Fort Walton Beach has been named one of Expedia’s top 10 destinations for 2026, marking the only Florida location to make the global list as traveler interest in the area surged 45%.
- The designation, revealed in Expedia’s “Unpack ’26” travel trends report, places the Emerald Coast destination alongside nine other locations worldwide, including Big Sky, Montana; Okinawa, Japan; and Sardinia, Italy. Fort Walton Beach is one of only two U.S. destinations on the list.
“It’s humbling for us all,” said Jennifer Adams, Okaloosa County Tourism Director. “When I took over eight years ago, we didn’t have the partnerships that we have now, such as with the Destin-Fort Walton Beach Airport. I think that if we hadn’t ever gotten to that point — where we are all working together — we never would’ve been recognized like this.”
While Adams markets the broader Destin-Fort Walton Beach destination, Expedia’s specific recognition of Fort Walton Beach highlights the city’s growing appeal to travelers.
The Expedia list, based on increases in flight and accommodation searches for travel between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2024, compared to the same period in 2025, shows Fort Walton Beach competing with international destinations. Big Sky, Montana, topped the list with a 92% increase, followed by Okinawa at 71% and Sardinia at 63%.
Adams attributes the growing interest to a strategic shift in how the destination markets itself — moving beyond being “just a beach destination in summertime” to offering year-round experiences that give visitors reasons to explore beyond the water.
- “Our goal was to, and also our mission is to make time spent here more valuable to all, and I think we’ve done it,” Adams said. “We’ve stayed true to embracing local life, and more and more people are embracing tourism, and we’re offering them more things to do, and recognizing that you just don’t have to sit on the beach for seven days.”
Building experiences beyond the beach
The transformation Adams describes didn’t happen overnight. Under her leadership, the tourism department made a fundamental decision: rather than simply promoting what already existed, they would actively create tourism products that added value for both visitors and residents.
The Natural Resources team, an eight-biologist department led by Natural Resources Chief Alex Fogg, has become central to this strategy. Since 2020, the team has deployed more than 20 large vessels and thousands of tons of environmentally friendly reef material, creating what Adams calls “a world-class dive destination that serves as essential habitat for species of fish that are important to the ecosystem.”
- The artificial reef program has made Destin-Fort Walton Beach the leader in Florida for reef activity. A total of 587 public and 435 private artificial reef sites now exist, ranging from concrete modules to large shipwrecks. These structures provide ideal locations for scuba diving and fishing while supporting marine ecosystems.
“A lot of other destinations don’t see it the way we see it,” Adams said. “We don’t have as many events as other destinations, but we have other opportunities for people to come year round and learn new skills or be adventurous.”
The department’s sea turtle conservation program, managed by Natural Resources Manager Jessica Valek, patrols the beaches at dawn every day during nesting season to survey for potential nesting and hatch activity. Educational programs like the “C.A.R.E.ing for Turtles” series at the Gulfarium C.A.R.E. Center give visitors and locals alike opportunities to learn about protecting endangered species.
Perhaps most notably, the destination hosts the Emerald Coast Open, the world’s largest lionfish tournament. Since the inaugural event in 2019, the tournament has resulted in the removal of nearly 85,000 invasive lionfish that threaten native marine life. The program combines conservation with culinary tourism — participants discover that lionfish, despite being destructive to local ecosystems, are surprisingly delicious.
“Look at our Little Adventures program – I don’t know of another destination that is going to pay someone to teach kids how to cast net,” Adams said, illustrating how her department’s approach differs from traditional destination marketing organizations. “That’s my philosophy.”
- The cast-netting classes Adams mentioned are just one example of programs designed to get families — particularly children — outdoors and onto the water. The destination developed these offerings after research showed that 56% of children spend less time outdoors than maximum security prison inmates, and 49% of surveyed parents find it hard to play with their kids.
The tourism department’s investments extend throughout the county. The newly created Land Resources team is developing miles of hiking trails at properties like the 410-acre North Shoal River Preserve in Crestview, which will feature wildlife viewing in mixed upland and wetland ecosystems, primitive camping and event spaces for activities like cross-country racing, archery and orienteering.
Adams said the approach stems from a realization that “we got so big, we forgot to be small.”
“You can come-as-you-are here in Destin-Fort Walton Beach,” she said.
Fort Walton Beach’s distinct appeal
Despite the new Brooks Bridge construction currently underway, she believes more visitors are discovering what sets Fort Walton Beach apart as its own destination.
- The city offers a different pace and character than its neighboring communities, with access to water activities, museums that tell the area’s military and cultural history, and a downtown food scene that has quietly become a draw in its own right.
