Do not rent this unit. It has not been maintained. Lighting is broken, (esp in the bathrooms) mold all around tubs, clothes washer only emits hot water, broken door knobs,peeling wallpaper, flea market furniture, etc.
I am covered with bug bites. Bed bugs?
The building itself is a great location on the beach but do you want to spend $2000 to sleep in the ghetto?
Also, the amenity card from Oceanside Resorts is for events that are located far from the condo and only cover one person. Nothing at Sandestin itself is included because the unit owner does not participate in that amenity program.

As Sandestin rookies, we arrived to find that not having a Sandestin amenity card, which didn't come with our myvacationhaven.com rental meant we had no access to rent or use ANYTHING we expected to be able to do by staying at the resort. Basic beach expectations such as beach chair and umbrella rental was not available AT ANY PRICE, as wer beach bathroom privileges, tram service, fitness center, or bike rental. When we called myvactionhaven to see what our alternative were, we were repeatedly told we signed the contract saying we understood that the Sandestin amenity card was not included....which we did...but we would have appreciated being told that that meant normal resort services were not included. It's kinda like going to Disneyworld and paying for a ticket only to find out that you can't ride any rides or go into any of the attractions. We were very disappointed and won't go back to Sandestin again. It apparently stems from a dispute between Sandestin and the property owners and the property owners association. The owner of our condo apparently wouldn't pay the fee...and myvacationhaven was not nice enough to explain the implications of that to us. It was very frustrating not be even be able to pay for these services when we needed them.

Stayed at the Sandestin Beachside II condos in early August '07, for a work conference for my husband. This was our first trip to this part of the Gulf Coast because we just moved to AL.

Since we had never been there, we were not totally sure what to expect. We could only go on what people had told us and what we saw on the internet. We were told that the beaches and water are beautiful and that people generally love vacationing there.

We were so dissapointed! Yes, the beach at Sandestin is huge with sugar white sand, but what we were not prepared for was how CROWDED it was! There were people and high rise condos along the beach for miles. Also, when we went in August, it was miserably hot and humid. The water was green and not clear at all, due to some algae or something.

The condo itself was ok. I think we were on the 9th floor, 1 BD. Check in took a long time. The AC worked well which was good because it was definitely needed. The condo had been updated and it was overall nice. However, the bedroom was a little dingy. The condo had tile on the floors, except for the bedroom, where there was old, stained carpet. I stayed out of the bedroom as much as possible because it just felt like a cave.

The events for my husband's conference were across the street at the big new hotel. We decided to take the "tram" over there on our first night. We called and were told it picks up guests at Beachside I every 15 minutes. We walked over there and waited at least 30-40 mins. for the tram. Other people were waiting too and kept calling to see where the tram was. We never took it again due to this ordeal. Once we got on the tram it took a while to get across the street . Would have been so much faster to drive.

I would never return to this resort or Destin, Sandestin, whatever. It was just not our style. It's big, crowded, and just a bit too touristy and "Orlando" like. All the restaurants have lame themes and it just seems manufactured and fake. Dumpy strip malls, Hooters, factory outlets, t-shirt shops, yuck. Not my idea of a relaxing vacation destination.

Vacationed with two children under 4 yrs old and it was fabulous. The condo amenities were average but comfortable. What was outstanding was the view and location. Lanai overlooked the beach, we could smell, hear and see the beautiful Gulf from our room. Just to be able to ride the elevator down and be right on the beach was fantastic, especially with young children who tire easily. Environment is very family oriented and most everyone we met were families with children and were friendly, warm and congenial.

Supermarkets and shopping are within minutes. Entertainment and awesome food is just across the street at the Baytowne Wharf Village. Another Broken Egg and the Acme Oyster House were our favorite restaurants.

Enjoyed a very special vacation relaxing, having fun and being together as a family. Would definitely recommend the Beachside II and will definitely remember this as a destination to return to. Reasonable rates during the early fall season when the weather is still plenty warm.