Panama City Beach - Fabulous Family vacation

Are you looking for somewhere to go for a weekend getaway? If you are within driving distance of Panama City Beach, FL? You might want to check out this beach town. The beaches are beautiful. Better than Hawaii beaches in my opinion with white sand and easy public access.

Take a Family Vacation to Panama City Beach

Panama City Beach is located in the panhandle of Florida and it is a great family destination, despite what you may hear. Even spring break is a good time to visit since they outlawed drinking on the beaches during the month of March.

Even if you are not within driving distance there is now a new international airport in Panama City Beach that Delta and Southwest Airlines flies into!

Things to do in Panama City Beach

There’s a big recreation center with a little water park and playground at Frank Brown Park. The playground is big and has nice white soft sand for the kids to play in. It’s close enough to the beach that even on hot days there is usually a nice breeze coming off the gulf.

For skating and bowling, you can go to Rock it Lanes. This place in an older shopping center, but the inside looks very new and clean. They have a tot-time on Friday mornings. At the preschool tot-time they can ride around on bikes or scooters and there is a bouncy castle.

There are tons of putt-putt golf places. Coconut Creek was the one we always went to because it offers free golf and maze for kids 6 and under.

Cobra Adventure Park has rides, an arcade, and a large go-cart track. Keep in mind the track is wooden and makes for a bumpy right. They offer a military discount.

Shipwreck – Island Water Park is a great time. There is a little bit of everything that you can expect at a water park. I was surprised how fun this was because driving by it looked tiny. They have done amazing things with the space they have.

Junior Museum of Bay County 1731 Jenks Ave. Panama City, FL 32405 Designed for children in preschool through middle school. Features an early childhood learning center, human biology and nutrition, natural history and a nature trail.

Zooworld – Again, driving by you would never guess how many animals they actually have there. For a smaller zoo, they have many animals including lions and a giraffe.

Gulf World Marine Park – This place has a ton of birds. They do some great shows for the kids. My kids still talk about the bird tricks we saw there. I once saw a bird ride a little bicycle here. You can swim with the dolphins too!

Pier Park – For the shopper in the family, there’s Pier Park, a large outdoor shopping mall. There you will find all kinds of shops like a Nike Factory store, Dillards, and a Loft. Plus, there are lots of restaurants, including a Margaritaville.

Panama City Beach Golf Courses

Panama City Beach and the surrounding area seem to have an endless supply of golf courses.

Camp Creek Golf Club
Holiday Golf Club (they offer an amazing military discount through the Navy base. My husband golfed there for $10)
Hombre Golf Club – Adam Brack offers kids lessons at this course.
Panama City Beach Signal Hill Golf Course
Fox Run Country Club Sandy Creek

Panama City Beach Hotel Recommendations

We like staying at Splash Condominiums. If you want to go back and forth to scenic 30A or Destin then Splash Condominiums will significantly cut down the drive time.

Here’s a video I made the last time we stayed at the Sheraton Bay Point Resort. It should give you a solid idea of what it’s like to stay there.