The end of summer can be a sad time for our sun lovers but fall has ways of making everyone forget their distress, especially when you make plans for a little autumn getaway to the Gulf Shores area. Still providing days that are warm enough for the beach, but as school gets back in session and the annual summer vacations have ended, the crowds lessen, lines in restaurants shrink, and more of our Alabama Beach Vacation Rentals tranquil sanctuaries become available for rent. Fall is the perfect time to enjoy a carefree and relaxing vacation, not just in Gulf Shores, but in Orange Beach and Fort Morgan, and this guide to all the reasons your fall journey to Alabama will be one you will never forget will help build up the anticipation!
The Festivals
Although it may still feel like summer, the temperatures drop enough to make fall festivals some of our favorite things to attend. Orange Beach Freedom Fest, held on October 6th and 7th at the Wharf in Orange Beach, offers the Fall Bama Cruisin’ Car Show, food vendors, and arts and crafts that represent the best of Alabama artist’s work. On October 12th through the 15th, the most delicious of festivals comes to Gulf Shores, the Annual National Shrimp Festival! Taking place at the Gulf Shores Main Beach, this festival is one we wait for all year round, featuring live music in a variety of genres, over 200 booths of arts, fine art, and craft vendors, and of course, all the delicious shrimp you can eat, purchased from many of the 50 food vendors that are a part of the festival. Experience the Oyster is another fantastic fall festival, occurring at The Hangout in Gulf Shores on November 2nd and 3rd, celebrating the seafood that makes this part of Alabama one of the best places to live or visit. With live music, oyster farm demos, even an oyster shucking contest that will amaze all that see it, this festival should not be missed.
Beach Days for the Win
With the local beaches providing lifeguards through October, your fall escape to the Gulf Shores area can almost feel like an extension of summer, without the high humidity that often occurs in the late summer months. Grab your beach gear (don’t forget the sunscreen) and head to the sandy shores of the Gulf of Mexico for a day of fun in the sun and surf. Real life can be a hectic and chaotic mess, but the salt air, soft sands, and frothy waters will make you forget the outside world exists. Feed your soul with the serenity only found in the salty waters of the Gulf, perhaps work on your fall tan, ensuring friends and family back home will be envious, and just relax. Read a book under a colorful beach umbrella, float in the cool waters—perhaps with a snorkel that will allow you to watch the adventures under the surface—and build sandcastles with your favorite tiny travelers. Your beach days will be ones you can look back on during the busy days that lie ahead, reaching deep inside your memories for a touch of peace!
Gulf Park Nature Center in Orange Beach
Offering nature and beach walks through a “forest” of local plants and flower, the Gulf Park Nature Center is a living museum of the plants and animals that make this region feel like a tropical paradise. The cooler days of fall will help you extend your time in nature and their activities calendar is filled with fun adventures that will help give you a greater appreciation for the natural world of Alabama, including the sea turtles, owls, and even alligators that make their homes here.
Time to Dine
Although our Alabama Beach Vacation Rentals seasonal sanctuaries provide fully equipped kitchens that you will enjoy puttering around in, you and your family are on vacation and deserve to have at least some of your meals prepared, served, and cleared away by others. Tacky Jacks Fort Morgan, located at 1577 AL-180 in the Fort Morgan Marina, is a harbor-side restaurant serving a seafood-centric menu you will love and offering views of the water you will crave. Pro tip: Everything on the menu is delicious, but you will kick yourself if you leave without sampling their peanut butter pie!
At Home with Alabama Beach Vacation Rentals
The best times of your seasonal journey to Gulf Shores, Orange Beach, or Fort Morgan may be the ones you spend at home in our fall havens. Offering all the comforts of home blended with the modern conveniences that make life (and travel) easier, your days and nights will be relaxing, restful, and oh so comfortable. Reserve your favorite escape and contact us today!
