Port Aransas, Texas

Port A is one of those places where you show up for a weekend and start looking at real estate by Sunday. The beach is the main draw — wide, relatively uncrowded compared to Corpus, and actually good for just parking a chair and doing nothing for hours. After you’re done with the sand, the seafood situation here is legit, and there are a few spots serving surprisingly solid sushi if that’s your thing. It’s a small island town, so don’t expect a ton of structured amenities, but honestly that’s kind of the whole point.