480 E Miracle Strip Pkwy · Mary Esther, FL 32569(850) 243-7700  ·  Reservations
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The Gulf House local guide

Fort Walton Beach & Destin

Emerald water, sugar-white sand and a laid-back military town at heart. Here's the stretch of coast we know best, and how we'd spend a few days on it.

Okaloosa IslandFort Walton BeachDestinDrive times
Ten minutes east

Okaloosa Island

Cross the Brooks Bridge and you're on a barrier island with the Gulf on one side and Santa Rosa Sound on the other. Wide public beaches, a long fishing pier and some of the softest sand in Florida.

Sugar-white sand on Okaloosa Island
Beaches

Sugar-white sand

Public beach accesses with boardwalks, restrooms and plenty of room to spread out. Go early on summer weekends.

Okaloosa Island Pier at sunset
Sunset

Okaloosa Island Pier

Walk out over the Gulf for sunset, or cast a line for Spanish mackerel and pompano. Our favorite end to a beach day.

Guests watching a dolphin through an underwater window
Family day

Gulfarium

One of the oldest marine parks in the country, with dolphins, sea lions and penguins. A great pick for kids and rainy afternoons.

Catamaran sailing on the bay at sunset
Our hometown

Fort Walton Beach

Fort Walton is where the locals live: waterfront bars on the Sound, family seafood spots and a downtown with real history. Heritage Park's Indian Temple Mound has stood here for centuries, and Fort Walton Landing hosts concerts and festivals on the water.

It's also proudly a military town. Hurlburt Field sits just west of town and Eglin Air Force Base wraps around us to the north and east, so you'll hear the occasional flyover. Most guests count it as part of the charm.

Military & base stays
About twenty minutes east

Destin

The "World's Luckiest Fishing Village", with a harbor full of charter boats, a famous sandbar and some of the most photographed water on the Gulf Coast.

Pontoon boats anchored at Crab Island
By boat only

Crab Island

HarborWalk Village and Destin Harbor from the water
Destin Harbor

HarborWalk Village

Dune boardwalk at Henderson Beach
State park

Henderson Beach

Fireworks over the harbor
Summer nights

Harbor fireworks

Crab Island

A sandbar in the shallows by the Destin bridge where boats raft up in clear, waist-deep water. Ask us and we'll help you book a pontoon.

HarborWalk & the boardwalk

Waterfront restaurants, dolphin and pirate cruises, and the charter fleet coming home with the day's catch. Summer brings fireworks over the harbor.

Henderson Beach State Park

Dunes, sea oats and boardwalks onto a quiet stretch of undeveloped beach. A calmer alternative to the busier public beaches.

Getting around

Everything's a short drive

Drive times from The Gulf House, updated with live traffic. Tap any place for directions. Summer weekends on Highway 98 can add a little time, so leave early for the beach and late for dinner.

Times are estimates and vary with traffic and route.

Find us

480 E Miracle Strip Pkwy
Mary Esther, FL 32569

On Highway 98 (Miracle Strip Parkway) in Mary Esther, between downtown Fort Walton Beach and Hurlburt Field's main gate. Free on-site parking.

Stay in the loop

Seasonal offers and events, a few times a year.