Handicap Accessible Beaches in Florida Gulf And Atlantic Coast
Sunshine State has a lot to offer for all types of beachgoers, including individuals with disabilities. Florida’s coastline is some of the most beautiful in the whole country where visitors from all over the world flock to enjoy the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts breathtaking scenery and exciting activities. Should you look for the best handicap accessible beaches in Florida, this list will tell you the top places you can visit with wheelchair.
Atlantic Coast
Examples of Atlantic Coast beaches that are wheelchair friendly include the famous Miami Beach, Fernandina Beach, Daytona Beach, Hollywood Beach, Anastasia State Park, and John Pennekamp Coral State Park, and now we provide a detailed introduction on all these places.
Miami Beach
Miami Beach is one is not only one of the most iconic Florida beaches, but is among the best accessible ones too with multiple Mobi-mat entrances and free wheelchair rental including motorized too (available at 1001 Ocean Drive and South Pointe Park).
Miami does a lot to be one of the most handicapped as well as pedestrian friendly beach towns in Florida. If the possibility of crowds is holding you back from visiting this popular destination, don’t worry! Long and wide boardwalks make it easy to go around, and they even opened a fully adaptive playground that disabled people can use.
Anastasia State Park
With the potential to fulfill any bucket list dream that you have involving fishing, shelling, birding, or geocaching, Anastasia State Park goes out of its way to make all of its guests feel welcome. A beach vacation to the area doesn’t disappoint.
It’s full of accessible options, including plastic-type walkway and free wheelchair rentals for beachgoers. An elevated wooden boardwalk makes traveling from one area of the beach to another fast and easy.
If you’re planning on staying for a while, you’ll find the state park very accommodating with its picnic areas, onsite concessions and gift shop, and accessible restrooms. There are even showers available to help rinse the sand off you and your wheelchair. If you’re looking for an immersive Florida beach vacation experience, this is it!
Daytona Beach
With twenty-three miles of outstanding coastline to visit, Daytona Beach has something to offer for everyone! It remains a top vacation spot for families, one of the most popular party beaches in Florida, and also wheelchair friendly.
It’s one of those Florida beaches where you can park on the sand, making it easier for you to unload your wheelchair from your vehicle. The hard-packed sand is easier to travel over, making it one of the best disabled access beaches in the state.
The lifeguard stations at Daytona Beach Headquarters and at Flagler, Dunlawton and Cardinal Avenue offer manual beach wheelchairs at no charge (first come first served policy), but you can even rent power chairs here at Beach Mobility Rentals.
Fernandina Beach
Among one of the most beautiful and accessible beaches in the state, Fernandina’s main beach has a MobiMat available for visitors who use wheelchairs to utilize at their discretion.
Even more importantly, there are wheelchairs and a floating Mobi Chair available for rent free of charge from The Atlantic Recreation Center with a $100 deposit. The only conditions that exist are that the wheelchairs are for use at beach accesses within the city.
Best known for its Isle of Eight Flags Shrimp Festival, Fernandina on Amelia Island has thirteen miles of incredible beaches to visit with crystal clear water and plenty of public parking, too.
People love the renovated downtown area because of its boutique shops, incredible restaurants, and rich history. It’s a beach trip destination like no other, and last but not least, one of the best beaches for shells on the East Coast!
Hollywood Beach
The first thing you notice about Hollywood Beach isn’t the sand or pristine water. It’s the brick boardwalk that gives you incredible views of the Atlantic Ocean.
Not only is it wheelchair friendly, but it’s also where you find many hotels, restaurants, and shops to visit. It can be a lot of fun to watch people, too, because of the large number of cyclists, skateboarders, and inline skaters that use it to get exercise.
- most advanced folding electric wheelchair on the planet, premium mobility equipment
- dual Tesla grade lithium batteries that offer 18 miles riding distance
- supreme riding comfort thanks to the front and rear shock absorption system
The ever-glamorous Hollywood Beach also provides multiple MobiMats to make areas of the city more wheelchair-friendly. Free wheelchair rental is available on a first-come, first-served basis from The City of Hollywood Fire Rescue/Beach Safety Division. A quick phone call is all it takes to reserve one in your name.
John Pennekamp Coral State Park
John Pennekamp Coral State Park is known as one of the best Florida snorkeling beaches. Home to 55 varieties of coral and over 600 species of fish, it’s a gem waiting to be discovered by you.
Over 70 nautical square miles are explored in the state park, making it one of the largest and most impressive Florida State Parks to date. Your beach trip will be an unforgettable experience made better by the 30,000-gallon saltwater aquarium present in the Welcome Center.
