LDV Sandestin Watersports

LDV Sandestin Watersports, short for La Dolce Vita, has rented pontoon boats and WaveRunners out of Sandestin’s Baytowne Marina since 2004, making it one of the longer-running rental operations on the Emerald Coast. The Baytowne Marina location sits at 8330 Mike Hayes Boulevard in Miramar Beach, and it operates as one of three La Dolce Vita locations in the area, alongside a Sandestin Beachside spot at 4009 South Sandestin Boulevard and a Calhoun Marina location in Destin at 111 Calhoun Avenue. That footprint lets the company serve both the bay side of Sandestin, where Baytowne Marina sits on Choctawhatchee Bay, and the Gulf-facing beach at the Sandestin Beachside location.

Pontoon boats form the core of the Baytowne Marina rental fleet, and renters can choose from a standard model that carries up to 12 passengers, the legal maximum for pontoon rentals, or step up to a double decker pontoon fitted with either a single slide or a double slide for groups that want the boat itself to be part of the entertainment. Rentals run as a half day, four hours booked either 9 AM to 1 PM or, during summer, 2 PM to 6 PM Central time, or a full day from 9 AM to 5 PM. A fuel charge applies at the Baytowne Marina location, and company policy does not permit fishing from the rental pontoons, a detail worth knowing for anyone hoping to combine a pontoon rental with casting a line.

WaveRunner rentals round out the water sports lineup, available at both the Baytowne Marina and Calhoun Marina locations as an add-on to a pontoon boat rental. Drivers must be at least 18 years old and bring a valid ID, along with a credit card and phone for the reservation, and the company recommends booking WaveRunners and pontoon boats in advance at the Baytowne and Calhoun locations, while the Beachside spot accepts walk-up customers for its paddleboard, kayak, and banana boat rentals. Beachside activities are open to guests six and older, and during summer months the Sandestin resort also makes WaveRunners available directly on a first-come, first-available basis outside the standard La Dolce Vita booking system.

Beyond boats and jet skis, the Sandestin Beachside location adds paddleboards, kayaks, and banana boat rides for up to six people, plus a floating waterpark that operates seasonally in summer. That range makes La Dolce Vita a one-stop option for a group with mixed interests, some wanting the horsepower of a WaveRunner, others content to paddle a kayak along the shoreline. The company advertises free parking, private restrooms, and ADA accessible facilities at its rental locations, along with what it describes as professional service focused on getting renters onto the water quickly rather than bogged down in paperwork.

For visitors staying inside Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort or nearby in Miramar Beach, the Baytowne Marina location offers the most direct access, since the marina sits inside the resort itself and connects easily to Baytowne Wharf’s restaurants and shops for a post-rental meal. Booking ahead matters most during peak summer weeks, when pontoon boats and WaveRunners at a marina this popular can sell out by mid-morning, so travelers planning a Sandestin boat day should reserve a slot before arriving rather than hoping to walk up and find an open pontoon waiting at the dock.