🧂The Salty Details: Miramar Beach, Florida
Quick Snapshot 🌴
📍 Location: Miramar Beach, Florida
🏨 Stayed At: Surfside Resort
🍽️ Ate At: Royal Palm Grille, The Surf Hut, Merlin's Pizza, Pompano Joe's, Moo La La Ice Cream & Fudge
💰 Price Range: $$-$$$
🌴🌴🌴🌴½ (4.5/5 Palms)
The Experience
Miramar Beach is one of those places that makes it easy to settle into vacation mode.
Located along Florida's Emerald Coast, it offers beautiful gulf views, white-sand beaches, great restaurants, shopping, and easy access to nearby attractions. While neighboring Destin is known for its busy traffic and crowds, Miramar Beach felt a little slower, but there was still plenty to enjoy—from waterfront restaurants and local shops to beautiful Gulf of America views around every corner.
We stayed at Surfside Resort and loved the skybridge that provided direct beach access. No crossing busy roads (unless you just want to). No hauling beach gear through parking lots. Just a quick walk above it all and straight to the sand.
One thing we often do on beach trips is prepare breakfast and lunch in the condo and save our dining budget for dinner. A nearby Winn-Dixie made grocery shopping easy after arrival, and it allowed us to enjoy slow mornings with coffee before heading out for the day.
The first morning greeted us with rain, so we explored Grande Boulevard at Sandestin before settling into beach mode once the weather cleared.
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🎯 Things To Do
Grande Boulevard at Sandestin
When the weather doesn't cooperate, this is a great place to spend a few hours.
With shops like Anthropologie, Lilly Pulitzer, Lululemon, Pottery Barn, Williams Sonoma, Bluemercury, and more, Grande Boulevard at Sandestin offers plenty of shopping, dining, and entertainment in a beautiful setting.
💵 Free to explore
🛍️ Shopping, dining & entertainment
🔗 Grande Boulevard at Sandestin
👉 Perfect rainy-day activity
Relax at Surfside Resort
Sometimes vacation doesn't need an itinerary.
We enjoyed the pool, hot tub, beach access, and several evenings simply taking in the gulf views from the resort.
💵 Included with your stay
🏖️ Pool, hot tub & beach access
👉 Slow down and enjoy the view
HydroJet Dolphin Cruise
Located in Destin, this sunset excursion was one of our favorite experiences of the trip.
We only spotted three or four dolphins, which was a little less than we expected. As our guide explained, it happened to be mating season, so apparently the dolphins had more important things on their minds than entertaining tourists. 🤣
Even so, the sunset views and time on the water made the trip worthwhile.
💵 Varies by season
🐬 Dolphin sightseeing
🌅 Sunset cruise
👉 Come for the dolphins, stay for the sunset
Friday Night Beach Bonfire at the Resort
One of our favorite surprises of the trip.
There's just something special about gathering around a bonfire on the beach as the sun goes down and the waves roll in.
💵 Free
🔥 Beach bonfire
👉 A great way to end the day
Unexpected Vacation Moments
Sometimes the best memories aren't planned.
During our stay we watched a wedding taking place on the beach below, spotted fireworks in the distance from the skybridge, and spent one evening playing Phase 10 in the condo.
Those simple moments often end up becoming our favorite memories.
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🍽️ Gimme Some Grub 🦞
Royal Palm Grille
Oceanfront dining without ever leaving the resort.
Whether you're watching the waves roll in, catching a sunset, or simply enjoying a relaxed evening after a day at the beach, Royal Palm Grille delivers a great atmosphere and some of the best views on the property.
💵 $30–$40 per person
🦞 Seafood, steaks & sushi
🪑 Indoor/outdoor seating with Gulf views
👉 Sunset views just steps from your condo 🌅🌴
The Surf Hut
Just a short walk down the beach from Surfside Resort, The Surf Hut combines fresh seafood, cold drinks, and beachfront views.
The open-air atmosphere makes you feel like you've officially arrived on vacation. Grab a table, kick back, and enjoy watching beachgoers while waiting for your meal.
💵 $20–$35 per person
🦞 Seafood & classic bar and grill favorites
🪑 Open-air beachfront seating
👉 Beachfront dining with your toes practically in the sand 🏖️🌴
Merlin's Pizza
After several days of seafood, sometimes you just want pizza.
Merlin's Pizza is a local favorite offering everything from classic pies to signature creations. The family-friendly atmosphere and TVs in the booths make it a great option for a casual evening.
One thing to know before you go: the restaurant is fairly small, and because it's popular with both locals and visitors, there may be a wait during peak dining hours.
Perfect for those nights when everyone wants something simple and easy.
💵 $10–$20 per person
🍕 Pizza, wings & casual favorites
🪑 Indoor seating with TVs in booths
👉 A family-friendly break from seafood overload 🍕🌴
Pompano Joe's
One of the area's most recognizable beach restaurants, Pompano Joe's serves fresh gulf seafood with a Caribbean twist.
The relaxed atmosphere, colorful beach vibes, and ocean views make it easy to see why visitors keep coming back year after year.
Stop by the souvenir section before heading out.
💵 $20–$30 per person
🦞 Fresh Gulf seafood with Caribbean flavors
🪑 Indoor/outdoor beachfront seating
👉 A Miramar Beach classic that feels like vacation 🌴☀️
🍦 Something Sweet
Moo La La Ice Cream & Fudge 🍦
Every beach trip needs a sweet ending.
After dinner one evening, we stopped by Moo La La Ice Cream & Fudge, and it quickly became one of our favorite finds of the trip. Located just a short drive from Surfside Resort, it's the perfect place to cool off after a hot day at the beach or satisfy that inevitable vacation sweet tooth.
💵 $7–$8 per person
🍦 Ice cream, fudge & sweet treats
🪑 Casual walk-up dessert shop
👉 The perfect excuse to end the day with dessert 🍨🌴
Would We Go Back?
Absolutely.
In fact, we already have a couple of reasons to return.
During our stay, the Gulf was choppy and red flags flew the entire time, so we'd love to come back when the water is calmer and spend more time enjoying those famous Emerald Coast waters.
We also discovered Silver Sands Premium Outlets after we got home and immediately added it to our list for next time. With designer and name-brand stores like Tory Burch, Brooks Brothers, Coach, Hey Dude, Van's, and dozens of others, it sounds like a shopping destination all by itself.
Between calmer beach days, more waterfront dining, a future outlet-shopping adventure, and those gorgeous sunsets, we'd happily make another trip to Miramar Beach.
👉 Final Rating: 🌴🌴🌴🌴½
🏖️Beach Essentials
Planning a trip to Miramar Beach? These are a few items that can make your beach vacation a little easier and a lot more enjoyable.
🏖️ Beach wagon
📚 Beach reads for relaxing by the water
🥤 Insulated tumbler for long beach days
🌞 Beach umbrella or sun shelter
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If you enjoy reading The Salty Details, be sure to also check out I Want to Walk on the Water for faith-filled encouragement, personal reflections, and lessons learned along the journey.
And don't forget to visit our YouTube channel, Go Be Salty™, for travel adventures, beach life, and Sermon-by-the-Minute™ videos.
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