5 hr fishing trip. Took about an hour and a half to get out to sea and back. Total fishing time…read morewas about 2 hours. Had some decent bites, couple of triggerfish, red snapper, a lot of beeliners, and even an amberjack. Recommend for first time fishers! For more experienced fishermen I suggest a longer trip.

My dad booked us a Deep Sea Fishing trip with Capt. Andersons in Panama City. We hadn't been in…read moreclose to 30 years so I was excited. We opted for the 10 Hour Trip (2 hours out, ~6 hours of fishing, 2 hours back). Quick edit: we only had ~26 people fishing and I'm thankful for that! It was coooooold the morning of and it had stormed the previous two days. Thankfully we were prepared. I'd recommend bringing a book bag or light sack with: sunscreen, hat, glasses, long sleeve shirt/hoodie, Gatorade, rain jacket and change of shirt. They do provide sunscreen, medicine, food, snacks and drinks onboard for a cost (see my menu photos). It was ROUGH going out, thanks to the storms leaving. We hit 5-6 foot waves and it was bumpy on some parts. I almost lost my stomach and went to the back of the boat for fresh hair for the last 45 minutes going out. There were a few people who got really sick. Make sure you clean your system out before getting on the boat (ie: get your out) because the two bathrooms are tiny. We were assigned fishing spots (dad got us back of the boat) and had buckets of squid ready to go. Capt would hit his horn, letting you know it was time to drop the line in. You'd pretty much either get something right away or nothing. It didn't take long to get the hang of it: drop to the bottom, reel twice up, keep the line tight, jerk the rod when you feel a nibble, reel up and check rod pressure to ensure you got something. It's a very quick process! One thing you'll notice is the different arm muscles you'll use. I caught the only Grouper for this trip and it certainly tired my wrist out. I literally got a Charlie horse in my wrist and toe after hauling that sucker onboard. It wasn't Red Snapper season (June 1st) but my dad caught 3 huge Red Snappers. We got to keep 10 B-Liners each, and also caught some white snapper. Overall, we hit our limit and caught extra for others on the boat. The helpers did an awesome job! The ride coming back in was pleasant and we sat on top of the boat. It was a fun experience! Make sure to tip the Captain and your helper! Great crew and they got the job done! There is also a fish cleaning place at the dock that'll fillet the fish for you at $.80/lb.

Four of us went on a fishing trip with Captain Dave and his sidekick Anthony. We had a blast and…read morewill use them again. With their help, we caught over 70 fish including mahi-mahi, king mackerel and vermillion.

Captain Dave took my family and I out for an afternoon trip. None of us had any experience fishing…read morebut he and first mate Ron had us reeling in fish like seasoned fishermen in minutes. We caught so many fish in 4.5 hours we were having to take breaks due to exhaustion from fighting the whoppers we were reeling in. We limited out on Red Snapper in no time and caught Mahi and other types as well, 135 lbs of fish total. All of this was done on an afternoon when other boats were bringing in far fewer fish...they were staring at our bounty in awe as Captain Dave was hanging the fish on the board to take a picture for us. For seasoned veterans or beginners like us I couldn't recommend Reel Contenders any higher. We will definitely be going out with Captain Dave on our next trip back to Panama City!!

Such a great experience! Oz is great with kids. Brandon & Braxton were incredibly helpful. They…read moreall went out of their way to make sure everyone was having fun.

Oz, Jason, and Brandon were our boat crew and they were amazing! Oz was so funny! Brandon…read moredefinitely made our trip! Got excited with us over our fish, helped when our lines got tangled and wrapped with each other, and was so incredibly friendly!!! Definitely recommend going on the Destin princess!!

Stopped on for fuel, tea, and a bathroom stop, was delighted by how classy the bathroom was,…read moreconsidering how many revolting ones we have encountered on this road trip.

Excellent service at the marina. You ring a bell and the guy comes to the pier/bait shop and get…read morediesel/gas/ice/etc. Very nice place with a small convenience store, tiki bar outside serving bbq in afternoons

I enjoy going to this park pretty frequently. My favorite time is sunrise because you can catch the…read moreperfect view over the water. This park is dog friendly. It features a great walking track, playground for kids, swings, a disc golf course, picnic tables, benches, a water front view, and an open field with two parking lots.