“I think that more people are discovering Fort Walton Beach as they search our overall destination,” Adams said. “They’re finding new things. They’re finding Liza Jackson Park, they’re finding Beach Weekend downtown, they’re going down to The Landing. Plus, Fort Walton has a great food scene.”
The city’s location provides strategic advantages.
With the Air Force Armament Museum —the only museum in the world dedicated to the collection, preservation and exhibition of artifacts and memorabilia associated with Air Force Armament — Fort Walton Beach attracts military history enthusiasts.
The Boardwalk on Okaloosa Island offers restaurants, beach access, live music and movies on the beach. The Okaloosa Island Fishing Pier provides anglers a prime fishing location, while charters and pontoon rentals operate from Fort Walton Beach, giving visitors access to the emerald waters.
Downtown Fort Walton Beach features unique shops and dining that provide alternatives when beach conditions aren’t ideal or families need a break from the sand.
- “I think once you start to embrace Fort Walton Beach and all that the city has to offer, it’s appealing,” Adams said.
Changing perceptions from within
While many destinations focus marketing dollars exclusively on attracting visitors, Adams took an unconventional approach that drew questions from her peers: she invested in marketing to locals.
“Seven years ago, our hospitality scores were not good,” Adams said. “Our visitors thought that we didn’t have any southern hospitality, and we’ve all really worked on that.”
The internal marketing strategy required redefining what tourism promotion means. Working with the county clerk, internal departments and the county attorney, Adams’ team was able to define tourism and promotion to include efforts within the local market — not just exterior markets.
- “Anybody can do an ad campaign and buy media — that’s not what it’s all about,” Adams said. “You have to live up to that.”
The strategy paid off. Improved hospitality scores reflect a shift in how locals view tourism, recognizing the economic benefits it provides to the community. The tourism department collected $42.9 million in tourist development tax, which translated to $736 million in total visitor spending and tax impact — money flowing to local shops, restaurants, charters and businesses.
“I look at my numbers every month, but I also look at visitor spend,” Adams said. “That’s extremely important so that I can know that I’m bringing the right person here.”
The tourism department also expanded its tax district in recent years, adding mostly hotels that increased inventory available through booking platforms like Expedia. The destination now has nearly 17,000 units, up from just under 14,000 when Adams’ predecessor began.
The expansion came with challenges. Adding more hotels could have diluted average daily rates and occupancy by offering more options. But Adams saw opportunity, particularly in the north end of the county, where hotels sometimes perform better than southern properties in winter months due to business and military travel.
To maintain visibility across all seasons and accommodate the expanded inventory, the tourism department shifted to an “always on” strategy with Google, ensuring the destination appears in searches regardless of season.
- “There’s not one person that doesn’t use Google in a day,” Adams said. “And now with AI, we’re trying to work that into our measurement system.”
The multi-pronged approach — creating distinctive tourism products, improving local attitudes toward visitors, expanding accommodation options and maintaining consistent digital presence — has positioned the destination for year-round visitation rather than seasonal peaks.
Looking ahead
The tourism department has invested approximately $16 million in the expanded district over the past few years and continues to develop the north end with an ecotourism focus.
Adams also has her sights set on achieving Expedia’s new Smart Travel Health Check designation, a framework that evaluates destinations on sustainable tourism management, community empowerment and transparent reinvestment of tourism revenue. Six of the 10 destinations on Expedia’s list met these criteria, though Fort Walton Beach was not among them.
- The destination already holds Destinations International accreditation with distinction, which required a rigorous year-long process evaluating sustainability, workplace environment, partnerships and communication.
“When I saw that Smart Check I told my team that we are going to go through the same process that we did and we received our Accreditation with Distinction,” Adams said. “I want that check.”
Adams credits the Okaloosa Board of County Commissioners for supporting the tourism department’s vision and investments.
“I am so blessed to have a group of commissioners that support us tremendously,” she said. “They all have a vision and it’s nice that they’re uniting that vision.”
- The Commissioners’ countywide approach has enabled cross-district support for projects like purchasing the SS United States for deployment as an artificial reef and buying hundreds of acres in the north end for tourism development.
For Adams, the Expedia recognition validates a philosophy of staying small while doing big things.
“When I got here, the destination got so big that we forgot how to be small. It’s okay to be small,” Adams said. “You can be a small destination and have the value of these other big ones.”
She added: “We had to go back to being that village that we once were. I think that people, including our locals, like having a pace where they can discover and rediscover themselves in any part of our county over and over again. And I think that’s really neat about Destin-Fort Walton Beach.”
One Response
It would be beneficial to the local community and tourists if more effort and dollars were put into beautifying and maintaining the landscape around town. Destin has beautiful landscaping while FWB area looks scruffy and tired and neglected. I believe locals may make more effort cleaning their own property if the entire community were more polished.