To Destin in July or Not

Oh, I feel for you... We just had to make this decision. We opted to not go to Gulf Shores, AL. It wasn't only because we wouldn't be able to go to the beach, because we were okay with sticking to the pool. Our main concern was the air quality. My youngest daughter is almost two and has asthma. I talked with her doctor about it and she advised us not to go because of the fumes from the oil. Talk with your OB and see if they have an opinion. I wouldn't be comfortable going. Anything that you breathe the baby breathes. If it's not okay for a toddler with asthma, it can't be good for your baby. We had a really hard time finding something else on short notice, not to mention trying to change our airfare and rental car, etc. Good luck and have a great vacation... wherever you go!

We cancelled our 4th of July week to Destin a little over a week ago. We were just so worried that we were going to spend all that money and then get there and not even be able to play on the beach. We opted for the Ocean Hammock Beach Resort at Cinnamon Beach in Palm Coast, FL. It's on the Atlantic coast. About 15 miles from St. Augustine. The sand is the color of cinnamon. It looks really nice. We are traveling with my brother and his family and none of us have ever been to the east coast before. We are very partial to the beautiful emerald coast at the Gulf. It will be a new experience for all of us. =0)
With your little one and especially with you expecting, it may be safest to make a Plan B. Something where you can relax and enjoy your vacation to the fullest. After all, it may be your last vacation as a family of 3! =0) You don't want to spend that precious time worrying about the safety of your babies. Ya know? You want to be able to sit back, relax, and enjoy yourselves.

I don't know about July.... However, I have 2 family members and 1 friend who have been to SanDestin (Hilton Sandestin Golf Resort and Spa...our favorite spot 2-3 times a year) and SO FAR no oil, small or tar balls.

These families were all there within the last 1 week.

My friends family lives there and they said (just a couple of days ago) no oil there.

Our family has a place in Sandestin and while I hate to hurt the economy down there...I am also scared of the oil. I am 6 months pregnant with my 3rd and I am supposed to go back a lot this summer. I too may decide not to go. I am worried about the air and even if there is no oil on the beach, we know it is in the water. I love the ocean and going there and spending the whole time in the pool seems silly to me. We can do that here.

That said, I heard a lot of places are doing last minute cancellations with no fees. You might want to wait and see....I have a lot of friends doing that.

You are right, you can't guess about the future - but the next few months will more than likely be an easy guess. The oil is still spilling out now, so my 'guess' would be that the water and beaches are going to get much worse before they get better in the near future.

My family had plans to go to Gulf Shores in August and we are cancelling. I certainly do not want to expose my children to carcinogens in the water. If you are pregnant, I would not take a chance.

We have 7, 4 and 2-1/2 yr olds and will be planning day excursions around North Texas .. Heck, we may even head down to Austin, San Antonio or Houston for a few days. Its certainly not a beach vacation, but I am excited.

If you must go to the beach, I would head to the west coast :) Have a great summer. Take care!

think of YOUR family. You may not be able to see the oil, but is there an oily film on the water?? Just keep Destin as some good memories and make some new ones elsewhere with your family. Especially with your unborn baby, I would be cautious and not go there, remember our skin is the largest organ of our body and it absorbs things through it. Why possibly harm your unborn baby or even put an odd chance ten years down the road for him/her??? Better safe than sorry and worried. Put your mind at ease and go elsewhere, make new memories. :)

We are having the exact same dilemma, except we are going to see family a bit farther east and hoping the oil won't quite get there. However, after the announcements this week that oil is likely to his Panama city/destin area soon i realize it is unlikely. We haven't totally canceled our trip either but i spent most of yesterday looking at flights and drive times to Corpus or South Padre. I agree with other posters that it might be a good time to do a 'staycation' or something closer to home. It is so depressing because the housing and economic crisis was very hard on the gulf coast, and now this is ruining yet another tourist season.
If you do decide to go to the Destin area, I would strongly suggest you try Sandestin Resort. They have so much to do away from the beach (lots of pools, restaurants, play areas, etc.) that you could avoid the 'beachside' altogether and still have a fun vacation.

