located in florida's panhandle on the peninsula right between santa rosa beach and destin
shouldn't be too hard to guess where the name sandestin came from
today she might well sit right in the middle of everything but not so long ago sandestin felt more
like a tropical outpost an idyllic settlement at the edge of beachy civilization but the sandestine
as we know it today wasn't always destined to become a world-class residential golf and beach
resort this land was originally purchased to raise crops and livestock but during world war
ii the military requisitioned a large chunk of the property to research buzz bomb missiles that we
had captured from the germans in fact some of the very first american military rockets were tested
and launched right here out over the gulf from top secret hidden bunkers the remnants of which
can still be found today if you know where to look in the 1950s the land was sold
to the uber wealthy winthrop rockefeller who went on to become the governor of arkansas
effectively derailing his personal vision to develop this land into a coastal neighborhood
a few years later a man by the name of walt disney almost bought this land for a little
idea he was tinkering around with called disney world his plans moved forward albeit just a little
further south in the 1970s the owners of the indianapolis speedway attempted to buy the land
to create something they dubbed the seaside racetrack eventually though the land fell back
into the hands of developers keen on building a resort community after all they borrowed the
term san from the unincorporated area known as santa rosa beach to the east and they mashed it
together with the word destin found slightly to the west the rest as they say is history
my friend and business partner Joann Ribaudo has traveled to countries all over the globe in
search of great golf and even greater fishing from bolivia to russia to alaska and the seychelles and
everywhere in between joanne's pretty much cast a line into every pond river and sea that she can
and yet despite a globe of options she's chosen to call sandestin her home for over 20 years
i moved here officially in 2000. i actually came for work believe it or not and they had an event
at sandestin and never heard of it had never been into pensacola flew into pensacola rented a car
and just started driving down 98 and i crossed the destin bridge and it was honestly life-changing
for me you know i looked in both directions you know what now i know to be choctawatchee bay i
didn't know what it was then and the gulf to the right and it was one of those days where
the water was just absolutely stunning and i was like why why don't i just live here this is
awesome that weekend i looked at a model home there was a new development being built
in crystal lake and i bought it and i bought it with the furniture and the idea was i was gonna
you know use it as a second home and within six months i moved here full time i've never looked
back it was best decision i made it's great that you can live in a community where you can just
walk to four different golf courses and you know or tennis or fishing or the beach i mean
everything is so readily available here in either biking golf carting or walking i mean
i can go weeks without taking a car out so you know it's boy i hate to tell people because it's a
little hidden gem when it comes to fresh water fishing um you know obviously you can access
the bay here very easily we have a great marina right here on property you know they
take charters out all the time so that's great if you want a redfish and speckled trout and
spanish mackerel all the things that run in the bay you have access to but the little hidden gem
is you know we have over 64 ponds here that are filled with large large mouth bass you know the
perfect sandestin day for me is taking the dog down watching the sun come up then playing 18
holes of golf and then fishing on the ponds that afternoon and maybe catch the sunset but it's all
right here you know that's that's why it's hard for me to ever think of living anywhere else
sandestin's first golf course called the lynx was completed in 1974 along
with residential neighborhoods and a hotel on the bay now known as bayside at sandestin
in the early 80s the marina bay town golf course and a beachside high rise were completed
soon after the beach boys performed right out on the sand for some twelve thousand lucky attendees
the 1990s brought about immense growth with the completion of on on-property restaurants like the
popular marina bar and grill home to marianne the macaw and a professional tennis club more distinct
neighborhoods and the prestigious burnt pine golf course a private burned pine gated community soon
followed all named after a forest fire that had singed a portion of these woods a few years prior
the village of baytown wharf came onto the scene and now effectively serves as
sandestin's town center filled with festive restaurants shops activities and daily events
today sandestin is home to 70 distinct neighborhoods rolling across some 2
400 acres between choctawhatchee bay and the gulf of mexico it's all interconnected by
miles of pedestrian bike and golf cart paths weaving through groves of live oaks lagoons
fountains lakes and meticulously landscaped fairways of four award-winning golf courses there
are thousands of vacation rentals throughout the resort which welcome families throughout the year
the resort's new signature hotel named after owner thomas becknell's grandmother hotel effie is said
to exemplify all the charm and personality of its beloved namesake once you get here i mean the step
the kind of nuts and bolts of the hotel it's 250 rooms with 13 suites we have a full service luxury
spa with 10 treatment rooms we have an amazing three meal restaurant called ovied and some people
don't know this but ovied is the husband of effie the menu is curated by chef hugh atchison out of
atlanta and it's really just an amazing experience and the feedback that we get from all the guests
that dine there is second to none in addition to that we have our are a rooftop pool and bar
which is we always say quote unquote the place to be so whether you're getting out there first thing
in the morning or watching the beautiful sunset at night it is absolutely gorgeous
all of that and oh did i mention there's a beach that's right after all these years
the beach boys are still here performing every single day setting up beach chairs and umbrellas
for the countless fans who flock to watch this stunner of a show true this is no disney world
and it's no seaside racetrack but you know what that's perfectly fine with us