Perfect Planning For A Family Get-Away to Margaritaville Biloxi

My memory of the moment may be a bit hazy, but I think it was in the late 1990s when I first heard Jimmy Buffett ask during a live concert, “When did I become family entertainment?” Regardless of the specific answer, Buffett embraced the recognition and expanded his music and touring to include restaurants, a radio station, elder care, casinos and resorts.

With full transparency, I will admit to being a consumer of all-of-the-above except for elder care — and that may be a matter of time before opportunity and necessity intersect at a Margaritaville-themed adult living center. And exactly how and why we chose to waste away at the Margaritaville Biloxi resort for a late-week family retreat in June is another OurTravelCafe.Com story, involving Chicago, Alaska, trade shows, cruise lines, ambulances, hospitals, travel insurance and vertigo.  (Shameless self-promotion:  read it here in our “Off the Menu” section.)

Our Wednesday-to-Friday stay in Biloxi turned out to be a perfect family getaway, with kid-friendly activities for our 12-year-old and just enough distraction for us 60-something parents.  So, if we could do it, consider it’s likely OK for younger parents or for grandparents traveling with kids.

Perfect Planning Tips for Margaritaville Biloxi

Here are a few planning and on-site tips that will help you enjoy a brief family stay at Margaritaville Resort in Biloxi:

• Request an Upper Level Floor. While you’re at it, ask for a Western-facing room, looking back toward Biloxi and Gulfport.  That combination will give you the best sunset and evening views, while sparing you the searing sunrise that many Parrotheads avoid like vampires.  If you have an East-facing room, the higher floors should elevate you sufficiently to peer above the Golden Nugget next door for good views of the many boats traversing the Biloxi Bay pass between Biloxi and Ocean Springs.

  

• Plan Your Elevator Travel. Getting an elevator at peak times can be as frustrating and noisy as awaiting a delayed-flight during holiday travel. Remember, during the week and summers, Margaritaville is a family-resort, full of over-energized kids ready to go to the lazy river and water slides, or to enjoy the coin-operated children’s game paradise. So, when you see a sign at the elevators warning you to allow extra time for your elevator connections, pay attention.

  

• Margaritaville Mornings Are Great. We found that mornings and early afternoon were the best times to enjoy the on-roof waterpark and the gaming areas. The friendly lifeguards and game room attendants verified our personal observations. Chairs for sunning were available, floating tubes plentiful, and noise levels were sufficiently tolerable to hear the Buffett soundtracks. By early afternoon, we had our fill of semi-tropical sunshine and humidity, just as the crowds were beginning to build.
• Wahoo for Wednesdays. Margaritaville Biloxi occupies the former Casino Magic location, and the adult entertainment area has been supplanted by an even more unforgiving operation: the arcade. Every kind of dollar-devouring device one can imagine is strategically located to separate parents and grandparents from the last of their available virtual coins.  For your convenience, you load your player cards from your room account or credit card, allowing your children and grandchildren to play without the bother of dirty hands from old-fashioned coins. Two items of good news:  Wednesday offers half-price play during certain hours (promoted as Wahoo Wednesday) and there’s an adjacent bar where adults also can use their credit cards for boat drinks.

  

Margaritaville Biloxi Box Set

I’m often told I need to update my cultural references.  But what’s the current lingo for a large collection of songs issues in one release?  In the “old days” way back in 1992, this was called a box set.  So, by whatever name is used today, a few more observations about Margaritaville Resort and Biloxi in honor of that musical release previously known as a box set:

• Boats. You’ll see lots of them moored at the marina next door, and down the coast. Charters and boat rentals are available, the nearest out the front door and between the Biloxi Margaritaville Resort and the Golden Nugget.  Check out any of the local tourist haunts or publications for a wider choice of locations.  Or, check out the Shrimp Trail App. If a full-size boat is too much, jet skis, kayaks, paddle boards, stand-up boards, water trikes and other assorted water toys are rented at numerous beach locations.
• Beaches. Margaritaville Biloxi is located on the water, but there is no beach at the property. If you don’t have a car, it’s about .75-mile walk west along Beach Boulevard to a small beach.  For the more adventurous, you can also head east across the causeway for 2.3 miles to the beach at Ocean Springs.  The Casino Hopper Shuttle trolley route also passes by several beaches.  If you have a car, none of this a concern as 26-miles of sandy beaches offer ample parking and easy water access. For a more natural beach and larger waves, take the Ship Island Ferry and spend the day on this uninhabited island located 12-miles off shore and accessible only by boat.

