Activities

Pontoon Boat Rentals and Crab Island

If you’ve visited the beautiful Emerald Coast and driven down scenic Highway 98 across the Destin Bridge, you’ve probably noticed the alluring sight of Crab Island, Destin’s most popular (and picturesque) attraction and local watering hole. Crab Island is located just north of the Destin Bridge, inside the inlet that connects the Choctawhatchee Bay to the Gulf of Mexico. On a clear day, Crab Island looks like this:

Wow. Right?! No wonder Crab Island is so popular!

How to get to Crab Island

Now, you may be tempted to figure out how to get to Crab Island. We get many phone calls and emails from people who are trying to figure out how to get to Crab Island without a boat. In all honesty, the only truly safe way to do this is to either rent a boat or do an excursion, like the Crab Island Shuttle Boat. The tidal currents that rush around the popular underwater sandbar are strong and have claimed the lives of people of who have tried to swim across the channel. It’s just not worth the risk.

Pontoon boat rentals are the most popular type of rental among Destin area visitors, due to their ease of use and plush comfortable seating. Seriously, it’s like having your own floating living room. They also seat large groups, so if price is a concern you can split the cost among friends. For example, the cost for 12 people to rent a boat to get to Crab Island for half a day would be just over $20/person. I don’t know about you, but it’s pretty hard to find something fun that you can do for four hours for $20.

If pontoons are not your thing, you can find any and all manner of rentals, tours, and excursions to get to Crab Island, from jet ski or pontoon boat rentals to private charters on luxury yachts. Most of these boat rentals and excursions depart from the Destin Harbor or nearby Okaloosa Island, both just a stone’s throw away from Crab Island! You can browse this website for everything you need to get to Crab Island.

Crab Island Activities

Once you decide how to get to Crab Island, you can focus on what there is to do once you get there! Crab Island has an abundance of activities, including water volleyball, inflatableslides and trampolines, jet ski and paddleboard rentals, the occasional concert on a floating stage, and floating food vendors and restaurants. If you’re not in the mood for anything other than relaxing on the water and catching some rays, don’t worry! Crab Island encompasses a huge area and is plenty large enough for everyone. You can anchor away from the crowds and do your own thing just as easily.

Charter Boat Fishing

Once you visit Destin and spend some time on the sugar white sands and emerald green waters, you’ll notice that Mother Nature seems to have spent a little more time on this area of the country. But the beauty isn’t just on the surface! Destin’s underwater topography is just as unique, and the relatively shallow waters of the Gulf of Mexico coastline drastically drop off a mere 12 miles from shore at the famed “100-fathom curve”. A look at any nautical map will show you that Destin’s quick access to the deepest depths of the Gulf is unique to the area. Nearby ports are not nearly as lucky and the trip from shore to deep water takes much longer from other locations. Because various species of fish live at different depths, what this means for Destin fishermen is that they can reach all depths of fishable water for every Gulf species quicker that in any other location along the Gulf.

But maybe “deep-sea fishing” isn’t your thing. Not to worry: Destin offers plenty of opportunities for inshore fishing as well! The Choctawhatchee Bay boasts miles of coastline and abundant marine life for fishing the flats and shallows. You can rent or charter a boat for a day and find more fishing spots that you could fish in a lifetime.

HarborWalk Village Events

With so many things to do in Destin Florida, HarborWalk Village is at the center of it all.

Come out to HarborWalk Village where restaurants, activities and entertainment will please each and every taste on your next Destin family vacation. Here you can find waterfront shopping, paddle board and kayak rentals, pontoon and jet ski rentals, parasailing, glass bottom boats, world class fishing, pirate ship excursions, dolphin cruises, concerts and live music, weekly fireworks, weekly Fat Tuesday parades, live entertainment, and an array of restaurants, including Jimmy Buffetts Margaritaville and Harry Ts, to satisfy all tastes. Plenty of things to do in Destin for the whole family!

HarborWalk Village is home to the Destin Fishing Fleet, the largest charter fishing fleet in the country. Here you can experience the Worlds Luckiest Fishing Village aboard one of Destin’s finest charter boats or stroll along the docks and witness the catch of the day. And where there is great fishing, there are great seafood restaurants, HarborWalk is no exception. Here you’ll find an array of cuisine that is fresh, local and delicious, sure to be one of a seafood lovers favorite things to do in Destin!