Florida Panhandle

The Florida Panhandle is the narrow strip of land that extends westward from the top of the Florida penninsula and is bounded in the north by the state of Alabama and in the south by the Gulf Coast. This is the least commercialized part of Florida with beautiful shallow white sand beaches and warm waters.

This part of Florida draws many permanent or seasonal residents and offers more condominiums and rental homes than hotels. Panama City is the only tourist oriented city and is famous for its “Spring Break” festivities every March.

Major holidays in Pensacola include Mardi Gras and the Fiesta of Five Flags. Celebrations of note in Pensacola are the Greater Gulf Coast Arts Festival, the Seafood Festival, the Bushwhacker Festival, the Bill Fishing Tournament, and the Gay and Lesbian Memorial Day Festival. Fort Walton Beach is known for the Billy Bowlegs Festival, and Panama City for Spring Break. Niceville is know for its Mullet Festival.

Destin is known for its white beaches and emerald-colored waters. The city styles itself “The World’s Luckiest Fishing Village”, and claims to have the largest fishing vessel fleet in the state of Florida. The peninsula was originally an island but hurricanes and sea level changes gradually connected the island to the mainland. Destin offers world-class accommodations, restaurants serving everything from lobster to pizza, more than 1,000 holes of golf, shopping, and just about every water sport imaginable.

Tallahassee was built on the site of an important prehistoric meeting place, and takes it’s name from the Apalachee Indian Talwa meaning “town,” and ahassee meaning “old”. The city’s history really begins, though, with Florida’s incorporation into the US, and Tallahassee’s selection as the state’s administrative base. Since then, Tallahassee has been the scene of every wrangle in Florida politics, including the controversial ballot recount of the 2000 presidential election.