  

• Bars. As you would expect, they are easy to find and serving, frozen, shaken, mixed, and brewed concoctions of every virtually every type. Our favorite was the swim-up bar at the water park, although we did have to dispatch one of our adults back to our sunning chairs to retrieve required ID for the first drink of the day.  Away from the resort and along Highway 90, eating and drinking establishments are casual, plentiful and reasonable.

  

• Ballads. All the music we heard was recorded and played everywhere through the house sound system. But remember, we chose a milder Wednesday-Friday stay, intentionally avoiding the wilder weekend crowds.  Live music is featured at the Margaritaville Biloxi, and you can check the hotel’s website for a live music schedule.

Biloxi Beyond Buffett-land

The combined cities of Gulfport and Biloxi stretch for 26 miles along the Gulf, all welcoming gentle waves from the Gulf of Mexico to the white-sand.  You’ll find everything you want or need right on Highway 90, which runs parallel to (and within near-arm’s-reach-of) the Gulf. Casinos, restaurants and shopping are plentiful. The previously-mentioned (and below-linked) Casino Hopper Shuttle connects you to almost everything, if you don’t want to drive.

If you have some extra time, cross the causeway to the east and visit Ocean Springs, which has a quaint and picturesque main street with funky shops and reasonably-priced foods.

A hidden gem on the Gulf Coast is the John Stennis Space Center, to the west in Hancock County, MS.  It’s well worth the drive to the new Infinity Science Center.  Be sure to take one of the bus tours, which drive out to the huge testing areas.

Biloxi’s Main Adult Attractions

Of course, gambling is the big draw to Biloxi and Gulfport, and about a dozen casinos operate from Biloxi on the east to Bay St. Louis to the east.  Beau Rivage is part of the MGM group, and offers the most upscale venue in a new-Vegas style resort, eat-ertainment and shopping complex located on the beach.  If you don’t have your heart set on wasting away at Margaritaville, resort bargains abound throughout the coast, especially during the week.  A particularly-candid staffer we encountered at one of these establishments, the casino resorts operate at about 45% capacity, often sold-out on weekends and for conventions, but eager to fill rooms during non-peak times.

Those who drive to Biloxi on Interstate 10 will see endless billboards promoting a variety of performing artists.  Most of those are offered on weekends, when the crowds get older, activities take on an adult nature, and the room rates rise.

Buffet Songs About Biloxi and Mississippi

Jimmy Buffett grew up in and around Pascagoula, MS, and many of his song reflect experiences and memories of the areas.  These three include specific geographic references to the area:

• Biloxi, from Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes. Slow and reflective, the song evokes memories of a childhood summer day at the beach.
• Pascagoula Run, from Off to See the Lizard. This upbeat ditty is a tribute to Buffett’s uncle, a sea-going man and (apparently) a favorite in certain local establishments. What do the ladies say?  Boy you’re going to see the morning son, on the Pascagoula run.
• Lip Service, from Somewhere Over China. Jimmy’s got girl troubles in this album track, singing, “So listen to me baby, you gotta change your ways.  Or I’m off to Pascagoula in a few more days.”

Links You Might Like

Shrimp Trail App.  We discovered this on the drive over from New Orleans.  You can read our review here, and get a link to download the app. http://ourtravelcafe.com/index.php/2017/07/23/trawling-the-shrimp-trail-mississippi/

Ship Island Ferry.  Seasonal service operates from the spring through October. Check the website for a specific schedule.  Currently, the ferry departs only from Gulfport, but the City of Biloxi is making a strong effort to resume service from Biloxi as well:  http://msshipisland.com/

Casino Hopper Shuttle. If you don’t have a car, don’t want to drive, or think it best not to drive, the trolley-shuttle is a good option.   https://coasttransit.com/casino-hopper/

Casino List.  The City of Biloxi provides a handy list of all the casinos operating along the Gulf coast, with direct link to their websites:  www.biloxi.ms.us/visitor-info/casinos

Stennis Space Center.  Definitely worth the visit, especially if you’re kind of spacey, or if you have the kids or grandkids in tow.  www.visitinfinity.com