The Beaches of THE EMERALD COAST of Florida!

Jimmy Buffett's mythical Margaritaville is about to become a reality on Pensacola Beach. Margaritaville will launch the first Margaritaville Beach Hotel in a $50 million, 162-room Gulf-front hotel expected to open in late May or early June 2010.

The Quietwater Beach Boardwalk on Pensacola Beach

The Boardwalk is on the Santa Rosa Sound side of the island, directly across from Casino Beach. Retail shops, restaurants, nightclubs, street musicians and sidewalk artists line it. The Boardwalk has a large sea shell stage where concerts are held several times a year. Behind it, there is a beach silent except for the sounds of seagulls, and children making sand castles. Most events are held here, including The Lobster Fest, Bushwacker Fest, and the Independence Day fireworks. Behind the beach there is a boat dock where anyone can park their boats free of charge.

Fort Pickens is located on Pensacola Beach and visitors can have access to the Gulf Islands National Seashore.  Fort Pickens is a massive brick fortress built before the Civil War.  Fort Pickens was completed in 1834 and used until WWII.    Fort Pickens has changed over the years, so be sure to take the self-guided tour and peel back the layers of history. You'll see the plaster-lined rooms that were intended as officers' quarters, and later used to house Apache prisoners. The most famous resident, Geronimo, lived in identical rooms along the south wall, which have since collapsed. Fort Pickens now houses an auditorium, a museum, and a visitors center offering information about the area.  To view Pensacola Beach's history, click on Pensacola Beach History for a connection to the Beach's historical Society!

The Fort itself is only part of the National Seashore's attractions: the boundary stretches back seven miles (11 km). (Fodor's rates Ft. Pickens' beaches the best in Florida.) So whether you take the bike trail or the highway, you'll find campgrounds, nature trails, and miles and miles of protected beaches perfect for sand dollar and sea shell hunting, and for picking through flotsam washed ashore from the high seas and exotic foreign ports.

Interesting Novelty houses seen on HGTV Extreme Homes Channel

Dome of a Home, Pensacola Beach, Florida

Futuro house, Pensacola Beach, Florida

THIS HOME SHOWN IN THE BEGINNING OF EXTREME HOMES ON HGTV usually has Alien Head looking out the window.  It  has a sense of fun.  MUFON's yearly convention has been held on Pensacola Beach.

Pensacola Beach is home to several "novelty houses", including a house with a UFO-shaped Futuro attached as a second story. This Futuro house is sometimes called the "Alien Saucer" or "Spaceship House",  Another novelty house is the "Dome of a Home", a home in the form of a large concrete dome, designed to structurally withstand hurricane-force winds and storm surge.  Both homes have been featured on HGTV's extreme homes.