slowly come back, residences were slower to rebuild, and there is still LOTS of property available in the surge plain, but overall its getting back to normal over there.

Ah, the Alabama Redneck Riviera. The affordable getaway for the everyman. Unfortunately, that picture of Redneck bliss has slowly been changed over the years as the small beach cottages, beach houses, and drive up Motels that were the haven of Rednecks of all income levels have been bought up, torn down, and multiple clusters of multiple story multiple digit multiple flat screen concrete condo towers have taken their places. Maybe affordable if you own a hardware store or the like. Maybe not so affordable if you work in one.

I agree about Pensacola Beach. You cant go wrong with FL beaches.

Mike

[200WINS]

It's not an ocean, it's the gulf
Local folks are real nice, even to a Yankee :D
[/quote]

I knew when I post this that I was running the risk of being caught on the correct naming of the large body of water between Texas and Florida. Is the Gulf salt water?
Its good to know local folks are nice even to a Yankee.
I have been to the "ocean" at Daytona Beach and Coco Beach back in 2000 when I attended the July race at Daytona.
Thanks to all the suggestions, we will continue to check things out.

[oletrux4evr]

I think we might head to New Orleans for a couple days and maybe our Cajun friends can show us around.

I'm hoping Ray and Blake have a plan....we're heading West too, but will try to make it back to Kansas by Monday.

[RAIV70Judge]

Wish we had more time after PT, but we will have to rush back to get to work!!!