As the summer draws to an end, we just aren’t ready for the carefree days and vibes to stop. Even in the hottest places on earth, there is a magic that accompanies a summer’s day and we still have a deeper tan to achieve, a greater peace to discover, and more tropical beverages to imbibe! We at Alabama Beach Vacation Resort can’t do anything to slow the passage of time, but we can provide the most comfortable and luxurious escapes in which to enjoy the final holiday of the summer, Labor Day with its long weekend and one last opportunity to play, relax, and celebrate the joys of the season! Falling on September 4th this year, the summer in our little section of paradise will still feel like summer and as you explore the activities you can enjoy in Orange Beach, Gulf Shores, and Fort Morgan, coming home to our holiday hideaways will help expand the opportunities for fun and relaxation! This guide to the best way to enjoy an Alabama vacation over the long Labor Day weekend will give you a little something extra to look forward to in the waning days of the season!
Tacky Jack’s Bloody Mary 5K & 1 Mile Fun Run, September 2 in Gulf Shores
A joyful run on a beautiful summer’s day is an activity many people can get behind and Tacky Jack’s Bloody Mary 5K & 1-mile fun run offers a fantastic way to enjoy the long weekend! Starting at 7:30 in the morning (when it is still cool!) and offering a variety of cash prizes, participants are encouraged to wear their favorite football team colors as our football-obsessed coastal village acknowledges this weekend as the kickoff to the season!
Turnpike Troubadours, September 2, The Wharf Amphitheater in Orange Beach
Music and summer go together like peanut butter and jelly and when you get to enjoy live performances outside under the summer’s sky, well, there’s no better way to celebrate this holiday dedicated to not working! The Turnpike Troubadours, a country band based out of Oklahoma, is coming to town this Labor Day weekend and with ticket prices starting at $72 (increasing as the seats and the views get better!) this fun event will fit into most travelers’ vacation budgets!
Fort Morgan State Historic Site, 110 AL-180
There’s no reason you have to participate in an organized event to have a perfectly wonderful time and the history buffs in our midst will obsess over the opportunity to explore a spot that took a major role in the Civil War and was prominent in 4 wars altogether! Fort Morgan State Historic Site offers a glimpse into the history of war time while also paying homage to the skills of local bricklayers; built of over 40 million bricks, many of which were laid by enslaved Americans, this site will be an interesting addition to your summer adventures in coastal Alabama!
This Way to the Beach!
White sands, turquoise waters, and sea oats swaying in the sea breezes come together to create the perfect playground for your holiday excitement in both Gulf Shores AND Orange Beach. Check out the public beaches of Gulf Shores, staking your claim on the section of beach you have been eyeing from your Alabama Beach Vacation Resort oceanfront condo, and spending the day frolicking in the surf, enjoying sandwiches you packed in the cooler, and relaxing under the slightly cooler September rays of the sun. Or, for those who chose one of our Orange Beach cozy condos, do the exact same thing on the beaches of Orange Beach! In both cases hanging around until the sun sets in a fiery ball over the Gulf is highly recommended, but if you can’t hang that long, be sure to pour yourself a chill beverage and enjoy the same views from the patio or balcony of your Alabama holiday hideaway!
At Home with Alabama Beach Vacation Resort
Your best adventures may take place within the confines of our holiday havens, offering comfort, style, and that beachy vibe that convinces guests that summer can last forever, at least in Alabama! Providing spaces that are light and bright, walls of windows offer unobstructed views of one of the most beautiful regions on earth! Start your days with a sunrise walk along the shorelines of the Gulf of Mexico, returning to your comfy bed when the sun is golden against blue skies, and end every evening raising a toast to Mother Nature’s second-best performance! Hanging out by the resort pools, grilling freshly caught fish on community barbecues, and even ensuring you continue looking fit in your brand-new bikini by working out in the fitness center; these activities and so much more can be enjoyed during your celebration of the holiday in Gulf Shores, Orange Beach, or Fort Morgan! Contact us and reserve your favorite escape today!