The beach pretty much takes care of itself. It’s the rest of the week that needs a plan!
About 40% of South Walton’s land is preserved, and you notice it the minute you leave the sand. Behind the dunes you’ll find rare coastal dune lakes, a 15,000-acre state forest and a historic house museum on a quiet bayou, with a paved trail stringing it all together. Add a sunset on the bay, a spa morning and a round of golf, and you have a trip that doesn’t depend on the weather.
If you’re still working out the basics, start with our 30A trip planning guide. Here’s how I’d fill the days off the sand, with the details that make each one easier, especially if you’re bringing a big group or little ones along.
Ride the Timpoochee Trail
The Timpoochee Trail is the paved multi-use path that runs beside Scenic 30A from Dune Allen to Inlet Beach. Walton County’s tourism office puts it at 19 miles. It’s named for Timpoochee Kinnard, a chief of the Euchee tribe, and it passes through 12 beach neighborhoods, state parks, the state forest and 15 coastal dune lakes. It’s flat and wheelchair accessible, and leashed dogs are welcome too.
You don’t need to ride all of it. If you only do one stretch, make it the middle: past the covered bridge over Draper Lake, through Grayton, over Western Lake and into Seaside’s Central Square for lunch. One heads-up: on the bridges over Western Lake the trail briefly shares the road with 30A, so slow down and keep kids close there. Our Timpoochee Trail guide goes mile by mile.
Shops along the trail rent by the day or the week, and some deliver. Our house, Harbor Heights, has four bikes for guests, so you can start right from the driveway.
Paddle a Coastal Dune Lake
If you do one thing off the beach, make it this one. Coastal dune lakes are found in only a few places in the world, and these periodically break through the dunes to the Gulf at an “outfall,” then close up again. Paddling one at dawn, with the dunes on one side and pines on the other, is the most “30A” thing I can think of.
Western Lake is the easiest to get onto, and you have three good ways in:
- Grayton Beach State Park. Florida State Parks lists Western Lake at about 100 acres. The Friends of Grayton Beach and Deer Lake State Parks rent kayaks and paddleboards from the park’s boat ramp, open daily 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., and you can book online. The park entry fee applies.
- The Boathouse Paddle Club in WaterColor. It sits on Western Lake right off 30A and is open to everyone, not only WaterColor guests. Call or text 850-419-6188 to reserve a board or kayak.
- A guided paddle. YOLO Board + Bike runs a roughly two-hour guided stand-up paddle tour from the Hotz Avenue boat launch in Grayton, through Western Lake and out into the Gulf. It runs Monday through Friday and needs 48 hours’ notice. This is the one I’d book for a group with first-timers.
For a second lake, Campbell Lake at Topsail Hill Preserve State Park rents kayaks and boards at the park store. I’ve covered it in our beach guide.
My advice: go early, before the afternoon heat and the summer storms roll in.
Get Out on the Water: Charters and Sunset Cruises
A quick geography note, because this one trips people up. The big charter fleets and cruise boats don’t leave from 30A. They leave from two places west of here: Baytowne Marina inside Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort in Miramar Beach, which sits on Choctawhatchee Bay, and Destin Harbor in Destin. Pick based on the trip you want. Our boat days guide covers dolphin cruises, Crab Island and pontoon rentals in more detail.
From Baytowne Marina (Sandestin)
The bay is calm and protected, which makes it my choice for an evening out with the family.
- Sunset and dolphin cruise. SunVenture Cruises runs a 1.5-hour narrated sunset cruise on Choctawhatchee Bay aboard SOL y LUNA, departing Baytowne Marina (8330 Mike Hayes Drive) at 6:30 p.m. Book through sunventurecruises.com.
- Dinner cruise. SunQuest Cruises’ 125-foot yacht SOLARIS does a three-hour dinner cruise on the bay with a three-course meal and live music. Dress is resort casual, a 20% service charge is added to the bill, and reservations open 30 to 45 days out. Ask for a window table if you’d rather not be seated with other parties.
- Fishing. Bay and inshore Gulf charters leave Baytowne Marina by reservation, and the marina books a full-day offshore trip on a party boat. Sandestin’s fishing page lists the current captains and phone numbers.
From Destin Harbor
If someone in your group is set on deep-sea fishing, go to Destin. It calls itself “The World’s Luckiest Fishing Village,” and the Destin-Fort Walton Beach tourism office says the 100-fathom curve sits about 10 miles offshore, closer than anywhere else in Florida. HarborWalk Village (10 Harbor Blvd.) is an easy place to start: HarborWalk Charters books private and shared trips on a fleet of boats, inshore or offshore, from half-day trips to overnights. For a family, I’d book a private half-day inshore trip over a long offshore run. A shorter day is a much easier sell with kids.