We cancelled out trip to Florida on the Atlantic side only b/c the hotel required 30 days notice, and we were booked for mid July. So we had to make a call on it. I saw a lot of the hotels back in early June, offering a special guarentee called Clean Beach refund on the Destin/Fort Walton side. You might ask about that. We are redirecting our vacation now to Galveston - I know, it's no Destin, but the money we are saving on airfare, is being used for an awsome breachfront rental. I personally wouldn't risk it being 15 weeks along, but then again, I didn't let the bug guy spray the inside of my house during my pregnancy... :-)

I heard on the radio that they have closed Destin beaches because of the incoming oil.

Hello,

Two of my friends have cancelled their trips to Destin in July. One has a child with asthma, and is very worried about the air quality, and the other one heard that the oil is more than likely going to hit there in the next several weeks. I have no idea if this is true or not, but with the oil spill being so close, I would be nervous. We usually go to Destin in the summer, but this year we are going to Puerto Rico. I am PG as well and if I had the trip planned, I would more than likely cancel. This website updates the conditions on a daily basis, and posts pictures of the beach:

http://destinoilspill.com/

Good luck!

Hey -
I am from the Gulf Coast and I find this so devastating, but honestly, I would not go now. It's not just about oil being on the beach - it's about all the animals that the oil is killing further out from shore. They could potentially wash up on the beach as well. It's just not a healthy choice right now.

Good luck!
L.

We were in your shoes a month ago. We leave for Destin this Friday. You can't predict the future, but you can cancel a hotel reservation. Go ahead and line up another trip, just in case, but don't count Destin out just yet. Our worry was because we are staying in a condo, which can't just be cancelled at the last minute, but thankfully the owner is willing to let us cancel anytime with refund. You can make 2 hotel reservations and then just cancel the one you won't be using. Good luck in your decision!

We, too were considering our first trip to Destin or Gulf Shores this year. I am sad on so many levels for what has happened in the gulf and that we probably won't go. Yesterday I saw an ad on television...it was from the Florida tourism board (or whatever they're called). You can go to their website for daily updates. As of yesterday there was little oil on the beaches but they were warning to not go into the water. I was there years ago (before my kids were born) and that was one appealing thing--that we would actually be able to swim in cleaner water than we have here (i.e. not brown-ish all the time). We live close enough to Galveston that if all we want to do is go play in the sand we will save our travel time and $$ for Destin and probably just go to our Texas beaches. I guess my point is that the tourism councils in these states are on top of thing--as you'd expect--and their websites may be able to help you make your decision. Good luck!

Well, I will have a totally different answer than everyone else, it seems. I posted this exact same question 2 weeks ago. We have reservations at a condo in Destin for August, even later than yours, and so the likelihood, it appears, seems greater that the oil will be there by then. Everyone's answer, like yours here, said to not go for all the reasons stated. They're very valid reasons and ones I'm still considering.

However, as of today, we're not canceling. We feel the Gulf areas rely on tourism for $$. This is hitting them hard. It's sad. As of now, we're going to stay with our plans, pray for the best, support our "neighbors" and use this vacation as a learning tool. My kids are 2 and 4. My 2YO doesn't know what's going on, but I've already explained to my 4YO that there's been a horrible thing that's happened to God's waters, this is what's going on, this is why, this is what we should do to help, etc.

We've still got the option of last-minute canceling (if the air quality is too harsh) and we have the option in our condo of pool-swimming and a lazy river, plus there's Sandestin not too far away for other activities.

There's my 2 cents. Good luck with your decision and have a great summer no matter where you end up!

I agree with Jenny. Call your hotel and ask if you can do a last minute cancellation because you really do want to come but are scared about the oil. Also call around in other areas and see if they are willing to do the same so you can have a fallback. EVERYBODY understands! Destin is one of the most beautiful places on earth and I can't imagine not going this summer!

M.