I had the chance to travel to South Walton Beach (disclosure: expenses paid) to check out Hilton Sandestin Golf Resort & Spa. This was a little different than my previous travels for the blog because we were able to bring a child! This was such a great idea because I can always travel to different locations by myself and imagine bringing my family there, but it was so much easier to see how family-friendly the resort is with my son there experiencing it for himself.
So, my little man Colton and I were able to take a quick, much-needed vacation. This was the only time Colton has had a little one-on-one time since his siblings arrived. I know that alone time doing something fun is so important for each of the kids to have.
We arrived on the beautiful Hilton grounds and checked into our Deluxe Junior Suite. It was spacious and featured a comfy king bed, sofa sleeper and bunk beds! These bunk beds were in their own little nook, which I think is a big plus. Many of the families I know have more than two kids, so it would be a great idea in the future for Hilton to add rooms with two sets of bunk beds rather than a sofa sleeper. The only drawback about the current sleeping situation is I know we would have some fighting over who gets to sleep in the bunk beds over the sofa sleeper next to mom and dad!
Each Junior suite comes with a full or partial view of the clear blue waters of the Gulf of Mexico. The water color and clarity and white sandy beaches is something that surprised me about Fort Walton. I’ve been to Florida before, but I definitely don’t remember the beaches being this bright and beautiful!
Hilton Sandestin Golf Resort & Spa is definitely a family-friendly resort. There were many families of all ages enjoying their vacation time when we were there.
I encourage you to take advantage of Hilton’s kid’s program: Kids Krew and Kids Night Out for kids aged 5-12. I can never fully relax on a family vacation and I bet you other moms know what I’m talking about. Kids Krew allows you to relax on the beach or have a nice date with the hubby.
Colton was a little nervous going by himself to Kids Krew at first, but he quickly warmed up and was having fun with the kids and counselors (I will go into more detail about Kids Krew in a future post).
There are many lounge chairs surrounding the pools, on the decks overlooking the ocean and of course on the beach. When we had free time, Colton enjoyed splitting the day between swimming in the pool and playing on the beach. We didn’t have any room to bring any beach toys so luckily they have pool and beach toys available for purchase that were pretty reasonable.
With three kids (and one who eats as much as an adult), dining at a restaurant for three meals a day every day for vacation is not an option for us. Hilton Sandestin offers several different sit down dining options, but I can imagine our family dining mostly at Barefoot’s Beachside Bar and Grill, Picnix (offering grab-and-go snacks) as well as the coffee shop in the morning for a pastry or fruit. I recommend planning what you will do for meals ahead of time because the price of food for a family will add up quickly.
For those of you like my husband, a gym on site is a must-have. My husband likes weights and machines and many hotel gyms only offer very basic workout equipment. Hilton Sandestin’s gym is one of the best I’ve seen and I can imagine he would be in here every morning.
Hilton Sandestin Beach Golf Resort and Spa is a family-friendly vacation destination with beaches that rival any tropical destination, but is only a short plane ride away for most. There’s an abundance of activities for both parents and and kids and the Kids Krew program lets mom and dad have a night out or a relaxing time on the beach by themselves.
I would love to bring my whole family back and experience a family vacation! Let me know if you decide to go to Hilton Sandestin or what your experience was like if you’ve ever been.
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