Ljzelenz

Hello, Can anyone please describe the differences ? Are you able to park your car for the week and walk to eat, etc ? Thanks

FF 2

Yeah, if you want to rent a bike they won't allow outside vendors to deliver at Rosemary, if you don't live/ stay there are some who would prefer you not walk your dogs in the common areas.

lerxst

Rosemary beach is a traditional neighborhood development (TND) like Seaside, with restaurants, shops, rental homes and some permanent residences. Rosemary is roughly a 108 acre development designed with the 5 minute walk in mind. (everything is within a 5 minute walk)

Seagrove is more of a town with rental homes, restaurants, condos, permanent residences etc. As far as parking, it depends where you are actually staying for the week.

hope this helps.

InletBchOwnr

Seagrove has a few condo's, one high rise, rental beach homes and walking distance beach houses, restaurants, some retail and a place to park where you stay or shop/dine, and the beaches are usually uncrowded, allow umbrella and chair rentals, bike rentals, etc. Rosemary is triple beach chair and umbrella, crowded beach, but has scenic walkways many of sand, with designated parking and driving streets and pedestrian streets, some dining and limited retail. Since Starbucks has closed up, we rarely find any reason to visit, often finding a noticeable "feeling" of snootiness in some cases. WE love Inlet Beach but there is no community here, just a lovely beach, laidback renters, the Inlet (now and then) and longtime (usually) owners. That's why we bought here when we could've bought anywhere we chose. IMHO.

SWGB

Since you mentioned limited mobility Rosemary would probably be the better option as things are closer together and shorter distance. Seagrove is more of an old beach town feel and a lot more laid back.

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johnt

My wife and I stay in Seagrove every time we come to 30A. I think there is much more to see and do within a " walkable" distance than Rosemary. If you add bicycles ,you have even more places within a reasonable distance, than Rosemary. The sand roads of Seagrove are very interesting, you are near the corner market for good food, Seaside and Watercolor are within walking distance, and bikes would make Grayton Beach and state park feasible. We sometimes drive to Rosemary , park the car, and walk around the development, and that is a lot of fun.

30ABandMan

I can't describe the difference but I can tell you that I WAY prefer Seagrove and everyone that lives here to Rosemary.

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nodilberthere

Rosemary seems very snooty to me, too....but why I have no idea. Same beach, same sun, same 30A. We had lunch at Wild Olive (?) last summer and it was okay, nothing special. The people dining around us were quite amusing to watch with their big ol' sunglasses and expensive outfits. I was soooo happy to get back on my bike and ride back to Grayton.....
I don't think I could ever stay in Rosemary....I don't think my bathing suits are expensive enough.

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Susan Horn

Odd, I have never picked up that "snooty" feeling in Rosemary. (Live in Seagrove, for what that's worth). Summer Kitchen is a great place, nothing snooty about it -- please see this new review --

Summer Kitchen Cafe - Restaurant Review by Bruce Collier - The Beachcomber Newspaper - Destin, Fort Walton Beach - Entertainment, Nightlife, Restaurant Guide, Dining, Music, Editorial,

It's a great family owned and operated business, and yes, that is my son Peter mentioned in the review (insert proud Mama smile here), and yes I am longtime friends with owners James and Miriam Dillon.

I never went in the Starbucks (part of my effort to support local mom and pops in preference to chains), but I love the new Amavida in Rosemary. Best iced jasmine tea I ever tasted, did not need sugar or lemon or anything, it was perfect just as served. Owners are

Seagrove is pretty wonderful too, and there's no better place for a burger or fried seafood on 30A than the Seagrove Village Market; proximity to Seaside's attractions from old Seagrove is handy too. Including the Seaside Amavida.

I think it's a matter of preference -- you can get around on foot and by bike to plenty of fun and interesting stuff from either Seagrove or Rosemary...

Mobility issues might make the dirt streets of Seagrove troublesome, especially if muddy or very dry. Rosemary is paved. I think someone is renting wheelchairs now with giant tires that can handle deep sand...

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Susan Horn
www.artisan-builds.com

nodilberthere

We'll be giving Summer Kitchen a try while we're there. Thanks for posting it.

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Beach Runner

Rosemary Beach has gorgeous architecture. We stayed there many times while building our home in Seagrove. The density of homes in Rosemary gives me claustrophobia. It is just to homogeneous to me, the reason that I don't like subdivisions back in GA -- they are too cookie-cutter. I like the heterogeneous nature of Seagrove. Also Rosemary is at the eastern end of Highway 30A, whereas Seagrove is more in the middle of things, thus it's less of a drive to explore the 30A area.

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kurt

They are a bit different and you should stay in both.

Summer Kitchen is the bomb.

Dave Rauschkolb

I live in Rosemary, don't own a big pair O sunglasses, got on my flip flops and holy shorts and an old ratty Red Bar T shirt. And most folks, I say MOST folks who live there I would not characterize as "Snooty". Sure, you can pretty much find "snooty" folks most anywhere but no more in Rosemary than Seagrove. I know this because I lived in Old Seagrove for about 12 years. Anyone think I am Snooty? Do I need to start another thread?

Dave Rauschkolb

I second that!!!

Beach Runner

I agree. We stayed there many, many times while building our home in Seagrove. The architecture is definitely intimidatingly gorgeous, but I have never felt that the people were snooty.

Don't mean to contribute to the war, but I find some of the overdressed people at Seaside (especially the overly-indulged teenagers) to have a snooty attitude. That being said, I adore the atmosphere at Seaside and am there a lot.

