This year has certainly been one for the books. The COVID-19 Pandemic has seemingly touched every part of our lives. We have dealt with closures, quarantines, cancelled events, cancelled sports, missed family visits, and, sadly, sick friends and loved-ones. Truly COVID-19 has not been kind to us this year. We, at Sunset Properties, are feeling the same way you are. We are getting on with our lives as best we can, while keeping the social distancing guidelines firmly in the forefront of our choices. We wake up each day, watch the news and hope things will start to improve. We have also been trying to help you keep your good cheer going with our blogs suggesting ways to make a good situation out of a bad one.
The latest casualty of this terrible virus is college football. If you’re from Alabama, or pretty much anywhere in the south, college football is not just a sport, it’s a season. Down here, we have spring, summer, football, holidays, and spring again. And COVID or no COVID, we want our football. Our annual pilgrimage to our favorite college campus is almost a spiritual experience. It’s like going home. Meeting up with our friends for grilled food and cold beverages before cramming ourselves into the stadium with 101,820 other people just like us, well, it’s a feeling we cannot replace. Many of us were disappointed to find out stadium tailgating has been banned and we cannot attend games this year and maintain social distancing. To a Saturday-Down-South-er, that’s a pretty hard pill to swallow. That said and to keep with our goal of helping you make the best of things, we at Sunset Properties, want to give you an alternative to the traditional way you’ve watched your favorite team play. We want to invite you to grab a couple of your besties and their spouses, and come to your Alabama Gulf Coast for a couples weekend getaway.
Here are five great reasons to plan a College Football Couples Getaway Trip to Gulf Shores, Orange Beach or Fort Morgan:
1 Tailgating Has Not Been Banned
Because of fears of spreading COVID-19, tailgating, the original pre-game meet-and-greet, has been banned at several stadiums and college campuses this year. However, in Fort Morgan, on the rooftop patio of USA 2, tailgating has not only not been banned, but it is actually encouraged. This magnificent home will sleep up to 18 football fans comfortably, so you and your favorite cheerleader, together with a couple of your best friends, will have plenty of room to enjoy, not only the game, but also the view of the Gulf of Mexico. In the kitchen you’ll find everything you need to prepare your favorite football snacks. Stop by Rouses Market before you turn onto Fort Morgan Road for groceries. We love Rouses. In addition to foods you buy to prepare yourself, the good folks at Rouses always have something already cooked for you to grab and take home. And they have one of the best beer and wine selections anywhere. Planning your tailgate party has never been so easy. And if you’re staying at USA2, it will be one you’ll always remember.
If grilling out before a game is your idea of a proper tailgate, check out Hayley House #12. Located in Orange Beach, guests of Haley House #12 are offered the opportunity to use the grill located in the pavilion area of this gated community. Once the game is over, you’ll love the super easy beach access from this amazing home that sleeps ups to eleven folks. This beach neighborhood has its own private beach. No matter which home you choose, please tailgate responsibly. Our beach vacation homes are in neighborhoods where locals live. Please be courteous of your neighbors. And when you visit our Alabama Beaches, please leave only footprints.
2 Shopping is Allowed During the Game
When two or three couples get together, the ladies seem to want to go do their thing while the guys do theirs. It just happens. So, if the guys are going to be glued to the TV all afternoon and the ladies are not really that interested, what should they do? How about a little retail therapy?! Sure! Shop! There is certainly no shortage of places to enjoy spending a little money. So, Ladies, lace up your sneakers, grab that cute face mask, and clutch your favorite cross body bag because guilt-free shopping is allowed during football games here along the Alabama Gulf Coast. Are you looking for a fun souvenir? Look no farther than everyone’s favorite “shark store” and island staple, Souvenir City! They have an amazing variety of items to choose from. From fudge to hermit crabs, clothes to magnets, there is no shortage of choices and it’s no wonder they have been in Gulf Shores since 1956. Don’t miss the opportunity to take selfies of yourselves as you walk right through the giant open mouth of a shark as you enter the store. Your social media followers will love this! If you’re wanting a little more than a mega-souvenir store can offer, take a short trip to Foley to the Tanger Outlet Mall. Located right on Alabama Highway 59 in Foley, you’ll find nearly 100 outlet stores just ready and waiting to offer you one of the best shopping experiences anywhere!
