My wife and I vacation in that area every year.

The Navy Air Museum is fanstastic (and it's free, too, believe it or not). I'm kind of an "airplane guy" but even my wife enjoyed it, and to her all airplanes look pretty much the same.

Where we actually stay is Perdido Key, a few minutes from Pensacola. It's very family-oriented; not a lot of bars or drunk topless college girls (sigh), just a lot of sand, water, and pelicans. There's a nice State Park there with public beach access, so you don't have to risk sneaking onto some condo's private section of beachfront! (http://www.floridastateparks.org/perdidokey/default.asp)

Perdido Key is also right on the Alabama state line; cross that and you get to Orange Beach and Gulf Shores, which have a lot of things like miniature golf and souvenir shops. (If you're a lousy golfer, like me, there's a par-3 course in Magnolia Springs, Alabama that charges about $12 per *day*, and it's a lot of fun. I did the course 3 times. Some guys ahead of me did 6 laps around it.) The outlet mall in Foley, Alabama, is about the nicest one we've ever been to. And if you've never had satsumas, be sure to get some if they're ripe yet. Yum.

Out on the beaches, there are lots of places to eat, so a lot depends on the kind of food you like and how much you're looking to spend. There are lots (and lots) of shrimp shacks, and just about any of them will be pretty good and pretty cheap, though they're probably not much to look at. The Outrigger, in Orange Beach, has a cheap lunch that's pretty good, and the view is fantastic--right on the water. On the other hand, Innerarity Point Seafood, in Perdido Key, has no view at all, but some great seafood.

Here's a site for some local information: http://www.perdidochamber.com/todo.html

Let me know what kind of experience you're looking to have, and I'll see what other suggestions I can come up with. We mostly go just for the sun, sand, and water. (We'll be arriving there just as you're leaving.)

It's a fun place to visit; if you have half as much fun as we do, you're in for a treat!