Eden Gardens State Park
Eden Gardens is the antidote to a sunburn. It’s 163 acres of the old Wesley homestead in Point Washington, on Tucker Bayou, with moss-draped live oaks and an 1897 mansion with white columns and a wraparound porch. Lois Maxon bought and restored the house in 1963 and filled it with her family’s antiques before donating it to the state in 1968.
- The house tour is worth it. Guided tours run hourly from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Thursday through Monday, with a maximum of 10 people per tour. The house is closed Tuesday and Wednesday.
- The gardens peak in early spring. Camellias and azaleas bloom from October through May, peaking around March, and there’s a rose garden, a butterfly garden and a reflection pond with water lilies and koi.
- The practical part. Entry is $4 per vehicle by honor box (bring correct change), 8 a.m. to sunset. The address is 181 Eden Gardens Road, Santa Rosa Beach. Pack a picnic. The tables under the oaks are the best seats in the park.
Hike or Ride Point Washington State Forest
Point Washington State Forest covers more than 15,000 acres behind the beach communities, and most visitors drive right past it. The Eastern Lake Trail system is the place to start: three stacked loops of 3.5, 6 and 11 miles that work for both hiking and off-road biking. The trailhead and parking are on County Road 395, which meets 30A in Seagrove, and a bike path runs north from the Timpoochee Trail toward the forest.
Look for white-topped pitcher plants in the wetter areas and gopher tortoises in the sandhills (a fun one for kids to spot). The forest is open sunrise to sunset, and there’s a small day-use fee. Passes are sold through ReserveAmerica rather than at the forest office. It’s also part of a wildlife management area with seasonal hunting regulated by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, so check the dates and wear something bright if your visit falls in a season. Bring water and bug spray (and then a little more bug spray).
Walk the Architecture: Seaside, Rosemary Beach and Alys Beach
Three of 30A’s towns were planned by the same Miami firm, Duany Plater-Zyberk (DPZ), and seeing them back to back makes a wonderful slow afternoon. They’re very different from each other.
Seaside came first. Robert and Daryl Davis began building in 1981 on 80 acres Robert inherited from his grandfather, and DPZ’s master plan made it the first New Urbanist town in the country: brick streets, front porches and a town square within a short walk of every home. The Seaside Institute’s free self-guided audio tour on the Otocast app covers more than 20 stops, narrated by the architects and planners who built the town. Our Seaside guide has where to eat along the way.
Rosemary Beach followed, with DPZ’s town plan dating to 1995. It borrows from the colonial architecture of the Dutch West Indies, New Orleans and St. Augustine: raised masonry bases, shutters, steep roofs and deep porches. Start at Town Hall and wander the boardwalks between the houses. Parking is tucked onto rear alleys, so front doors face boardwalks, paths and lawns instead of driveways. More in our Rosemary Beach guide.
Alys Beach is the newest of the three and the most striking. The town combines the white walls and roofs of Bermuda with the courtyard houses of Antigua, Guatemala, with Moorish and North African details that the town architects, Khoury Vogt, have carried through. Everything is white, which helps the buildings reflect the sun, and streets are drawn toward the water to pull in the Gulf breeze. I’d save it for late afternoon, when the light on all that white is at its best.
See the Art: Cultural Arts Alliance, ArtsQuest and an Underwater Museum
The Cultural Arts Alliance of Walton County (CAA) is the engine behind much of the art here. If you’re into the arts, here are a few ways to plug in:
- ArtsQuest Fine Arts Festival is the CAA’s juried festival, usually the first weekend of May, at Grand Boulevard Town Center in Miramar Beach. Expect more than 120 artists from around the country, live music and demonstrations. It’s rain or shine, and a $5 to $10 donation at the gate supports the arts.
- The Underwater Museum of Art, created by the CAA and the South Walton Artificial Reef Association, sits on a one-acre patch of seabed less than a mile off Grayton Beach State Park in about 58 feet of water. The sculptures double as artificial reef, and more than 100 species have been documented on them. You can only see it by diving, so it’s for certified divers comfortable in open water. Book a dive boat.
- The CAA’s Bayou Arts Center (105 Hogtown Bayou Lane, Santa Rosa Beach) is its home base. Check the CAA’s cultural calendar for exhibits and workshops while you’re in town.
Book a Spa Morning
A correction worth making, since it comes up a lot: WaterColor Inn doesn’t have a spa. The resort’s own FAQ sends guests to its sister hotel instead.
