Overnight Accommodations

The Academy will be held at the Hilton Garden Inn in Fort Walton Beach, Florida. Located on Okaloosa Island, you are just steps away from the white sand beaches, the Gulf of Mexico, and some of the best wildlife viewing Florida has to offer! Visit the Come Early & Stay Late section of this site to learn about things to do while you're in the area. 

Overnight accommodations are available to conference participants at the Hilton Garden Inn at a discounted group rate of $100/night (current federal per diem rate), plus tax. To request a room in the Wildlife Viewing & Nature Tourism Academy group block, contact Jessica Ealum at the Hilton Garden Inn at jealum@innisfreehotels.com or 850-226-5802. 

Ride/Room Share

Click here to check out the ride/room share options.  Use this document to coordinate rides from the to local airports and to line up a room share.  

Getting to Fort Walton Beach, Florida

​Fort Walton Beach, Florida is served by three major airports:  

• Northwest Florida Regional Airport (Destin-Ft. Walton Beach) is 10 miles from the hotel, approximately an 18 minute drive. 
• Pensacola International Airport is 46 miles from the hotel, approximately a 65 minute drive. 
• Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport (Panama City) is 58 miles from the hotel, approximately a 75 min drive.  

If you are driving to the Hilton Garden Inn, the GPS address is 1297 Miracle Strip Parkway SE, Fort Walton Beach, Florida. Click here to create your Google Maps driving directions to the hotel.