Motels In Panama City Beach Florida

Where does the Redneck Riviera begin and end?

Are we part of the Redneck Riviera? The New York Times thinks so, and proclaimed it in a headline last week detailing the financial strain being felt at the Ohr-O’Keefe Museum of Art in Biloxi.

“A Gamble on Art on the ‘Redneck Riviera’ May Not be Paying Off,” The Times headline announced, causing folks in these parts to do a double take.

A half century or more back the folks who wanted to create a brand for the Mississippi Coast tried mightily to attach the name “America’s Riviera,” but it didn’t last. At one time we were known as the “Poor Man’s Riviera.”

Ironically, the term Redneck Riviera likely first appeared in print in an article by New York Times reporter Howell Raines in 1978. Raines, who would later be executive editor of The Times, was describing a stretch of beach from west of Gulf Shores, Ala., to the Flora-Bama, a bar that straddled the Florida-Alabama border, and the good times that former Alabama Crimson Tide quarterbacks Kenny Stabler and Richard Todd, then players in the NFL, were enjoying along that idyllic playground.

As Gulf Shores gained glitz and condos it came to shun the Redneck Riviera name and in recent times Gulf Shores flatly refused to allow a reality-show like “Jersey Shore” to be filmed there to be called “Redneck Riviera.” But for the generations of Southerners who flocked to its charming low-rent cabins and motels, many good memories remain.

Harvey Jackson III, a history professor at Jacksonville State University, has chronicled the area in a book published by the University of North Carolina Press titled “The Rise and Decline of the Redneck Riviera: the Northern Rim of the Gulf Coast since World War II.”

Jackson’s research shows that there were references to a Gulf Coast Riviera dating to 1941 in a WPA publication on Alabama in which the coastline is described as a collection of “little fishing villages that remind the visitor of the Southern Coast of France.”

The professor, goes on to say that the Redneck Riviera first described by Raines had very little in common with the Côte d’Azur, rather it was a “smattering of vacation cottages, honkytonks, picturesque if seedy motels, shacks on pilings and cafes that served smoked mullet, presided over by sunburned, bearded, beer-soaked refugees from civilization, driving rusted-out pickup trucks.

Panama City Beach Motels, Perfect Vacations | By The Sea Resort

Are you thinking that it’s about time for a vacation? Vacations are perfect to bring families closer together, relieve stress, get reacquainted with yourself or just to escape everyday life. Vacations are something everyone should be able to indulge in. They can help people out in so many different ways. There are many places to vacation, nationally and internationally, so how do you choose where to go? How do you find a spot that has everything you are looking for? Well you first have to figure out what exactly you are looking for in a vacation. You have to decide if you are looking for a beach to relax or an adventurous get away.

If you are looking for a beach where you can relax and indulge during an adventurous get away, Florida is the perfect spot for you. Whether you are vacationing with family or with friends, Florida has everything you could ever want. Panama City Beach Florida has some of the world’s most beautiful beaches. These pearly white beaches will make your jaw drop when you set foot on them. Not only do they have beautiful beaches but tons of activities around these beaches. There are water sports to indulge in, theme parks that aren’t too far away, and more variety. You can indulge in sailing, fishing, snorkeling and many other activities that can make your vacation perfect.

Panama City Beach Florida is perfection in a vacation destination. When looking for Panama City motels or Panama City Beach resorts , make sure you find somewhere where you are comfortable. Make sure you find somewhere that offers the amenities to even further perfect your vacation. By The Sea Resorts has three Panama City Beach Resorts that will help make your vacation perfect.

Flyfisher's Guide to Florida Saltwater

National tollfree directory

Moon Florida Beaches, The Best Places to Swim, Play, Eat, and Stay

Frommer's Florida 2011

Dixie before Disney, 100 years of roadside fun