Destin is a city located on the Emerald Coast of Florida, in Okaloosa County, Florida. The city styles itself'The World's Luckiest Fishing Village'', and claims to have the largest fishing vessel fleet in the state of Florida. Destin is known for its white beaches and emerald-colored waters. Originating as a small fishing village, it is now a popular tourist destination - according to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, over 80 percent of the Emerald Coast's 4.5 million visitors each year visit Destin.

Destin is a principal city of the Fort Walton Beach, Florida-Crestview, Florida-Destin Fort Walton Beach-Crestview-Destin,...

Destin is a city located on the Emerald Coast of Florida, in Okaloosa County, Florida. The city styles itself'The World's Luckiest Fishing Village'', and claims to have the largest fishing vessel fleet in the state of Florida. Destin is known for its white beaches and emerald-colored waters. Originating as a small fishing village, it is now a popular tourist destination - according to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, over 80 percent of the Emerald Coast's 4.5 million visitors each year visit Destin.

Destin is a principal city of the Fort Walton Beach, Florida-Crestview, Florida-Destin Fort Walton Beach-Crestview-Destin, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Geography
The city is located on a peninsula separating the Gulf of Mexico from Choctawhatchee Bay. The peninsula was originally an island; hurricanes and sea level changes gradually connected the island to the mainland.

Destin is near several other cities in the region. The city of Fort Walton Beach, Florida is located to the west at the inlet of Santa Rosa Sound into Choctawhatchee Bay. North of Destin across the bay is Niceville, Florida, with the Mid-Bay Bridge (Choctawhatchee Bay) linking the two by road. At further distance are Panama City, Florida (to the east) and Pensacola, Florida (to the west), each about 50 miles away.

At the western tip of the peninsula is East Pass (also known as Destin Pass), separating it from Santa Rosa Island to the west. East Pass is the only outlet of Choctawhatchee Bay into the Gulf of Mexico. Many sources claim that the pass was dug by hand, with an inrush of water widening it within hours. This appears to be inaccurate: the pass appears in early maps and surveys from Spanish Empire, French colonial empire, and Kingdom of England surveyors, such as Thomas Jefferys's 1775 map The Coast of West Florida and Louisiana. Frequent dredging is required to keep East Pass navigable.