3 It’s OK to Order Take Out
Under normal circumstances, when you’re able to watch a football game from your stadium seats, you would order food from the stadium concession stands. But nothing is normal about 2020 or this football season. You’re not going to be at the stadium. That doesn’t mean you cannot still order your favorite snacks to enjoy during the game. The good news is, the super nice and really talented folks at Orange Beach Concierge will blow your mind with the great food they’ll prepare for you. Forget hotdogs and nachos. Give your stomach a break from traditional stadium food and try their New Orleans Taste. Be sure to call to place your order ahead of your arrival and they will even deliver your food right to your beach home! Or stop by and visit them at The Wharf to pick up your take-out order. Whether you’re lounging on the deck at Beach Time waiting for kickoff or are already in full-foam-finger-mode at Happy Clam, you cannot go wrong with appetizers or a great meal prepared by Chef David at Orange Beach Concierge! Remember toplan ahead and order your ballgame day take-outfrom Orange Beach Concierge’s “The Pantry” and make your football weekend experience with Sunset Properties one for the record books!
4 After the Game, There’s the Beach
We know watching college football can be a blood pressure raising experience. Pair the intensity of the game with the sometimes-suffocating heat from the stadium seats, followed by hours of traffic jams, and it can be challenging to just enjoy the rest of your afternoon or evening after the game ends. Plus, when you’re in Tuscaloosa or Auburn or Knoxville or even Starkville and the game’s over, then what? You go home, right? Or go to a friend’s place or maybe hit a club or two. No matter where you go, you’re definitely going to sit in traffic. But not here! After your favorite game ends and you’re in our neighborhood, you can go to the beach! No traffic. No crowds. No hassles. The beach! And your favorite team jersey, paired with flip flops, is the perfect beach attire! And let’s face it, the best beaches anywhere are right outside your vacation home’s front or back door, so how could you even resist? Thirty-two miles of pristinely white sand are just waiting for you and your fan friends to enjoy. Now that you’re not yelling at the refs on TV, go find the perfect beach spot, sit in the cool sand, relax, destress and enjoy the soothing sounds of the Gulf of Mexico.
5 After the Beach, There’s Coastal Nightlife
So, we helped you find a great place to tailgate and watch the game. We suggested great food to enjoy and you visited our Alabama Gulf Coast beaches. We have one more suggestion before you call it quits and pack up to head for home tomorrow. Have a little nightlife fun before you leave. Even though the pandemic has changed how our beach fun looks, it has not eliminated it. We are taking all the precautions we can to help stop the spread of the coronavirus, but we are still enjoying all the great things available here in Gulf Shores, Orange Beach and Fort Morgan. Your Alabama Gulf Coast Beaches are open! The Flora-Bama, located on the Alabama Florida state line is open and they would love to see you. Live Bait which is located on Perdido Beach Boulevard in Orange Beach is open and often they have live entertainment. The world famous Pink Pony Pub located in the heart of Gulf Shores is also open. And so are The Wharf Ferris Wheel and Scoop’s Ice Cream Shop. Many, many of your favorite beach stops are open and operating under different guidelines, and they are looking forward to seeing you. Don’t leave our area until you have experienced at least one fun extracurricular outing. After all, you’ve been making memories with your best football friends all weekend, why not make just a few more before you head home?
All of us at Sunset Properties are taking this pandemic seriously. Like our neighbors, we are operating under different circumstances and providing extra cleaning and encouraging social distancing. We don’t want anyone to be sick. We also know that this, too, will pass. While we are in the midst of our “new normal” we want you to know you are welcome to enjoy your favorite college football games in one of our beautiful, clean beach vacation homes. Give us a call to set up your reservation or go online and book it yourself. We are happy to provide you a “no contact” check-in and departure. We, at Sunset Properties, are your biggest fans! So, grab your college sweetheart and bring your team spirit to the Alabama Gulf Coast this football season and experience a winner of a football weekend getaway!
Watch College Football at the Beach? Absolutely!251-543-1370
