Over Father’s Day weekend, my husband Michael and I decided to celebrate our four-year anniversary on the beach. We invited my parents to join us, and the weekend could not have been more perfect. Of course, it was very hot — that’s to be expected in June — but it was not overly hot to where we could not enjoy ourselves.
Accommodations: Pensacola Historic District Cottage
We booked a renovated 2-bedroom/2 bathroom home through VRBO. What was so interesting about this home was that it was built in 1910. Entitled the Gertrude Simpson Taylor House, this home is fully renovated with a beautiful porch, comfortable king-sized beds, and the most adorable courtyard with string lights. Honestly, this is the best VRBO/AirBnB I’ve ever stayed at, and the owners seemed very thoughtful providing two bicycles for use.
Things to Do in Pensacola
Pensacola Beach
This beach was very clean, and the sand was very fine and nearly rock-free. The ocean was beautiful. We got there around 10 am and left around noon. It wasn’t crowded at all, although there was quite a bit of traffic coming and going.
Gulfarium Marine Adventure Park – Fort Walton
So this is not in Pensacola, but it is about an hour away. This marine wildlife park is an interesting park with dolphins, penguins, seals, sea lions, and more. I was pleasantly surprised. There are various shows throughout the day, and when we arrived, the dolphin show had started. This is a perfect place to take the entire family for a few hours. I’m not sure what the child rate is, but it was about $25 per adult. Another perk of this park is its views of the ocean!
Places to Eat
For our first evening, we dined downtown at Jaco’s Bayfront Bar & Grille. Right off the marina with gorgeous views of the water and sunset, this eatery has indoor and outdoor dining.
If you’re at Pensacola Beach, Shaggy’s Harbor Bar & Grill is really good with great service. The atmosphere is almost like a beachy Joe’s Crab Shack, except way better. This restaurant also has indoor and outdoor seating.
If you are looking to get a blast from the past, Scenic 90 Cafe is a retro 1950s-style diner with old-fashioned milkshakes, malts, pies, and so much more. We went there for breakfast and for a late afternoon snack on two separate days. I ordered a hot fudge sundae, pictured left. Very tasty!
Shrimp Basket is another eatery in Pensacola Beach that had some decent seafood options. I had grilled shrimp, but it also had various fried baskets, crab cakes, and a multitude of tropical cocktails. This place was very affordable, and the service was excellent.
Featured Bookstore: Bodacious Bookstore and Cafe
Set in downtown Pensacola, this adorable little bookstore called Bodacious Bookstore and Cafe spoke to my heart. I totally geeked out and ended up buying two books here. The staff was very friendly, and it had some comfortable seating for reading, plus a cafe if you’re in the mood for coffee.
Well, there you have it, folks! I hope you enjoyed this post. I will definitely visit Pensacola again. I didn’t want to come home! If you are interested in reading more about my travels, let me know what you think of them in the comments below. I would love to get better at these kinds of posts.
As always, thanks so much for reading!
The Traveling Bookworm 
Great post! It sounds like an amazing weekend away. I love that you gave recommendations of places to go/do/eat/read. You can google anything but an honest review on a blog, means more I think.
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Thank you so much! Yes, I agree as well. I love reading travel blogs and reviews from normal people, especially when it comes to places to stay. Not every Airbnb or hotel is created equal, that’s for sure!
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[…] really excited to read it mostly because of the pretty cover art. I read this in three days during my trip to Pensacola, which is the fastest I have read a book in a really long time. Despite having almost 4.5 stars on […]
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