I would recommend closer to the Destin side. Although the PCB hotels might be cheaper, you're totally going to get what you pay for. The Inn at Watercolor was really nice; I'm not sure if it's changed names/hands recently. I think it all depends on how much you want to pay, since the hotels on 30-A tend to be luxury places. 98 is a $#!^show during the summer--just a little warning. In most areas it's a two-lane highway that could afford to be larger even in the winter.
I grew up in Destin, so I'm probably a liiitle biased.