Naples Beach & Pier
25 12th Ave. South, Naples. No license needed to fish from this beautiful pier.
Locals, tourists, visitors, Dr. Beach and the Travel Channel know and love this beach for many reasons. There are many access points as almost every east/west street ends at the beach as well as several parks such as Lowdermilk Park at the end of Banyon Boulevard, Calm Pass County Park with a boardwalk leading out to the beach.
The best-known beach area is at the Naples Municipal Beach & Pier. Here you can walk forever along a wide, soft-sand beach past beautiful homes — but if you don’t do anything else in Naples you have to help celebrate a tropical sunset on the pier. There are showers and facilities at the foot of the pier located at the end of 12th Ave. south and midway along the 1000-foot pier is a concession stand for snacks, drinks, as well as bait. You’ll always see big fish lurking around the pilings in the translucent water and plenty of fishermen trying their luck. If you want to try your own luck, you don’t need a license to fish from the pier.
The Naples Beach is the best spot to be for the fireworks display on the Fourth of July and New Year’s Eve. Bring plenty of quarters for the parking meters (whenever you come into Naples), get there early, and make it a stylish picnic affair that you’ll never forget.
Bonita Beach – Bonita Springs
The main access to Bonita Beach sits exactly on the line between Collier County and Lee County just as Bonita Road curves to head north along the water. This means you have miles of beach to walk if you go north and miles to walk if you go south. There is public parking by the hour (bring dollar bills or quarters for the machine) and showers, restrooms and facilities.
If you come prepared, take advantage of the pavilions that offer grills and picnic tables on a first-come, first-served basis. Also, you will find a hot dog kiosk right there for a snack. Immediately adjacent to the beach parking,
Doc’s Beach House offers a full menu inside and takeout food for the tables in the sand or to take back to your site on the beach. Doc’s has concessions for jet skis, water trikes, beach umbrellas, chaise lounges, and there is parasailing too. If you want some activity but keeping it low key, this is a wonderful spot because it never gets really packed, there’s good people watching, you have access to everything you might need for a day at the beach and friendly gathering to celebrate each and every tropical sunset.
If you decide to stroll the beach by walking south, you’ll be at Barefoot Beach in Collier County without knowing it. You’ll admire villas and beautiful beachfront homes but keep your eye out for dolphins frolicking, fossilized shark teeth, and seaglass. For you seaglass aficionados, this area is where we’ve found some of our most prized pieces, including rare red gems (a well-kept secret until now!)
Vanderbilt Beach – North Naples
280 Vanderbilt Beach Road, North Naples. Bird watching and shelling are favorites here.
The sand is soft on your feet and the people watching is entertaining but parking is limited. If you are driving and have things to bring for a day at the beach, then pull into the circle for a drop off and then go find parking spot down the street. If you get there early with your quarters, you can park very close by the beach. Otherwise, use the parking garage down the street.
This is where you’ll find the Ritz Carlton of Naples so keep an eye out for beach weddings or elaborate sand sculptures. If you walk the beach going south, you’ll pass by a dozen exclusive, beachfront mansions in a part of Pelican Bay called The Strand. This is the only vantage point (on the beach) to see these magnificent homes unless you are on a very, very special list!
Barefoot Beach – Bonita Springs
2 Barefoot Beach Blvd., Bonita Springs. Pristine beaches, woodland trails and many amenities.
Barefoot beach is located immediately south of Bonita Beach (where one ends another starts). Barefoot beach starts with a county park. The park is almost 350 acres of preserved habitat for protected species like the gopher tortoise. Facilities include a learning center, picnic tables, restrooms, showers, and concessions. Parking is plentiful and there are boardwalks that meander through the lush hammock out to the beach. At the very north end of Barefoot Beach, there is also a small satellite parking area immediately on your right as you turn off of Bonita Beach Road.
All surrounding the park is a large community of Florida-style luxury homes, a joy to stroll or bike around the neighborhood with its lush landscaping and the multitude of palm tree species.
Delnor-Wiggins Pass State Park & Beach – Naples
11135 Gulfshore Drive, Naples. Rated one of the best beaches, popular for sunbathing, swimming, beachcombing, and more.
Wiggins Pass is where the Cocohatchee River empties into the Gulf of Mexico. On the south side of the pass is this state park featuring fine-textured white sand, lush vegetation, an observation tower, and five parking areas with facilities at each area. Cabbage palms line the open beach as you walk north to Wiggins Pass to watch the fishermen, dolphins in the channel, and the boats going in and out.
It is also a favorite spot for the drum circle that takes place right there at sunset mostly every Sunday in season. Bring a drum and join in.
Dog Beach – Bonita Springs
Yes, you read this correctly. If you have the company of a canine that enjoys the water and playing with other dogs, this is the only beach that allows your best friend to be off-leash.
It is located just north of the bridge at New Pass before you get to Lovers Key State Park (north of Bonita Beach & south of Fort Myers Beach). Park for free on the left-hand side as soon as you cross the bridge at New Pass. Naturally, you are expected to clean up after your pet.
View our Dog Beach Fun with Furry Friends Video!
Clam Pass Beach Park – North Naples
This 35-acre Collier County Park is a well-hidden jewel at the end of Seagate Drive in North Naples.
Although it is a 3/4-mile boardwalk through the red, white, and black mangrove forest to the white sandy beach, you can ride a tram that is driven by a nature guide. In addition to the private and beautiful beach on the Gulf of Mexico, there are full restaurant facilities and sit-down dining until sunset. The take-out menu is also available from 9 a.m. to sunset. You can rent beach chaises, cabanas, kayaks, or canoes to explore the backwaters.
Lovers Key State Park – Bonita Springs/Estero
Located on Estero Blvd. north of Bonita Beach and south of Fort Myers Beach (I-75 to Exit 116, Bonita Beach Road, go east 10.5 miles… the park entrance is on the left – 1 mile North of New Pass).
Open year-round 8 a.m. to sunset.
Lovers Key is a truly enjoyable barrier island park. Activities and attractions for the whole family. Enjoy hiking, biking along the trails, shelling, kayaking, wildlife viewing, back bay fishing and fly fishing, snorkeling, and great bird viewing. The beach area is wide and long and never that crowded. The park is accessible by foot, car, or boat.
Walk-in $1 / 1 person in vehicle $3 / 2-8 person in vehicle $5
Amenities: Bathhouses, restaurant, vending machines, concessions, bus parking, brochures, maps available, printed guides, multilingual materials, gift shop, guided tours and customized tours.
Rentals: Canoe rental, watersport rental, beach gear rental, and kayak rental.
