Longboat Key Beaches

Definitely my favorite beaches in the area, particularly Beer Can Island on the north part of the island. Yes, parking can be challenging but it’s worth it because the beaches are secluded and dreamy. Beer Can Island has a great mangrove forest and skeleton trees near the end of the island. Plus there are lots of seashells. No facilities, but that is perhaps what keeps the crowds away.

I have been to many beaches from up and down the east coast of the U.S. to Oahu and Kauai. I would have to rank the Florida Gulf beaches as among the best I have ever been to. What stands out to me for Longboat Key beaches are the lack of crowds, the clear and calm water and the quality of the sand. The warm water temperatures in the summer and fall allow you to stay in the water for hours on end. The bonus is the occasional sightings of sting rays, manatees and dolphins. This is a an amazing place.

The Beaches of Longboat Key deserve 5 Stars because they are secluded. Public beach access points are very hard to find but once you know where they are, you will get a parking space, especially on the weekend.
While Longboat Key beaches don’t have the soft white sand of Siesta Key beach or Crescent Beach, they are cramped with people and this is a big trade off. When we went today, the closest person swimming near me was 100 – 200 yards away.
If you want to relax and not hear anything but the waves, this is the beach for you!

This is by far worst beach… Not sure why people like it. There is no parking, water so shallow u literally have to go like miles from shore to get past knee level. I get that it’s off beaten path and a bit secluded but also understand why was not among best beaches. Oh and no facilities so if u have to go bathroom only place is in water!

I have lived in Florida all of my life, and have been to my fair share of beaches. Growing up, my grandparents owned a condo on this little island and we would spend some time each summer here. I have never found a better beach. Clear and warm water (I hate the cold Atlantic), white and soft sand, almost no people (at least in my secret spots!), and the best sunsets on the Gulf! I can’t wait to visit again an a couple of weeks!

Longboat Key Beaches has showed up on the map for ages and I’ve seen the signs in passing but I did not venture out there until I was invite by family who rented out a condo for the weekend. I’m so glad I tagged along!
Fantastic beach with calm transparent waters. Friendly people. What more can you ask for when you’re on vacation? The water was warm and calm and for once I went pretty far out because it wasn’t deep at all. It’s more for relaxing than swimming really. BEWARE of the jelly fish… I swamp by and I FROZE.

Water is clean, sand is clean. Nice and quiet, family friendly!

peacefully uncrowded.

On this 235^th Independence Day, an homage to one of my favorite spots in the good old US of A: Longboat Key, Florida.
Florida is one of those states people seem either to love or to hate. I happen to love — the Gulf coast, at least. Where Atlantic beaches have sand you can drive on, wet t-​shirt contests, and coeds galore, the Gulf has miles of gorgeous sugar-​sand beaches, clear, turquoise waters, and a removed feel. Longboat Key feels particularly remote and unspoiled. It’s referred to as «the private island» because public access to its beaches is extremely limited: one lone public beach on the entire Key means that you can enjoy yourself in relative solitude, staking out a patch of sand that seems miles from your nearest neighbor. Just about everyone you’ll meet is either a resident of or renting on Longboat.
The quietude of the Key also allows wildlife to abound. Here you’ll find abundant shore birds including pipers, heron, egret, petrels, gulls, pelican, skimmers, and tropicbird. We’ve spotted comb jellies, king crab, miniature hermit crab, sand crab, and sea snail. We’ve seen dolphin pods fishing in the surf and sea turtle nests protected by local organizations. Shelling on Longboat is world-​class, too: you’ll find everything from sand dollars and augers to spiny jewel box, lightning whelk, and olives.
I can’t think of many prettier or more archetypal beaches than Longboat Key. And it’s right here in our own backyard. From sea to shining sea, America truly is a beautiful place.

Cape Coral, where I come to stay when I am in Florida, is nice, near a lot of great and interesting places like Ft Myers Beach, Captiva and Sanibel Island and Matlacha. I’m not complaining, but when I want a totally beach and tourist experience, I get up early and drive 2 hours north to Sarasota and especially Longboat Key/​St Armand’s Circle. Sarasota is the LA of SW Florida; modern, artsy, cool. And the most beautiful beach in Sarasota is Longboat Key. Longboat Key offers water sports, biking and tennis, but the best way to enjoy the island may be by doing nothing at all.
This thin sliver of land off Sarasota on Florida’s west coast is home to 8,000 people year-​round, but come winter, the population swells dramatically. Thousands of tourists/​visitors from colder climates flock to LBK — its shorthand moniker — from January to April to enjoy balmy temperatures and the sparkling turquoise waters of the Gulf of Mexico. It’s beautiful, peaceful and special (People have the honeymoons here, and if I were cheap I would too but I want a Maui honeymoon). Sorry Florida.
Off season, however, the only crowds are the sea gulls grooming their feathers on the warm white sand, and Longboat Key feels like the closest thing to having a private beach. On my last visit in November and December, a 2 month vacation, the temperatures hovered in the mid-​80s, palm trees swayed gently in the wind, hibiscus flowers bloomed and the sun’s rays were on par with their intensity in July without the oppressive humidity. It’s the best time to be in Florida.
Tell people you are staying in Longboat Key and many will think it’s part of the Florida Keys off the southern tip of the state, but it’s not, LBK is about 200 miles to the north-​northwest of – and in some ways worlds away from — Key West and its neighbors. Nightlife on the island is likely to mean a moonlit walk on the beach rather than a drink at the bar, and the odds are good the locals will either be bald or luckily sport some gray hair.
Buffered by Sarasota Bay on one side and facing the Gulf of Mexico on the other, the Key is sheltered from the tourist hustle and bustle of mainland Florida. At less than 11 miles in length and no more than a mile across in its widest places, LBK also feels like a secluded community with an elegant flavor of its own.
The surroundings are lush, upscale and serene. A trip down Gulf of Mexico Drive, the island’s main artery, reveals golf courses, condominiums and homes ranging from newly constructed mansions to older, one-​story houses.
There are few hotels on Longboat Key, but rental homes and condos abound, so it’s best to make lodging arrangements in advance, especially for visitors who plan to stay a while. Low season generally starts in May and runs until November. Tourists yearning to make the island a permanent home should bring along a big wallet. The average sale price for a condominium was more than $ 1 million last year, and it topped $ 1.5 million for a single-​family home, according to the local Chamber of Commerce.
Spenders on a smaller scale can get their fix in neighboring St. Armands Key and its unique shopping circle lined with boutiques and restaurants. (The official motto urges visitors to «get out of the box, get into the circle.») Shoppers can find anything from jewelry to knock-​out shoes to sea shells of all shapes and sizes. Depending on your budget and appetite, a lunch break can range from a latte to a smoked salmon and brie grilled cheese.
By the way, did I say that the sand here is like sugar, crunches like snow when you walk on it and being pure quartz doesn’t get hot, even on 100 degree days?

«This place is where you go when you want to leave your thoughts, get a dose of sun, blue sky, and paddle around in waist deep calm clear water. The type of beach you see on a PC screensaver. Looks fake but its the real deal. I suggest visiting it at least once in your life. One of Florida’s few plusses. Oh, but don’t bother coming during the summer months. This beach is thick with tourists and you’ll be swimming in sweat because of the humid air.»