Back from our vacation and (sadly) back to the real world. Pensacola was a great destination, though, and we had a wonderful trip.
We stayed in Perdido Key rather than Pensacola beach proper. The prices were significantly cheaper and there seemed to be fewer people. The condo we stayed in was right on the beach (AirBNB).
We ended up not doing a lot of the activities, but we did go to the Naval Air Station on 3 separate days. With the small kids we couldn't do everything there was to do in a single day. One thing to note is that the lighthouse requires kids to be taller than any of our kids are. I forget the exact height, but I think it was something around 48". Our son is about to turn 5 and he's not short for his age, so I'd think if you plan to do that, kids should be 6 or older.
Watching the Blue Angels practice was great. They also do autograph sessions so you get to meet them and they'll sign whatever you want. Nice guys and they put on what I thought was a much better show than I've seen at Oshkosh. The one solo pilot flew over the crowd at probably around 300 knots, complete surprise and an awesome display. Also did a 700 knot flyby over the runway. Really a fun show.
We also did a dolphin tour, which was a great deal of fun. Got to see dolphins playing around, as well as be a bit further out. That's very worth doing.
Going into KJKA and Platinum Air Center was a breeze and definitely what I'd recommend. Aside from having the cheapest fuel on field in the first place, Platinum gives a 50 cent/gallon discount if you're a first time visitor. The FBO itself is basically a ramp, a few double-wides and a couple fuel trucks, but we had free parking for the whole week, they brought the car right up to the plane, and the facility includes free coffee and soda (with a soda fountain that had Dr. Pepper). Definitely a 5 star rating for them.
We liked the area enough that we want to go back next year. Beautiful beaches, great place to just spend a week relaxing, which is exactly what we did. It was the first family vacation we've done since the girls were born, other than quick trips to see other family members or hopping around a lot. Very worthwhile.