Beaches on the Florida Gulf Coast

Clearwater Beach is a laid-back beach that is located on Clearwater Beach Island – a barrier island on Florida’s Gulf Coast. The beach is known for its soft, white sand, drawing in millions of visitors year-round for fun under the Florida sun. The Gulf’s calm, emerald waters straight out from the beach are ideal for stand-up paddle-boarding, parasailing, and jet-skiing.

Visitors will find the winding beachfront promenade bustling with people rollerblading, cycling, and walking. It's also lined with a number of cozy cafés and casual seafood restaurants. When the sunset finally arrives, visitors will find a vibrant nightly festival that features craft vendors and street performers at Pier 60.

Destin is a romantic Gulf Coast city that is located in northwest Florida, in an area recognized as the Panhandle. The city is known for its pristine, white sand beaches, great hotels plethora of championship golf courses, and Destin Harbor Boardwalk. Picturesque nature trails wind through the sand dunes of Henderson Beach State Park, where the sprawling coast is dotted with oak and pine trees that shelter wildlife.

The calm, emerald-hued waters invite beachgoers to take peaceful swims; float weightlessly under the Florida sun; or enjoy a little stand-up paddle-boarding. Visitors looking for a little change of pace from the beach life will appreciate the shimmering pools, cascading waterfalls, and tall waterslides of Big Kahuna’s water park.

Pensacola is a gorgeous, sugar-sand beach that is located on Santa Rosa Island, a barrier island in northwest Florida. Pensacola Beach has consistently ranked among the nation’s top beaches for very good reason. The brilliant white-sand stays cool to the touch, even on the hottest days, a wonderfully-soothing delight for the eyes and toes of each visitor. The emerald-hued waters are inviting and shallow, beckoning even the most timid of beachgoers for a relaxing swim. The beach also features the iconic Pensacola Beach Pier, stretching an incredible 1,471 feet out over the Gulf of Mexico. Visitors should also check-out the Portofino Boardwalk, home to a variety of shops, casual restaurants, and open-air bars.

Located in southwest Florida, along the Gulf of Mexico, Sanibel Island rightfully famed for its magnificent sunsets, luxurious resorts, and iconic lighthouse is. The island is home to a number of wonderfully-scenic and pristine beaches, some of which include Tarpon Beach, Bowman’s Beach, Blind Pass Beach, Captiva Beach, and the Causeway Beaches. Sanibel Island’s biggest claim to fame would be its abundance of sea-shells, winning multiple awards for regularly being among the nation’s best areas for shelling. The island offers much more than just shelling, it’s well-equipped with sensational seafood restaurants, charming shops, and cozy cafés. Beach days here are perfect for sunbathing, swimming, building sand castles, and enjoying many other fun water activities.

The drive from Fort Myers to Sanibel Island takes 40 minutes.

Cape San Blas is a beautiful beach that is located at the southern tip of a peninsula on Florida’s northwest Gulf Coast. It is home to the St. Joseph Peninsula State Park, and was also named ‘the best beach in America’ in 2002 by Dr. Stephen P. Leatherman, also known as ‘Dr. Beach’. Situated along the Florida Panhandle’s Emerald Coast, Cape San Blas offers a true vacation paradise. Here, visitors will find miles of pristine, uncrowded, white sand beaches and rolling dunes. Cap San Blas is also home to pet-friendly vacation rentals, family-owned restaurants serving the freshest local seafood, and famed Cape San Blas Lighthouse.

Cape San Blas, 308 Reid Avenue, Port St. Joe, FL, Phone: 850-227-1223

Fort Myers Beach is a popular, sugar-sand beach that is situated along the northwest part of Estero Island, a barrier island in southwest Florida. This soft, white sand beach faces the Gulf of Mexico’s shimmering emerald waters. Locals and visitors flock to this destination year-round to engage in a number of watersports, including kayaking, parasailing, stand-up paddle-boarding, jet-skiing, boating, and much more. Visitors will have a variety of fun and interesting activities to book, some of which include dolphin eco-tours and fishing charters. The nearby Sanibel and Pine islands can both be easily reached by boat, offering exciting day trips.

Anna Maria Beach is a stunning, white-sand beach that is located on the northern end of Anna Maria Island, on Florida’s Gulf Coast. The beach wraps entirely around the tip of the island, and offers its visitors breathtaking views of the Gulf of Mexico’s shimmering turquoise waters. This beach is rather quiet when compared to the other beaches on the island, making it an ideal location for a little solitude under the Florida sun, or a peaceful swim. Visitors may find themselves wandering the beach’s soft sands during a picturesque sunrise or sunset.

Anna Maria Beach, 5313 Gulf Drive, Holmes Beach, FL, Phone: 941-778-1541

Barefoot Beach Preserve is a nature preserve that is located in North Naples, Florida. Situated along Florida’s Gulf Coast, the preserve covers 342 acres of unspoiled land, making it one of the few remaining undeveloped barrier islands along the southwest coast. The beach park provides a perfect example of how shifts in the habitat can occur within a narrow parcel of land with minimal moisture and elevation changes. Over 8,000 feet of sand dunes and pristine beach support the development of sea oats, which during the summer, provide nesting locations for sea turtles. Visitors will also find a tropical hardwood hammock of sabal palm, sea grape trees, and gumbo limbo trees, among many other species.

Barefoot Beach State Preserve, 505 Barefoot Beach Boulevard, Bonita Springs, FL, Phone: 239-252-4000

Bonita Beach is a sprawling beach located on Little Hickory Island, a barrier island that is situated between Estero Bay and the Gulf of Mexico in southwest Florida. Bonita beach is also positioned just north of Naples and Vanderbilt beaches, and south of Fort Myers Beach. Rather than seeing a seemingly endless stretch of resorts and hotels, visitors will find an upscale beach community that features a large number of modern beachfront homes, and a few condominiums nestled among sea grapes, coconut palms, and other tropical foliage. The beach is easily accessible, and the perfect place to spend the day sunbathing, swimming, and sea-shelling.

Bonita Beach, 25071 Chamber of Commerce Drive, Bonita Springs, FL, Phone: 239-992-2943

Bradenton Beach is a small city that is located on Anna Maria Island, on Florida’s Gulf Coast. A short drive from neighboring cities Bradenton and Sarasota, Bradenton Beach is known for its oceanfront restaurants, charming strip of shops, sugar-sand beaches, fishing piers, and plethora of family-owned businesses. The city definitely encourages a slower pace of life, which is made evident with its ban on drive-through restaurants.

Near the northern tip of the island, visitors will find Pine Avenue, home to small art galleries, handmade clothing, specialty olive oils, and French-milled soaps. Visitors can head to any one of the city’s pristine beaches and enjoy a day of sunbathing, kayaking, paddle-boarding, and swimming.