Family Vacation at Alys Beach

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I am always excited to travel and on the hunt for gorgeous destinations, scenery and a home with a good bathroom. #DearAhmad calls me bougie, but whenever I start searching for a house to rent for vacation, I always scroll to look at the bathrooms first because I have a thing with bathrooms! Don’t judge me, it just is what it is! We wanted to take the kids to Florida for a fun fall trip, so I went to IG of course and searched #floridavacation and was amazed by all the places that came up. When I saw Alys Beach and the aesthetic I knew I had to go! We booked the trip back in June, and had been eyeing the location since April but finally pulled the plug when we found great prices on flights (fly into Panama City). Lets jump right in to the details you guys are waiting for, and make sure to leave a comment if you have any questions!

CHECK IN

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Alys Beach is located in 30A, and when you drive up its like everything changes. All you see are white concrete homes & buildings, paved roads, and cute restaurants. Our first stop was the welcome center which is a home that they turned into a lobby. You walk up and its a gate tp enter, and immediately in front of you is a gorgeous mini pool. You then enter to the right to an all white aesthetic lobby which immediately have you thinking beach vacation! They give all guest ages 6 and up a card that is linked to the credit card on file which makes eating and doing activities easier without having to pull out your credit card every minute. Everyone is also asked to sign a waiver before you get your key to your rental property. The only way to book a rental is through Alys Beach, which is great because unlike Airbnb, they are aware of everyone that is staying on property.

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112 SOMERSET

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We stayed at 112 Somerset which is a row of identical townhomes. Our rental was a 2 bedroom (in the main house) and 1 bedroom in the guest home which is located outside the courtyard at the house behind the mini pool. All bedrooms have King size beds that were beyond comfortable. The house had great lighting, and a nice size kitchen if you want to cook. There is a store near Rosemary beach which Ahmad and Mike both biked to a few times. If you don’t like stairs and pack heavily, I wouldn’t recommend this particular house because this house is 3 stories. If you don’t mind I literally have no complaints. The house was spacious and fit our family, my sister, and Brandy’s family as well… and we still had plenty of room. If you are traveling with kiddos and are scared about the pool, each door that leads to the pool has an alarm system to alert you when the door is open. Its a great security measure, but does get annoying if you forget to press the button before opening the courtyard doors. If you decide to rent a car, the house does has a two car garage, and parking behind the house as well. There is also an outdoor shower so you can rinse off when you come from the beach. The guest house has a cute seating area with a tv which if I go back would be perfect for the in-laws or my parents. There is a bathroom on every floor which is convenient as well. If you love the layout of this house, but would like different decor, I suggest checking out any house on Somerset as they are the exact same floor plan, but different decor.

CALIZA POOL

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Our house was literally steps away from Caliza Pool, which is the community resort style pool on property. In the summer I heard its poppin’, but since we went in the fall (end of September) we were able to find a spot at the pool both days, a cabana (which is free, first come/ first serve basis) with no hassle. You have to scan your keycard to enter, meaning if you aren’t staying at Alys Beach you cant enter. The cabanas have two beds inside, tv, and are a covered relaxing space to chill at. The pool also has a rooftop with an amazing view of the pool and Alys Beach. There is also a lap pool, hot tub, restaurant, hammocks, and more at the Caliza Pool! The kids loved it and didn’t want to leave! As stated earlier, our home had a mini pool that was perfect for the kids to get in and splash around in. It’s not big enough to actually swim in but great to chill in and hangout at the courtyard. I loved that we had options!

WHERE TO EAT (all places listed are on property and walking distance)

The Citizen: Hands down my favorite restaurant on the property. You know its good when you want to eat there several times in a row. The Sunday brunch was amazing, and for dinner I recommend getting the Hot Girl Summer cocktail and the shrimp and grits! We literally ate there for dinner twice and brunch once… so we had pretty much everything on the menu between the 8 of us and it was all good!

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Raw & Juicy: We ate here for breakfast one morning and if you are into healthy smoothies or juices definitely go here. I recommend going as soon as they open because the line gets very long. You order then seat yourself, so the line moves pretty slow. I got the loaded potato skillet which was amazing, and the almond love smoothie. If you are traveling with kids, they may not like anything on the menu, so I suggest getting them a kid smoothie and ordering potato and eggs for the kids. There is also a really cute park right next to the restaurant for the kids to play at after breakfast.

Charlie’s Donuts: Charlie’s is the cutest little food truck. Get up early and grab an assortment box before they are sold out. Its vacation so don’t judge us, but we had donuts every morning, even before going to breakfast and brunch.

George’s: Not my favorite, the food was just ok! They take large parties immediately (we never had to wait) and that made it worth it. If I had to pick, I would skip out and go to Citizen’s.

There are more food options near Rosemary beach, and you can also order pizza and other dine in options through Doordash. The restaurants on property do not take reservations, and you can not order takeout, so make sure to plan your meals. When you are at the beach and pool you can literally order and eat all day, so its just dinner options to make sure you plan for if you decide no to go to Citizen’s or George’s.

THE BEACH

I’ve been to Florida before, but don’t remember the beaches looking like this. It could be because I am use to Galveston (no shade). Alys Beach allows private access to the beach, and has food and staff available to assist you for anything you may need. We called and reserved chairs, umbrellas, and tables ahead of time that was set up at the beach with our family name upon arrival. We ordered food and rinks from the beach menu, and they hand deliver it to you on the beach. It was convenient and was easier than bringing food since there was so many of us. The white sanded beach was gorgeous, but do be aware of the sand flies that sting. The kids covered up in towels when they came to sit down and eat because the flies were bothering them. The water is crystal clear, and the kids loved that they could see the fish swimming next to them, and the shallow water.

ZUMA GYM

Ok, if you are the person that likes to workout on vacation, then Zuma was designed for you! Once you book, their concierge will contact you with class schedules and more. They also have steam rooms, pools, and coffee bar filled with snacks and juices for post workout.

BIKE RENTALS

We opted out because our house was located near everything, but you can rent bikes for you and the entire family (even the kiddos). If you have little ones that need a seat attachment, they also offer those as well which makes getting around the property super easy and fun! There is also a bike rental company by Rosemary beach that allows 24 hr bike rentals as well. We walked there one day to check out the town, but decided to walk back since it was only about a 10 minute walk.

Hope this helps you plan your next vacation, and let me know if you all have any questions! You can also check out my IG Story highlights of more images and videos of Alys Beach HERE. xo Shay