Great park for kids, small beach area, several shelters and ample parking. Disc golf course is…read morepoorly marked/maintained. Find a local player to play with your first round. Had a good time, just wish the signage/directions would be repaired/replaced.

Wonderful experience. Workers are awesome. Great place to canoe and raft. I highly recommend giving…read moreit a go. Burn some calories and enjoy the views

My family and I had the best time - we had a few hours to kill on a drive down south. Stopped here…read moreoff a recommendation from friends! The springs are great and enjoyable and the paddling back to the livery is such a fun adventure! We took our kids (ages 10, 9 and 6) everyone had a wonderful time.

We had a great time finishing with Captain Phil. We loved his new boat. It has live wells so we…read morestopped to catch some bait fish first thing. He threw out his net and hauled in a mother load! He took us to a few different places. We were able to catch a lot of fish. He kept our hooks baited and we were reeling in fish of all types. I was able to catch mangrove snapper which cooked up nicely! I also caught Jack Crevalle, catfish, and pin fish. Hubby caught some bigger fish and even a puffer fish. Very cool. We had a good time. Four hours went by fast. Next time we will book a longer trip. Thanks Captain Phil!

I will preface this review by... if you are looking for your average fishing guide then this is not…read morefor you... Phil does an amazing job giving you the fight of your life on light tackle. We went out 2 days in a row and both days Phill was on the fish! The first day we went reef fishing, caught all kinds of fish from trigger, vermilion snapper, gag grouper, amber jack (which put up a hell of a fight) red snapper, black drum, ruby red lips.. all of these on a light rod and real so you felt every bit of fight these fish have to offer!! and all of this in a a 5 hour period counting the time out and back to dock!! 2nd day our was our hunt day so we got red fish, black drum, Spanish mackerel... the Spanish mackerels were a blast to troll for!!!! All in all I highly recommend Phil Wild for you personal fishing guide!!! He even makes a newbie like me actually have fun!!!! Thanks Phil, until next time!!!!

Today my daughter and I were dropped off on shell island by a fisherman that my husband was going…read morefishing with. Being from WV, we had no idea how the shuttles or ferry works. Come to find out, we needed to buy a ticket at the park in order to have a way off the island. A few hours later, I am starting to panic wondering if I'd be able to get my daughter off the island or not. I'd seen some people who rented boats and asked them for a ride back to the dock at their convenience, but nobody was willing to help us. Then I googled St. Andrew's ferry's and got ahold of a lovely lady named Kim, I explained our situation and she tried to get us on the next available ferry, unfortunately we were on the other side of the island. I had all but given up when Kim called me back to let me know her entire team had been working together to help get us safely off the island. When Captain Scott showed up on his boat, his reassuring smile was exactly what we needed after being stranded for 4 hours. He pulled up onto the bank and helped my daughter and I board his boat and he even let me vent about the anger I had for my husband and the fisherman who just left us there. To all the people with guest services at St. Andrew's state park, you all will never know how much it means to me that you all helped and went above and beyond. After Captain Scott dropped us off at our vehicle, the employees even came up to us to make sure we were okay and to see if we needed anything while we were waiting for my selfish husband to get back from fishing. If I could leave more than 5 stars I would. Kim, Kelsey, Chad and Captain Scott, as my grandmother would say, I would dance at your wedding if I could. God bless you all and thank you. If it wasn't for you guys we'd still be over there on the island. It's beautiful but I don't know when I'll be going back. If I do I will be sure to have a ticket and go through you guys. The park is beautiful and the staff are a blessing.

Drove all the way from Santa Rosa Beach where I am very familiar with two State Parks, Grayton…read moreBeach State Park and Topsail Hill Preserve State Park and the Ranger at the gate would not allow us to get in to check the campsites so we could make an intelligent decision for booking next year. When I asked her if we could just drive around OR walk, she refused even when I said we had driven 40 miles just for that purpose. I will have to reserve BLINDLY for next year and be content with whatever site we get shaded or not. Looks like she had a bad night and hope that Karma comes around, it wasn't like we were going to sneak in and spend the night in the car when we were staying in Topsail which I am almost sure is better than this other one. I am sure that if I was a politician she would've extended the red carpet. So this review is not about the Park itself but about the Ranger at the gate and her attitude towards potential customers