Grayton Beach - Family Vacation

The following day, we took a very short ride over to the town of Seaside. It was still decorated for Christmas and very festive. There are so many great shops in Seaside. Sundog Books, the coffee shop, boutiques, toy store, ice-cream shops, market (where a scene from The Truman Show was filmed) and so many more. Bookstores are our favorite, so we frequented Sundog books a lot during our trip. There are Adirondack chairs surrounding the large grassy area, so it is very easy to let the kids run and play while relaxing under the palm trees with your favorite drink. The row of food trucks and other restaurants offer so many options, such as crepes, grilled cheese, BBQ, Greek food, pizza, etc. We took advantage of the crepes this go around. It was such a relaxing day after a long road trip the day before. We wrapped up the night with dinner at our cabin and some board games.

We got up, went to Beach Happy Cafe for a smoothie and hot tea, and decided to find some hiking trails. First, we hiked in the actual Grayton Beach State Park. There is a dune lake there, which is very rare, called Western Lake. The address is actually Santa Rosa Beach, but all of the small beach towns are so close together you don't even know when one ends and the other begins sometimes. We walked the dune trail there and it was beautiful. We then found another small trail in a national forest nearby and walked along that for a while. We weren't on a schedule, so we took our time. There are bikes and golf carts for rent in the area, so those are options as well. The kids wanted to stop at a candy shop in Watercolor (the town where Beach Happy Cafe is located), so we made a stop and perused all the candy in the eclectic little shop. The owner of The Candy Bar was very friendly and helpful! We headed back to the cabin for lunch and a little rest. That evening we went back to Seaside for dinner at Great Southern Cafe. It was so delicious and family friendly. The menu was varied and they have heaters outside so you can enjoy the cool winter evenings in comfort if you prefer to eat outdoors. Afterwards, we walked around the corner to It's Heavenly ice-cream shop for dessert. There is outdoor seating, or you can meander down the pedestrian friendly roads and enjoy your favorite flavor. We went back to the cabin and planned for a beach day tomorrow.

It's a beach day! We picked the day with the highest temperatures to head to the beach for a few hours. The weather was gorgeous, and you can walk from the cabin directly to the beach on a paved road within the state park. We took the boardwalk over the dunes, taking in the sights, and headed for the empty beach. We saw just a couple people walking down the beach during our time there. We flew kites, built sandcastles, played in the water (it was December, remember, so not warm enough to be completely submerged for us Floridians!), and read books from our Sundog Books trip in Seaside. Make sure to bring snacks and sunscreen, because even though it's winter, you can still burn! It was New Year's Eve, so we went back to the cabin, got cleaned up and made our way to Seaside for the fireworks and celebration. In Central Square, they had live music on a stage and tents set up around the area with activities for kids and more. The fireworks display was amazing! They really go all out for this event and it's a neat experience seeing a fireworks display over the water. We ended our day with hot beverages and went back to our cabin to do puzzles that were provided. What a great way to ring in the New Year!

For our last full day, we headed to Alys Beach to walk the Alys Beach Nature Trail and check out the little coastal town. The trail was beautiful and there are several statues along the way you'll want to snap photos of. The town has a very modern and minimalist feel to it with the white buildings set against the blue sky. After our sightseeing time, we headed back to Watersound for lunch at The Big Chill 30A. It's an awesome hangout area with lawn games, lots of outdoor seating, food stands, and big screens for sports lovers. The BBQ sandwiches were fantastic, as was the guacamole, salsa, and chips we found at one of the eateries. There are shops surrounding the courtyard, so it's really a great place for the whole family to enjoy. After we ate and relaxed, we headed to Seaside and enjoyed a frozen chocolate banana from Nigel's. There are so many options for toppings, but we went with the Smore's! It's really a must if you're in Seaside. We made our last rounds to the shops and stopped in at our favorites, then headed back to the cabin for some tree climbing and burgers on the grill. The goal of this vacation was to relax and enjoy spending time together. We visited favorite areas multiple times and got some much-needed rest and relaxation!