BeautifulDestin.com Florida Ecotousim: Pensacola, Fl. is ideal for ecotourists who want to explore the outdoors.

BeautifulDestin.Com Beautiful Destinations:
Destin - Sandestin - Panama City Beach - Pensacola

Pensacola is ideal for ecotourists who want to explore the outdoors.

Pensacola Area Hotels

Pensacola Area Condo Rentals

Ecotourism may be the new buzzword among trendy travelers, but this Gulf Coast area has been delighting nature-lovers, families and outdoors people for decades.

"To borrow a line from an old country song, we were ecotourism before ecotourism was cool," says Sheilah Bowman, director of the Pensacola Convention & Visitor Information Center.

West Florida has kept its natural beauty intact for several reasons. It's "Florida's Last Frontier," the final undeveloped part of the Sunshine State. Creation of the United States' second national seashore—in 1971—blocked much of the development that stunned other areas. And Pensacolians have great respect for history and nature, two traditions that are part of their Southern upbringing.

Outdoor opportunities stretch from the shimmering Gulf of Mexico to the rustic "Canoe Capital of Florida," where creeks, rivers and woodlands beckon.

The Gulf Islands National Seashore, which showcases unspoiled beaches, wide open spaces and historic sites once taken for granted. 'Pensacola is in the heart of the National Seashore, which flanks the city with barrier islands — Perdido Key (Spanish for Lost Island) to the west and Santa Rosa Island, better known as Pensacola Beach, Co the east. Those islands offer miles of white sand, emerald waters and eye catching vistas.

The federal seashore covers 52 miles in West Florida. In keeping with the spirit of preservations and recreation, the State of Florida and the cities of Pensacola and Gulf Breeze also have protected popular expanses of parklands.

Pensacola, for example, has fewer than 65,000 residents, but it provides 92 recreation areas— parks, libraries, a golf course and more parks. Photographers will have a field day at The Bluffs. This city park on Scenic Highway offers a stunning view of Escambia Bay; walkways along the bluffs make for easy viewing and spectacular camera shots.

Edward Ball Nature Walk, nestled on the University of West Florida campus, rambles through a tree-shaded bayou where visitors can feed fish and turtles. Indeed, UWF is one of the most tranquil of all college campuses; it is set amidst 1,000 acres of woodland.

Pensacola Area Hotels

Pensacola Area Condo Rentals