Long Key State Park
Layton, FL
Along a quieter stretch of the Overseas Highway, Long Key State Park fronts a lagoon shallow enough for wading and thick with seagrass rather than the classic sand bottom most people picture. It's better for birdwatching, kayaking, and a slow walk along the shoreline than for actual swimming. The primitive campground here has been closed since Hurricane Irma, so day use is really the whole point.
A genuinely peaceful stop for birdwatching and paddling that most tourists drive right past, but the seagrass bottom and lack of real sand keep it from being anyone's swimming beach.
How we score beachesDon't come expecting a swimming beach. Bring water shoes and a kayak or paddleboard instead, since the shallow, grassy flats are better suited to paddling out toward the mangrove islands than to swimming laps.
There's a small lot right off the Overseas Highway at mile marker 67.5, with a standard state park entrance fee collected at the gate. It rarely fills, even by Keys standards.
A boardwalk nature trail loops along part of the shoreline on mostly flat terrain. The beach area itself is a short, easy walk from the lot, though the ground underfoot near the water is grassy and soft rather than sandy.
Dogs are not allowed on the beach or natural shoreline at Long Key State Park, though leashed pets are welcome in the campground.
Winter and spring bring the driest weather and the best visibility for spotting wading birds, while summer adds heat, bugs, and the start of hurricane season through November. Water stays warm nearly year round, it's just not the kind of beach people come to swim in.
More Gulf Coast beaches
Siesta Key Beach
Siesta Key, FL · Gulf Coast
Fine quartz sand that stays cool underfoot even in summer, sloping gently into calm Gulf water, and consistently rated among the best family beaches in the country.
Clearwater Beach
Clearwater, FL · Gulf Coast
A lively Gulf-front strip with a fishing pier, a nightly sunset celebration at Pier 60, and calm, shallow water that makes it an easy family favorite.
Pensacola Beach
Pensacola Beach, FL · Gulf Coast
Sugar-white sand within the Gulf Islands National Seashore, with dunes protected from development and water clear enough for snorkeling near the jetties.