My New Favorite Getaway: Rosemary Beach
Let me tell you about my new absolute favorite place in the U.S., Rosemary Beach. I had no idea this place existed and I was blown away when I spent a bachelorette weekend getaway there this month. It’s the cutest little beach town (105 acres) located on the Gulf Coast in Walton County, Florida. As Visit South Walton describes itself, “Architecturally beautiful and lively, Rosemary Beach, this neo-traditional beach community mixes New Urbanism and West Indies style with pristine beaches, a bustling town square, and award-winning restaurants”. I can vouch that this is a completely accurate description!
I flew into the local airport - Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport (ECP), which surprisingly had no direct flights to Miami (where I am based), but I was able to find a deal with a short layover by looking at Google Flights. I’ve never seen such a quaint crowd at an airport. The people there just exuded Southern charm and hospitality. They were all blond, blue-eyed, and had smiles cheek-to-cheek.
Where to Stay in Rosemary Beach
I’m not sure if this was seasonal or not, but the weekend I was there, we were one of what felt like 50 bachelorette groups. We got lucky though that it still felt like a personal and unique experience. We were also extremely lucky that one of the girls we traveled with had the number for a driver, who we loved so much, he ended up driving us to all of our destinations the entire weekend! The owner’s name is Donovan and his business is GoVetted - they were professional, timely, fun, and trustworthy. Donovan’s team took us from the airport to our VRBO - Mykonos Sunset Villa South of 30-A, 4 Bikes, Sleeps 9, Steps to Gulf/Heated Pool, which was absolutely stunning and a 3-minute walk from the beach.
Here are the rest of my Rosemary Beach, Destin recommendations:
Where to Eat in Rosemary Beach
Pescado Seafood Grill & Rooftop Bar - *make a reservation ahead of time! Pescado offers a dining room, inside bar, and outside rooftop bar overlooking the Gulf of Mexico. Expect extraordinary service and cuisine by Chef Brendan Wakeham. Go early and grab a cocktail at the bar on the first floor with live music on Fridays and Saturdays!
Paradis - *make a reservation ahead of time! Paradis describes itself as “coastal fine dining”, a description I absolutely love and definitely hits home. They’re dedicated to sourcing locally grown products so the menu changes with the seasons.
The Pearl Hotel has a downstairs Havana Beach Bar & Grill restaurant, as well as a rooftop lounge. We went to both and had a great time. If you want to escape the crowd, the downstairs restaurant is a bit less rowdy.
Crabby Steve’s was our home-away-from-home during our stay since we ended up there on three different occasions! Why? Because it’s the perfect destination during the day for morning drinks, lunch, and happy hour. Only accessible from the beach, climb up three flights of outdoor wood stairs and arrive at the wonderful outdoor dive bar with great drinks and good food. We went in our bathing suits and flip-flops.
Cowgirl Kitchen - yes, it’s just as divey as it sounds, and surprisingly delicious. We stumbled in here for breakfast one morning and everything they do is a-m-a-z-i-n-g after a night out. I highly recommend their fresh Bloody Mary, their avocado toast, and their scrambled eggs. Since they don’t have iced coffee (only regular), you may want to stop into 3rd Cup Coffee on your way and get one to go (Cowgirl Kitchen was nice enough to let us bring ours in).
Where to Shop in Rosemary Beach
There’s soooo much more to do and explore in this town and right next door - hopefully there will be a Part II soon to this post!
