Lived in Ft Walton Beach when in USAF. Great town. Destin was just an empty beach at the time I was there. You would drive your car, park on side of road and walk to empty white sand beaches with blueish green water. Totally undeveloped at the time.
I used to do a lot of work at Eglin AFB while a UF prof. I liked when I went there and I was put up on the beach.