Foley and Orange Beach
Welcome Centers

Strong Reasons To Justify Stops To Welcome Centers In Foley, Gulf Shores And Orange Beach, AL During Each Planned Vacation --- Even After Researching On Social Media and Sites Like TripAdvisor.com.



When first arriving to Gulf Shores more than a dozen years ago my husband and I were just not "into" using social media to explore sightseeing options. Actually, I'm not sure if social media was a term anyone used back then.

Times have changed. Social media as well as using tools offered on extensive travel websites like TripAdvisor.com or local resources like Gulf Shores Travel Guide, is a great way to start a search for the best attractions in the Foley, Gulf Shores/Orange Beach area.

A couple of the greatest resources however are still brick and mortar buildings staffed with some of the friendliest, most knowledgeable staff in the Foley, Gulf Shores/Orange Beach areas.

1. Gulf Shores Welcome Center

Here's what you may not know about traveling to Gulf Shores or L.A. (Lower Alabama): There are several distinct areas that deliver information to travelers to the Alabama Gulf Coast.

There is Mobile CVB which covers Mobile and Dauphin Island. There is South Baldwin CVB which covers Loxley, Robertsdale, Summerdale, Elberta, Foley, Lillian, Bon Secour and other areas.

Somewhere in the mix is Eastern Shore that covers Daphne, Pt. Clear, Fairhope and possibly Magnolia Springs, AL.

Lastly, Gulf Shores/Orange Beach CVBs cover all points from Perdido (although technically located in Florida --- think Flora-Bama for example), Orange Beach and Ft. Morgan.

As a tourist/guest to the area, most likely you are headed to one of five Gulf beach areas: Dauphin Island; Gulf Shores/Orange Beach; Ft. Morgan or Perdido.

Unless you are a returning guest, you most likely won't know the difference between one town or the other. You especially won't understand that the towns are almost interconnected with very little to differentiate the crossing besides a "Welcome To" sign.

To be honest? As a tourist I just want to use a source that nets the most amount of information in the least amount of back and forth searches.

Hence this List.

I suggest visiting the Gulf Shores and/or the Orange Beach Welcome Centers as an absolute MUST stop during your vacation (during EACH of your visits to the area).

Here's why:

The Gulf Shores Visitor's Center is an award winning center with almost 60K fans on Facebook and is the most comprehensive center that keeps current with ALL area beach conditions/warnings, attractions, events, new and closed businesses.

They simply offer the most reliable and up-to-date information of all tourist-based sources.

I say this without hesitation because of first-hand experience as former "guest" and now resident.

If I were a guest to the area this is how I'd begin planning for my vacation to the Gulf Shores area:

I'd first "LIKE" the Gulf Shores/Orange Beach via Facebook "Alabama Gulf Coast" page. I'd interact on the wall.

I'd read various posts of guests' favorite places to dine and be entertained. I'd post a question about a SPECIFIC lodging choice.

I'd read responses. I'd look for locals' postings-- they may be filled with "inside" tips Alabama Gulf Coast Facebook monitors may not be allowed to post. Monitors cannot risk partiality.

Answers on the Alabama Gulf Coast Facebook page come fast and furious. You may receive hundreds of suggestions from current and past travelers, locals and even business owners who offer advice as "insiders" and to solicit business. You won't know who is behind the friendly "friends" offering advice. Most likely you don't know if their tastes, shopping, dining styles match yours.

In other words, you may or may not get the "best fit" answer to your question but it is fun to see which venues are tourist "favorites."

Here is where using TripAdvisor.com tools come in.

I'd type in the Search tab Gulf Shores/Orange Beach, Ft. Morgan and Foley, AL under "City" destinations. I'd review the welcome pages of each city to see which venues tourists rate highest and why.

I'd then begin reading reviews, reviewer's "LISTS" and comments posted on particular FORUMS of interest.

If a question hasn't been recently brought up I'd post a question and wait for the several "experts" and others to post their opinions.

This is the time to ask specific questions and it is helpful to give an idea of your personal tastes. Do you prefer to go to "dives" and funky "off the beaten-track" attractions? Say so!

Are you more "formal" and don't mind spending more for dinner/attraction so long as you can enjoy your visit in a "quiet," more "intimate" fashion? Advise the "experts."

If you are "outdoorsy" and yearn for that "off the wall" or "far-out"suggestion for something new to try be BOLD! It is YOUR vacation!

You MUST know that it takes membership fees, and most periodicals free to the public charge businesses to "advertise." Often small "moms and pops" won't be listed--- they can't afford to advertise and must wait until they are "discovered." They may not be "top of mind" among posters.

In order to "discover" them, you must ask locals point blank where they shop, eat, sleep and amuse themselves. Even so, most likely the Gulf Shores/Orange Beach Alabama Visitors Centers are already privy to the information!

2. Foley Visitor Information Center

Few visitors to the Gulf Shores, AL are aware of how many attractions await just minutes North of Gulf Shores beaches. Some of the area's best museums, antique shopping and other unique events happen in Foley and surrounding areas.

For a taste of small-town Americana one must park the car and walk the Uptown Foley district. Quaint shops line Hwy 98 as well as galleries, an old-timey Pharmacy that still serves up ice cream the old fashioned way--- hand-dipped in vintage looking glasses --- and a century-old hotel with restaurant anchor the district.

The area has an active "Uptown Foley" organization which can be found on Facebook to keep visitors and locals informed of festivals and farmer's markets that feature arts, crafts and fresh from the (local) farm goodies.

Along with craft and farm markets, City of Foley Parks feature free family-fun events--- like showing outdoor movies as well as live musical entertainment.

Two relatively new trails include a rose filled walking trail and a free day use kayak/canoe trail and picnic area managed by the City of Foley called "Graham Creek Preserve."

A train, medical museum and some of the oldest homes can be found in and around the Foley Area--- including the haunted(as some call it)Swift-Cole Mansion, located in the tiny shrimping village of Bon Secour.

The area's last remaining outdoor fish market can be found at this "end-of-the-road" village --- as well as land-locked hurricane ravaged vessels. Working shrimping boats dot the scenic and historic river and are a sight to behold at sunset.

A unique and rare pitcher bog is located just minutes from Foley at Week's Bay.

A park with a well-kept boardwalk across the street at the Reserve offers a free educational interpretive center complete with artifacts and exhibits--- even a gift store.

Two boardwalk trails are an easy walk and lead to breath taking views of Week's Bay--- a National Estuarine Research Reserve and part of the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration (N.O.A.A.). Yearly "Eagle Bashes" are fun, fundraising events that also showcase the best of the best local cuisine of the Alabama Coast.

Some of the area's best birding and Civil War significant trails fall within the Foley/Bon Secour/Week's Bay area.

Here's my point: Foley is no longer a drive-through town along the way to Gulf Shores. With the many attractions and lodging and dining options it is quickly becoming a "destination within a destination."

So what are some ways to learn of Foley and surrounding areas like Bon Secour, Elberta, Robertsdale, Summerdale, Week's Bay and such?

Use the advice written above and begin your "search' via TripAdvisor.com type in "Foley, Alabama."

Although the TripAdvisor.com "Foley" website does not offer any dedicated "experts" to answer Forum questions several Gulf Shores/Orange Beach "experts" locals and travelers volunteer their knowledge to answer questions.

Last but not least "LIKE" "Uptown Foley," on Facebook and drop in their Welcome Visitor's Center while en-route to your Alabama Gulf Shores beach vacation. Chances are you will spend at least a portion of your vacation enjoying Foley and surrounding areas.

"Beachin' Betty"
BeachnRiver

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