- Spa Pearl at The Pearl Hotel, Rosemary Beach (63 Main Street) is the one I’d book. It’s small and poolside, with four private treatment rooms offering massages, facials, HydraFacials and body treatments, plus in-room massage on request. Hours are seasonal, generally daily 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Book ahead online; anything within 24 hours has to be booked by phone at 850-460-9041. Services are for guests 18 and up, a 20% gratuity is added automatically, and you can use the pool for an hour before and after your treatment.
- Spa Lilliana at Hotel Effie in Sandestin is the option west of 30A, with facials, scrubs, massages and nail services. It’s also 18 and up; call 850-351-3020.
Bring Dinner to the House
With a big group, a night in can be the best meal of the trip. Nobody has to drive, the kids can go to bed when they’re ready, and the grown-ups can linger at the table as long as they like.
Private chefs on 30A are mostly independent operators, so ask a few questions before you book: whether they’re licensed and insured, whether they shop and clean up, what’s included in the per-person price, and whether gratuity is added. Book well ahead for holiday weeks.
If you’d rather go with a resort team, WaterColor Home Catering prepares food in WaterColor’s banquet kitchen and brings it to your home, from passed hors d’oeuvres to a seated dinner, with full bar service available. There’s a minimum order, a home inspection for staffed events, and a 24% service charge plus tax. Call 850-534-5017 to ask about your address and dates.
Play a Round of Golf
Golf near 30A comes in three flavors, and access is the thing to sort out first.
- On 30A itself: Santa Rosa Golf & Beach Club, established in 1969, has two holes right beside the Gulf and was renovated by Bill Bergin in 2021. It’s a private club, so call the pro shop (850-267-2229) about guest play before you plan on it.
- The Watersound Club courses near Inlet Beach (Camp Creek by Tom Fazio, Shark’s Tooth by Greg Norman and The Third by Davis Love III) are private. You get access by staying at Camp Creek Inn or as a member’s guest. The exception is Origins, a 10-hole par-3 course by Davis Love III’s firm that’s open to the public. It’s an easy pick for families and beginners.
- Sandestin has four courses. The Links, Baytowne and Raven take tee-time bookings online, and Burnt Pine is the resort’s private club. Collared shirts and spikeless shoes are required.
When It Rains
Summer afternoon storms usually pass quickly, but every so often you get a full rainy day. Here’s my short list for those (there’s a longer one in our rainy day guide):
- Sundog Books and Central Square Records in Seaside (89 Central Square). Pick out a book downstairs, then browse the records upstairs. Both are open daily.
- The Wesley House tour at Eden Gardens. It’s indoors, it’s an hour, and it’s a good story (see above; closed Tuesday and Wednesday).
- The E.O. Wilson Biophilia Center in Freeport opens to the public on Fridays from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., with indoor exhibits and ambassador animals. No reservation needed.
- A spa appointment or a dinner cruise on the bay, both above.
- Grand Boulevard in Sandestin, for shopping, lunch and a movie at its 10-screen theater.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is there to do on 30A besides the beach?
Plenty. Paddle a coastal dune lake, ride the Timpoochee Trail, tour the Wesley House at Eden Gardens, hike Point Washington State Forest or walk the architecture of Seaside, Rosemary Beach and Alys Beach. If you only do one, make it the dune lake.
Where do you go deep-sea fishing near 30A?
Destin Harbor. The big charter fleets don’t leave from 30A itself, and the Destin-Fort Walton Beach tourism office says the 100-fathom curve sits about 10 miles off Destin, closer than anywhere else in Florida.
Does WaterColor Inn have a spa?
No. The resort’s own FAQ sends guests to Spa Pearl at The Pearl in Rosemary Beach, which is the one I’d book anyway. Services there are for guests 18 and up.
When can you tour the Wesley House at Eden Gardens?
Guided tours run hourly from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Thursday through Monday, with a maximum of 10 people per tour. The house is closed Tuesday and Wednesday, and park entry is $4 per vehicle by honor box.
Can you play golf on 30A without being a member?
Yes, with a little planning. Origins, the 10-hole par-3 course near Inlet Beach, is open to the public, and Sandestin’s Links, Baytowne and Raven courses take tee times online. Santa Rosa Golf & Beach Club is private (call the pro shop about guest play), and the other Watersound courses are for Camp Creek Inn guests and members’ guests.
Where to Stay
For a home base that’s central to all of this, our family’s house, Harbor Heights, sits in the Grayton Beach area, sleeps 14 and has bikes ready for the trail. Readers who book direct at harborheightson30a.com can use code 30ATRAVEL. Hope to see you out on the trail!
