PANAMA CITY BEACH, Fla. (WMBB) – For those who witnessed Panama City Beach Spring Break pre-2015, this year’s crowd looks different.
But college Spring Breakers are still making their presence known on popular social media apps instead of reality TV shows.
Spring Break in Panama City Beach content is all over TikTok this week.
One TikTok of a group having to bring their luggage on the beach while they wait for their flights reached 2.6 million views as of Monday afternoon.
Visitor Cullie Morris said his trip has been one for the books.
“This is our first time in Panama [City Beach], so we love it so far,” Morris said. “So we have like a little day pass and it allows us to go to all the bars.”
The ‘Panamanic’ pass is the ticket into many Spring Break activities, like Hammerhead Fred’s foam party, Longboards Mardi Gras party, and popular DJ Steve Aoki’s concert at Harpoon Harry’s on Wednesday.
Visitor Sarah Marshall said the weather this weekend has been a disappointment, but that hasn’t stopped her from having a good time.
“Last night was pretty crazy,” Marshall said. “I feel like today it will be a lot crazier because the weather is nicer and so the beaches will be a lot busier.”
Jack Bishop, owner of Captain Jack’s restaurant and a PCB Spring Break veteran, said historically, this week is the busiest of the month.
Bishop said the kids might think this wild, but to him, this is an empty Spring Break.
“Spring Break now is what they wanted it to be,” Bishop said. “They have accomplished the goal. It is no longer the college Spring Break capital of the world.”
Bishop said there are now limited things for the Spring Breakers to do, especially with all the rules in place.
But the kids are still making the best of it and finding a way to make it public.
“Our group is not tame, but the city is probably tame,” Morris said. “But the bars were very strict when we were there. But we still had a great time.”
Although there haven’t been any major problems yet, Beach Police said so far this year, they have charged 99 people for drinking on the beach in March.