When sending the rental confirmation/welcome letter to your guests, you can also include some useful vacation area tips that covers shopping, restaurants, and attractions as well as some area dangers.

You can find many of my local area tips in a book on the coffee table at my vacation rental in Destin, Florida. Here are a few of my personal favorites for the area:

• When you go to the outlet mall, make your first stop the mall office, open until 6:30 p.m. (located behind the mall, accessible from Morgan's). They have a booklet called the “passport book,” which is full of all sorts of coupons for most of the stores .Also if the men decide to go shopping too and get tired, they have billiard room in the upstairs of the food court. If you take the kids along, Morgan's also has a game room. In the passport book, there's usually a coupon for buy $5 worth of tokens!
  
• Deep-sea fishing is great in Destin. If the guys like deep-sea fishing, this is a “must” for them.
  
• Seaside is a nice little village east down 98. Watch for the signs, you';ll take a right. Seaside is a very upscale area that's fun to go to “dream” about when you win the lottery. They have a bunch of artsy shops, but things are very expensive.
  
• Keep your eyes open if on the beach at dusk or dawn, we very often see dolphins swimming right off shore. If the dolphins come in close, which they do occasionally, do not get in the water and try to touch them. Please respect that they are wildlife. It is illegal to touch the dolphins (we humans have germs that harm the dolphins).
  
• A fun “cheap” thing to do is to rent the ocean kayaks off the beach. Morning is usually the best time; the waters are generally calmer. The kayaks are very easy to maneuver, and it's only around $10/hour.
  
• There are a lot of great restaurants in the area. The Back Porch is one of our favorites. It's located in Destin. Depending on the season, it can be very crowded, so be prepared to wait. They do have a playground on the beach for the kids to play in while waiting. I recommend you bring a change of clothes for the little ones; it's tough to resist the temptation to play near the water, and it's better to be prepared than to get upset when they inevitably get wet. Remember you're on vacation, there's no use stressing about it!
  
• If you want to cook up a seafood feast, my favorite store is called Shrimper's. To get there, go east on 98, past the outlet mall about 6 or 8 miles, and it';s on the left-hand side, past Bayou Bill's. They have the freshest fish and shrimp and great prices. A local “specialty” is the smoked tuna dip; it's great on crackers as an appetizer. Also, if you can get your hands on “red shrimp,” they're a must try! Boil them in water for 1 1/2 MINUTES (no more, no less!), and then dip them in drawn butter, and you'll think you're eating lobster. Typically “reds” are only available on Tuesdays. Shrimper's also has the “best” key lime pie around!
  
• There is also another seafood market that has now hired a full-time chef to prepare things that you can cook at home. It is supposed to make it easy to make “home cooked gourmet food.” It's called Destin Ice, and it's located on Hwy 98 to the west on the right, almost all the way down to the bridge to the island.
  
• I recently discovered there is a new Dollar store on HWY 98 that has a lot of useful items all for $1. It's a great place to pick up odds and ends along with sand toys. It's located west of the condo, just past the Home Depot on the right, in the shopping center with Office Max/Depot.
  
• Recently there have been some ocean-related deaths along the gulf coast. Please pay attention to the flags on the beach. If there is a RED FLAG, do NOT swim. The rip tides (rip currents) have been very strong. If you by chance do get caught in a rip tide, swim parallel to the beach. Our beach does NOT have lifeguards.

What insider tip about the surrounding area do you make sure to always tell your guests? "I warn them about rush hour." --Bob M, Atlanta, GA.

The Importance of Clear Location Information in Your Vacation Rental Listings Don't miss out on potential guests by omitting important location information in your listings.   22 Things to Put into a Local Attraction Book for Your Renters Tips for creating a local attraction book with area activities, contact information, and vacation home rules   10 Less-Obvious Things to Include in Your Vacation Home Directions Help renters be fully prepared for their stay at your home by going the extra “mile” for your vacation home directions.   How to Write about Your Vacation Rental Property's Location The description of your vacation rental property's location is a vital component of your ad and should not be overlooked.   © Copyright 2007 Christine Karpinski. U.092603.AF