But glad I own in Seagrove because it's quieter.

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Paula

I'd experiment with both. Wherever I stayed, I'd want to be within EASY walking distance to the beach (ask exactly how long it takes to walk there - 5 minutes, 10 minutes, if you need a trolley it's too far for me) and a pool. I'd recommend staying once in Rosemary and once in Seagrove so you can decide for yourself which you like better and post your experience. I'd also ask what restaurants are within walking distance/1-2 miles in case you decide you don't want to drive much. And for me the best places always have a porch/terrace/deck/etc. (it's good to be able to be outside on a porch in the rain). Fancy doesn't matter at all to me, but convenience and clean matter a lot. And price matters a lot because I have kids to send to college soon (and quality of experience doesn't always relate to how much you pay for a place - for example, if you have young kids, a laid back place can feel more comfortable than a fancier place).

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Paula

tistheseason

They are very different -- and you can see everyone has a different opinion. I love Rosemary. I think the architecture is amazing and I love to ride my bike around and see the detailing and the unusual materials used to build each house.

Seagrove is sleepy and laid back. Amazing attributes themselves. But it's big -- and how walkable it is depends on the house you are in.

MS2Florida

I will keep it real for you, lol. Rosemary is where the big money folks stay and play. Drive through and you will see nothing but the best.

SWGB

Every place on 30A has "snooty" people. They come in droves during the summer. Name dropping, wearing big sunglasses, and bathed in designer logos. You'll never find them at certain local establishments or neighborhoods they consider "beneath" them. They generally aren't on vacation so much as a chance to go home and talk amongst their friends about where they stayed, how much they spent on it, and how exclusive it was.

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SWGB

Most of them don't have money. I'm betting the full time local in Seagrove driving the sensible car they own as opposed to lease is much more comfortable, happy, and funn to be around than most of the tourists.

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Miss Kitty

The happiest people wear sowal.com and 30A Funn logos.

Snoots are everywhere, as are wannabe snoots.

When did "having money" become so ostentatious? Must have been the 80's from what I can remember.

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JUL

I love Rosemary! Cowgirl Kitchen, Wild Olive and Courtyard Wine. I like the intimacy and the color and style of the architecture. Very family focused. I love the movies and Gigis. Just so much funn!

SWGB

I didn't say having money was ostentatious, what I meant was that the tourist in the brand new BMW, Mercedes, Landrover, or other pricey land yacht that absolutely must stay in the swankiest high end exclusive development usually shouldn't be spending the way they are.

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Miss Kitty

Almost missed this..maybe you misunderstood my question. I was wondering out loud when people started wearing their cash (or perceived cash) on their sleeves. Don't remember it from my youth or even at SMU (nicknamed southern money university). I knew plenty of peers that came from big money, but they never stood out. My premise was it was the go go 80's the started the whole logo wearing, somewhat showy generation.

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nodilberthere

Drove all the way from Ed Walline to Rosemary on my bike in the heat for some lunch at Wild Olive, only to find them closed on Mondays. Business must be really good at Wild Olive. Had a good meatloaf sandwich at Cowgirl instead, cute place, nice people.

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SWGB

I'm pretty sure it was the 80's that did it. Some people just can't help themselves.

Wild Olives has closed on Mondays since they opened for business.

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Rita

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Many restaurants close on Mondays. It isn't uncommon at all.


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Beach Runner

I started carrying Louis Vuitton in the 70's. Have never broken that tradition. They last forever. Beach Jacket's diaper bag was Louis Vuitton. She still carries it as a book bag.

So I guess I'm one of those bad logo people.

Does VC&A ring a bell with anyone? JK.

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Miss Kitty

You were ahead of your time. I am pretty sure I had no idea what a LV was in the 70's and I lived in DALLAS for most of that decade! Logos aren't "bad", I jsut wondered when they became so popular.

Oh man...sorry, we need a new thread for this silliness. Back to RB and Seagrove.

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Beach Runner

You don't remember Pappagallo in the 60's and 70's? All teens that weren't pseudo-hippies like me wore that stuff. Or Betsy Johnson if you were a hippie or pseudo-hippie like me. I was a model for Betsey Johnson at Paraphernalia in the 60's and 70's, starting as a young teen.

That's how I got into designer clothing. Plus my Mom indulged me in designer stuff. She was gorgeous and wore beautiful clothing, as did my Daddy.

Speaking of RB vs Seaside, I have seen some beautiful clothing and accessories there. Makes me sort of chuckle, though. We were accustomed to going to the Cloister where everyone dressed up for dinner. Then when we started going to the FL Panhandle, we dressed up. We quickly realized that we looked like turkeys in the Panhandle when dressed in Cloister style. So now we dress down, with at least one designer logo just to rep.

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nodilberthere

Do we agree, though, that big ol' sunglasses do make one LOOK rich, even if they're not?

This year, for the first time, I wore a baseball hat whenever I was on the
beach -- to protect my face. I've never looked right in a baseball cap, until my 19 year old son said, Mom, you need a big ol' pair of sunglasses with that cap. So I went out and bought the biggest pair of white sunglasses I could find, and voila, I looked really rich AND protected my face, all at the same time!

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Miss Kitty

Goodness, we REALLY need a new thread or PM! Excellent point, heard and received. There was always a style to emulate to fit in a group. Kinda', logos before logos existed, no?

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30A Skunkape

Or like an insect

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