Best Western On The Beach
337 East Beach Boulevard
Gulf Shores, AL 36547
(251) 948-2711
Comfort Inn
3049 West 1st Street
(251) 968-8604
Toll Free: (800) 228-5150
Courtyard Marriott Gulf Shores at Craft Farms
3750 Gulf Shores Parkway
Gulf Shores, AL 36542
(251) 968-1113
Toll Free: (800) 360-9375
Gulf Pines Motel
245 East 22nd Avenue
Gulf Shores, AL 36542
(251) 968-7911
Gulf Shores Plantation
HIGHWAY 180 WEST
GULF SHORES, AL 36547
(800) 554-0344
Gulf Shores Surf and Racquet Club
What a summer it's been. After last year's storms and the predictions for an even worse season this year we're all breathing a huge sigh of relief to have seen nothing of the sort.
In fact things could hardly be better.
It looks like we'll all be headed out to the Alabama Gulf Coast this weekend, the last hurrah for summer vacation 2006. If you're among them, don't go without checking ahead for lodging. Just about every condo in the system is booked up solid for the weekend. There may be the odd hotel room here and there. Don't give up. The beach is calling.
Coastal communities look for big Labor Day weekend business
With Tropical Storm Ernesto no longer a local threat, tourism officials in Gulf Shores and Orange Beach said they expect big crowds this holiday weekend, hopefully helping offset last year's Labor Day, when Hurricane Katrina turned Alabama's beaches into virtual ghost towns.
As Ernesto churned in the Caribbean last weekend, and early projections called for it to smash the Gulf Coast, officials feared the worst.
Once the storm weakened and shifted east over Florida, it signaled good news for the Alabama coast, a region that missed out on the traditional end of summer bonanza last year.
"We all breathed a little sigh of relief," said Marie Curran, the director of marketing and reservations for Brett/Robinson, a real estate conglomerate that manages more than 1,500 rental units.
"We hate to see the hurricane go anywhere, but we're happy it's not going in this direction. I think that's a common thought along the Gulf Coast."
Curran said all of the real estate conglomerate's 1,856 condo units are booked for this weekend.
The story below rings true. It sounds exactly like what you can expect in a Gulf Shores vacation. Plenty of warm sunshine and relaxation. The kind of vacation you learn to love. The kind of vacation that doesn't wear you out, but rather rejuvenates you.
It's rare the Gulf Shores vacationer who doesn't come away wanting to return as soon as possible. It's rare the Gulf Shores vacationer who doesn't come back again and again. This easy-going, relax and get your life on the right track atmosphere is why the Gulf Coast has become one of the most popular vacation destinations today.
Are we there yet? Are we there yet?
Having enjoyed a wonderful spring break a few years back at Gulf Shores, Ala., we longed to return.
When I received an e-mail about a couple that was looking to rent out their condo in Gulf Shores, our destination was assured.
...
We arrived at the third-floor condo - easy up, easy down. The Gulf of Mexico was just out back. The view from the balcony was magnificent.
Each day, my wife and kids swam in the Gulf while I read, went for a jog, toiled away on my laptop, and watched World Cup soccer games...
In the evenings, we tossed the Frisbee, played Kadima (two paddles and a ball) and played volleyball.
We shopped, ate at some nice places, watched TV, hunted around town for wireless Internet access and walked on the beach at night.
On the way back to Marion, we all agreed that this was one of our most relaxing vacations ever.
Get ready for it. Whether you're just visiting Alabama's Gulf Coast, vacationing in a Gulf Shores condo for a week or looking to invest in a vacation rental property on the Gulf Coast, you'll be paying more - a lot more - for insurance.
Fewer and fewer companies remain in the market to sell Gulf Coast vacation property owners insurance for their condos or vacation homes. Those that do remain are charging much more to insure against storm damage.
With the prices of Gulf Shores real estate escalating as they are and the ever increasing demand from Alabama Gulf Coast vacationers the daily, weekly and monthly prices for vacation rentals is about to rise significantly.
With only 21 of 80 units yet to be reserved in the Gulf Shores Golf Club's condo development project the success of phase one of the club's renovation plan is virtually assured.
The club's condo offering has a lot going for it. The condos are being built in a prime location and they are being offered at very attractive prices - about half the cost per square foot of comparable condo properties on the Gulf Shores beach front.
It would appear that sanity has returned to the Gulf Coast condo market. New projects opening up are selling well, but fewer condo sales are to investors looking to make a quick buck by immediately selling the property to other investors, a practice known as flipping.
The $43.4 million Lighthouse condominium development is ready to open for occupancy. The 18 stories tall, 251 two and three bedroom unit development sold out within hours of going on the market in 2003.
Now it's time for Lighthouse condo owners to close on their properties, and real estate professionals are watching for indications the market might once again become frothy. So far, if closings on the Lighthouse condo development are a good indicator, there are few signs of this exuberance. Owners are closing on their properties for occupancy and not the quick sale.
Gulf Shores condo prices appear to be stabilizing and appreciating at a healthy pace.