Reasons to Visit Pensacola Florida

Patti Morrow Florida

reasons to visit pensacola fl

This is a summary of the full article, “10 Best Activities and Beaches in Pensacola FL.”

As you can probably guess, beaches in Pensacola FL are the biggest draw. A humid subtropical climate combined with shimmering turquoise water lapping onto impossibly white sand makes it arguably the prettiest beach in the U.S.

Pensacola is the largest metropolitan area between New Orleans and Tampa, yet still maintains a small-town vibe, especially around the beach area. It’s home to several annual festivals, events, historic tours, and landmarks.

Pensacola at a Glance

  • Location: Westernmost city in the Florida Panhandle
  • Population: 52,975
  • Settled: 1559
  • Nickname: “The City of Five Flags”, due to the five governments that have ruled it during its history: the flags of Spain (Castile), France, Great Britain, the United States of America, and the Confederate States of America.

Other nicknames include “World’s Whitest Beaches” (due to the white sand of Florida panhandle beaches), “Cradle of Naval Aviation”, “Western Gate to the Sunshine State”, “America’s First Settlement”, “Emerald Coast”, “Red Snapper Capital of the World”, and “P-Cola”.

Here are 10 reasons to visit Pensacola Florida:

10 Historic Pensacola Village

9 Seville Quarter

8 Pensacola Lighthouse

7 Pensacola Pedal Trolley

6 Kiteboarding Okaloosa Island

5 Sunset Over the Pier

4 Palafox Street

3 Fort Pickens

2 Pensacola Beach

1 Gulf Islands National Seashore

Where to Stay

We stayed at the Days Inn by Wyndham. While it wasn’t luxury by any means, the location on the beach was perfect, and we had a better-than-anticipated view from our room.

Where to Eat

  • Crabs on the Beach
  • Red Fish Blue Fish
  • Destin Seafood Festival

About the Author

Patti Morrow is a freelance travel writer and founder of the award-winning international blog Luggage and Lipstick and southern travel blog Gone to Carolinas. TripAdvisor called her one of “20 Baby Boomer Travel Bloggers Having More Fun Than Millennials.”  Patti is the author of the book “Girls Go Solo: Tips for Women Traveling Alone,” and has over 150 bylines in 40 print and online publications, including The Huffington Post, International Living Magazine, Washington Post Sunday Travel, Travel Girl, Travel Play Live Magazine, and Ladies Home Journal.  She has traveled six continents looking for fabulous places and adventure activities for her Baby Boomer (and Gen X!) tribe.

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