Best Dance Club: Club La Vela
Even locals can’t deny it: if you want to hit the club for the sole purpose of dancing the night away, there is no better place to get down than Club La Vela. And that sentiment may be not only true for Panama City Beach, but just about anywhere. Widely known as the largest club in the U.S, Club La Vela can house all your fantasies and more. The dance floors seem to never end. Rugs just waiting to be cut include: the underground, pussykat lounge, foam room, darkroom, penthouse lounge, thunderdome, galaxy club, rock arena, space, nightgallery and all this carries out to the poolside where dj’s spin gulf-front. Music ranges from hip-hop, bootie, and high-energy dance to techno, trance rock and progressive house.
Best Drinks: Sharky’s Beach Bar
Do you know what the “Watermelon Crawl” is? If you don’t, you should. Sharky’s, located on Front Beach road, during the day is a relatively quiet seafood restaurant serving up everything from mahi-mahi, shrimp, scallops, and even fresh Apalachicola Oysters. But when the sun goes down on Panama City Beach, and the live music kicks in, Sharky’s transforms into one of the most exciting bars on the beach and the drinks have a lot to do with it. The best drink, maybe in the entire universe, is the Watermelon drink. Basically, they cut a watermelon in half, hollow that thing out and fill it with enough liquor to take out a NFL football team. By the time you and your buds drink it up, you’ll be doing the Watermelon Crawl for the rest of the night.
Most Flirt-Encouraging: Sandpiper Beacon’s Tiki Bar
Sandpiper Beacon is a popular hotel on Panama City Beach known and loved for many reasons, but none more than its very tropical, highly-stimulating Tiki Bar. This Polynesian style oasis is perfect place to dance, drink and meet someone worth flirting with. In fact, once you descend the planks to a dance floor surrounded by bamboo, palm trees and the sweet-salty smell of the gulf, you’ll believe you’re are the most desirable person in the place. They’ve got karoake, Lanakilas hula and Samoan fire knife dancers that make you feel like you’re on some tropical island where inhibitions abscond with the ocean. You’ll definitely want to flirt, but it may surprise you how many people will flirt back.
No Nonsense: Ms. Newby’s
Sometimes you just want to go to a bar, have a drink with friends and avoid the crowds and the crazies. While some may be fine with going to a fancy martini bar or having a few drinks with dinner, most people want a real bar. That bar, at least as far as Panama City Beach is concerned, is Ms. Newby’s. What began as a liquor store has, over the years, transformed into PCB’s #1 good-times tavern. Bikers, breakers and locals all hanging out under one roof, that’s Ms. Newby’s. The drinks are hard, the music is good and the people police themselves. That’s about all you could ever ask for in a bar.
Most Exciting: Club Oxygen
New bars and clubs pop up on Panama City Beach all the time. Rarely do they have staying power as they become overwhelmed by the PCB nightlife staples that have drawn crowds for years. If a new bar or club can stay open, you know its legit. One such place that has proven itself to be not only legit, but can stomp with the big boys is Club Oxygen. Located on Front Beach Road, this indoor/outdoor hotspot is putting a fresh new spin on Panama City Beach nightlife. The music is hot, the place is always packed and the vip lounge is consistently littered with famous people.
Craziest Antics: Coyote Ugly
You’ve seen the movie. You seen the girls dancing on bar tops and crowds screaming mad while some guy gets tequila poured down his throat. Well, while you may think that’s just movie magic, you’ve obviously never been to a real Coyote Ugly. Panama City Beach’s now infamous Coyote Ugly, located on Front Beach Road, is known for throwing down an insane party every night of the week. In fact, everything you saw in the movie is like a Disney version compared to what really happens on Panama City Beach. But don’t say we didn’t warn you; Coyote Ugly is one crazy good time.
Local Favorite: Spinnaker’s Beach Club
When locals want to get out and party and don’t want to be mobbed by the crowds, they head to one spot and that’s Spinnaker’s Beach Club. During the day it’s an amazing restaurant, serving up treats at the Paradise Grill or the beachside Cantina taco & tequila bar. At night it transforms into one of the most exciting club experiences in NW Florida. The Groove Room, The VIP Lounge and the Rock Arena provide enough room to get your dance on, the drinks are inexpensive and powerful and the atmosphere is all about having a good time.
Sportiest: Pineapple Willy’s Pier Bar
There are lots of places on the beach to watch the big game. Only one place lets you watch the big game on 360 degrees worth of HDTV, while serving up Fat Tuesday drinks. That place is Pineapple Willy’s Pier Bar. Known because of the adjacent restaurant, the Pier Bar is a recently opened component that is quietly taking over the sporting community on Panama City Beach. Not only are the all the games crisply displayed on huge televisions, but each table gets its own speaker box to make sure you hear the game you want to hear. While you’re team is crushing its opponent, you get to kick back and have bucket of BBQ ribs right on the gulf.
If you haven’t tried the new cantina taco and tequila bar at Spinnaker you need to go. It is some of the best food around Panama City and the view is fantastic. If you go late in the afternoon and catch the sunset, it will be awesome… Good times…..
you forgot the only bar on the strip that all the locals and a select few visitors go to and is the best damn secret bar and has been for quite a few years. No, it doesn’t serve food, just a drinkin and thinkin mans bar. The name? If I said I would be banned for life. Sorry, you will have to figure it out for yourself. Bottoms up.