There are many excellent restaurants and exciting attractions to visit in Panama City, Florida. But expenses can add up quickly, and sometimes you want to do things that aren’t too costly. Panama City Toyota wants to share this list of free things to do in Panama City to help you come up with some ideas for no-cost fun and entertainment.
Do Some Window Shopping
Image via Flickr under CC BY 2.0 by LucasArtoni
Window shopping is a great free activity and there is plenty of opportunity for window shopping in Panama City. Pier Park is one of the area’s largest shopping centers. It sits on 2 million square feet and has over 250 retail stores, restaurants, and attractions to explore. There is an outdoor play area that contains a bungee jump ride, bumper boats, and a passenger train. Pier Park often features music or other live entertainment.
You can spend time browsing many other specialty shops in Panama City. Shell Port Inc. has the largest selection of nautical-related gifts and seashells in the area and claims to have over 4 million shells in stock.
Decor By the Shore is a trail of 15 charming shops to explore. You can even get a “passport” from participating shops, collect 12 stamps by visiting featured shops, and submit it to receive a free souvenir from the Panama City Beach Visitor Information Center.
Visit The Local Beaches
There are 27 miles of beaches along the coastline of Panama City. You can pack a picnic, some sunscreen, a beach umbrella, and towels and easily spend a whole day enjoying time together on the beach. End your day of beach fun by watching the glorious sunset over the water.
Panama City Beach is a free 8-mile-long beach and probably the most popular beach in Panama City with its lovely white sand and sparkling blue water. Panama City Beach is conveniently close to downtown attractions such as Pier Park, where you can browse over 100 shops and restaurants. There is free parking near the beach at the M. B. Miller County Pier or by the Russell Fields City Pier.
Rick Seltzer Park is a 4.7-acre beach park that has public beach access and beautiful sand dunes to explore. Generally less crowded than Panama City Beach, this more remote beach has the same beautiful white sand and blue water. The park offers environmental educational resources on sand dunes and the local ecology. There is a pavilion and several picnic areas to use, along with a nature trail. There are also showers so you can remove excess sand before leaving for home.
Go Hiking Or Biking
Panama City has many free choices of recreational activities that aren’t beaches. The 2,900-acre PCB Conservation Park has no admission fee and contains 24 miles of trails to explore, including a boardwalk that takes you over a swamp while you walk under a canopy of cypress trees. You are likely to see free-roaming wildlife while hiking or biking at the Conservation Park.
Gayle’s Trails is a network of walking and cycling trails that connects PCB Conservation Park to Frank Brown Park. There are both paved and dirt routes in the system of trails so you can pick your favorite type for walking, running, hiking, inline skating, or cycling. Mapped routes of 12 different paths are available so you can choose the ideal distance for your excursion. This is also an excellent area for dog-walking.
The Pitt Spring Recreation Area is a slight drive from Panama City, but it’s a beautiful place for families to visit. You can spend the day swimming, tubing, and talking nature walks around the 40-foot round pool that gathers water from many small springs along Econfina Creek. You can also visit the nearby Ecofina River which the spring feeds into. Covered pavilions and picnic tables are available for use.
Another great recreational area is Under the Oaks Park, which has a large variety of outdoor entertainment for the whole family. There’s a playground and climbing area for kids, a nature trail, and an observation platform. There are also fishing areas and a place to launch canoes or kayaks, along with a course for a fun family game of disc golf.
Explore The Panama City Area
You may want to take a trip to the Panama City Beach Visitors Information Center. Even residents can learn something new about the community, and they provide brochures and coupons that can give you many ideas for things to do. They can also share even more ideas of free and reasonably priced activities in Panama City.
Visit Panama City Beach Library for browsing books, access to computers, or children’s programs. The library also offers many things you might not be aware of, such as 3D printing abilities, musical instruments to check out, or tutoring and classes you can take.
There is a weekly summer live music concert series at Aaron Bessant Park. The concerts are on Tuesday nights from June through August and feature a different artist each week. Whether your musical preference is rock-and-roll, country, blues, or jazz, you’ll be able to find genres you’ll enjoy. You can bring coolers, picnics, lawn chairs or blankets to sit on, and even your pets. Or visit the local marinas, where you can watch large ships and boats pull in and out of the harbor.
You may want to take a drive along Scenic Highway 30A. This is a 24-mile stretch of road in the Florida Panhandle that runs along the Gulf of Mexico and has beautiful scenery and a variety of small beach towns to visit. Beach communities such as Santa Rosa Beach or Blue Mountain Beach have public white-sand beaches, bike paths, and many beach shops to visit. You can pack a picnic lunch and spend a few hours savoring the peaceful coastal drive.
There are a wide variety of things to do for free in Panama City and Panama City Toyota wants to help you find them. How many of these suggestions have you already experienced? Were there any new ideas for free excursions that you would like to try? If you have additional ideas for more free things to do in Panama City, contact us so we can add them to future lists.