As one of the many handicap accessible beaches in Florida, it offers free wheelchairs to anyone who reserves one. You can go for a boat snorkeling trip, but non-swimmers can also witness the marine life and coral by taking a glass-bottom boat tour that is wheelchair accessible. The Spirit of Pennekamp offers two-and-a-half-hour tours around the area so you can see what resides on the ocean’s floor.
Gulf Coast
Handicap accessible beaches in Florida on the Gulf Coast include Pensacola Beach, Grayton Beach, Clearwater Beach, Venice Beach, Siesta Key Beach, and Tigertail Beach Marco Island. More details are to follow under each listing.
Pensacola Beach
Pensacola Beach is one of the Gulf Coast’s most beautiful coastlines with soft white sand and clear waters. These features made it a popular destination for all types of beachgoers. It is known as one of the best wedding beaches on the Gulf Coast, but also famous for being easily accessible for people with disabilities.
Five Mobi-mat entrances can be found along Pensacola at Baby, Boardwalk, Moms, Casino beaches and at Park West providing easy access to the sand. Moreover, both manual and powered wheelchairs with sand tires can be rented that offer limitless opportunities to explore during your stay and have a wonderful day.
Grayton Beach
The sugar-white sand of Grayton Beach is striking. It’s picturesque and perfect for spending time in the sun exploring. The state park has recently made upgrades to make it more wheelchair accessible. Ramps that accommodate strollers and wagons too, replacing the stairs that limited access.
Sand mats are available to make it a smoother transition from land to sand. Beach wheelchairs and accommodating campsites make staying overnight possible. Of the newer handicap accessible beaches in the state has done its part to make everyone feel at home while visiting it.
Clearwater Beach
One of the most handicap accessible beaches in Florida, Clearwater Beach draws a crowd for many reasons. Not only is it one of the best Gulf Coast beaches that offer limited free parking, but it also provides sun umbrella rental and food carts in the parking lot area making Clearwater an affordable Florida beach town to vacation. Grabbing a quick bite to eat before returning to the white sands is a possibility.
The emerald-green waters of one of the most popular wheelchair accessible beaches in Florida are part of its appeal. So are its accommodations for guests with disabilities. Beach wheelchairs are available upon request.
- beach wheelchair that fits in car trunk or in an SUV
- with heavy duty balloon tires that roll easily over soft sand
- made from healthcare grade PVC, stainless steel and aluminum that will not rust or corrode so safe to use in a saltwater environment
Jet-skiing and other motorized activities are not permitted on the beach, making it a quiet place to relax and soak up the sun. If you want to stay long enough to see the sunset, you won’t be disappointed in the location in Florida you chose to do so.
Siesta Key Beach
The world-famous Siesta Key Beach is also one of the most handicap accessible beaches in Florida. A 400 foot long, five-foot-wide sand mat made from recycled plastics proves that accessibility can also be sustainable.
Gliding along the mat to the shore is easy because the sand is regularly packed down underneath it to keep you moving smoothly in a beach wheelchair. It’s the only beach in the area with a mat available.
Made of quartz that comes from the Appalachian Mountains, the sand glistens in the Florida sun. People marvel at the beach’s beauty, which has topped the list of the best beaches in the nation twice. The eight-mile-long island offers plenty to do, including shopping, dining, and entertainment. You can get where you need to go with little assistance because of the mindful way the area accounts for wheelchairs of all types.
Tigertail Beach – Marco Island
The secluded Florida Gulf Coast beach of Tigertail on Marco Island is full of activities for everyone to enjoy. From exploring the area to bird-watching or pool tide observing, you’ll have a full day when you spend time on the sandy shores overlooking the ocean.
It’s a place where guests in wheelchairs can move with ease, thanks to the facilities the city made to create one of the best wheelchair accessible beaches in Florida.
The beach is ADA-compliant with accessible restrooms, concession stands, and picnic areas. You can take a wheelchair on the beach to get a closer view of the shells that line the sand. Watching the sun go down after a long day of adventuring is the perfect way to end your beach trip.
Venice Beach
Venice Beach is no stranger to accessibility. The beautiful area welcomes guests from around the world year-round. It provides handicap accessible bathrooms, concession stands, and covered seating areas.
The white sandy beaches are just part of the appeal of the culturally diverse, artistic city. A stroll on the beach’s boardwalk allows you to listen to street performers playing a tune, Beatnik-poets reciting their latest poems, and lots of unique boutique shops to buy one-of-a-kind souvenirs from to take home with you.
Thanks to Chauncy Howard, a community activist with a park named after him in Venice, the area is open for everyone no matter their mobility level. Providing handicapped-accessible areas throughout the city was the work of his efforts.
You can easily travel on the boardwalk in a wheelchair, set up a picnic lunch, and enjoy beautiful views of the ocean’s water. Throughout Venice Beach, there are many places to go by wheelchair that allow you to explore the area without restriction.
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