Beach Access
From dune walkovers, driving beaches and the beach accessible wheelchair program, there are a variety of ways to access and enjoy St. John’s County’s coastline.
Beach Wheelchairs
To help make our beaches more accessible, beach accessible wheelchairs are available at no charge.
Please note:
- At least three days advance notification is required to reserve a wheelchair.
- There is a limited supply, and the wheelchairs book up very quickly in the Spring and Summer months.
- Our department is not able to guarantee a delivery time on the first date of your reservation, and we ask that you return the chair to where it was delivered by 3pm on the last date of your reservation.
- Reservations can be made up to one year in advance.
- Wheelchairs can be reserved for up to 7 days in a row, if available.
- Wheelchairs can be delivered to certain beachfront parks and vehicular access ramps.
- When staff delivers the beach accessible wheelchair, they will secure it using a bicycle lock. Once your reservation has been confirmed, you will be given the combination to open this lock.
- Please keep the chair locked when not in use.
Beach Accessible Wheelchairs can be reserved through our Online Reservation System. You will be required to create an account before submitting your first reservation request.
For more information concerning our beach accessible wheelchairs, or to confirm your reservation, please contact SJC Beach Services at (904) 209-0331 or beaches@sjcfl.us.
Beach Driving
There are approximately 12 miles of St. Johns County Beaches that allow for vehicular access. Vehicular access is permitted year-round; however, during the months of May through October, access is limited to the hours of 8:00am to 7:30pm. From March through September vehicles are required to purchase a beach driving pass. Daily and annual beach passes may be purchased from the toll attendants at the access ramps. Beach Driving Passes and Rules
Vehicular access is dependent on beach conditions — weather, sand, or tides may cause ramps to temporarily close or limit access to 4 Wheel Drive vehicles. Daily driving conditions are posted to our Facebook and X accounts (follow SJC Beaches), through the SJC Connect App and on the Beach Driving Updates webpage.
Vehicle access locations
- Vilano (temporarily closed)
- Porpoise Point
- A Street
- Ocean Trace Road
- Dondanville Road
- Matanzas Avenue
- Mary Street
- Crescent Beach (Cubbedge Road)
- Fort Matanzas (exit only ramp)
Beachfront Parks with Off-Beach Parking
Mickler’s Beachfront Park
Location: South end of Ponte Vedra Beach on Highway A1A. 1109½ Ponte Vedra Blvd., Ponte Vedra. Mickler’s Beachfront Park Map
Facilities: Restrooms, showers, dressing rooms and pavilion. Pavilion is available on a first come, first served, basis. Lifeguards staffed seasonally.
Park Hours: Dawn to dusk.
Other Information: Sunbathing, fishing and beachcombing are popular activities on this coquina type beach.
For more information, please contact SJC Beach Services at (904) 209-0331 or beaches@sjcfl.us.
Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine Research Reserve
Location: Between Ponte Vedra Beach and St. Augustine at 505 Guana River Road, Ponte Vedra Beach. GTMNERR Map
Facilities: The research reserve offers excellent educational opportunities, dune walkover, hiking, biking, and horseback riding trails.
Other information: The visitor center is a perfect place to stop for the day and visit. Just across A1A from the visitor center are beautiful coquina beaches where the occasional Right Whale sighting may take place. These beaches are also a popular spot for some quiet time while beachcombing. This is not a St Johns County managed facility. For more information, please contact the GTMNERR directly at 904-380-8600 or by visiting http://www.dep.state.fl.us/coastal/sites/gtm.
South Ponte Vedra Beach Recreation Area
Location: 2.25 miles south of the Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine Research Reserve on Highway A1A across the street from the South Ponte Vedra Fire Station. South Ponte Vedra Beach Recreation Map
Facilities: Limited off-beach parking, picnic tables, stairs to beach.
Park Hours: Dawn to dusk.
Other information: South Ponte Vedra Park is a great spot for lunch overlooking the beautiful coquina landscape or on the beach to enjoy the many wonders that the ocean can bring in.
For more information, please contact SJC Beach Services at (904) 209-0331 or beaches@sjcfl.us.
Usina Beach
Location: 4 miles north of Vilano Beach on Highway A1A. 4100 Coastal Highway, St. Augustine. Usina Beach Map
Facilities: No facilities.
Other information: Beach offers endless recreational uses including fishing, sunbathing, beachcombing, surfing, and vehicle access ramp. Beach driving / parking is permissible with special beach use permit only.
For more information, please contact SJC Beach Services at (904) 209-0331 or beaches@sjcfl.us.
North Beach
Location: Take Vilano bridge over intracoastal, go north on A1A, at second highway walkover make left into park. 3721 Coastal Highway, St. Augustine. North Beach Map
Facilities: Restrooms, showers, highway walkover, grills, playground, and picnic pavilion.
Park Hours: Dawn to dusk.
Other information: Sunbathing, fishing and beachcombing are popular activities on this coquina type beach.
For more information, please contact SJC Beach Services at (904) 209-0331 or beaches@sjcfl.us.
Surfside
Location: One half mile north of the Vilano vehicle access ramp on Highway A1A. 3070 Coastal Highway, St. Augustine. Surfside Park Beach Map
Facilities: Restrooms, dune walkover, showers, and picnic tables.
Park Hours: Dawn to dusk.
Other information: This beach is a popular spot for fishing, sunbathing and beachcombing.
For more information, please contact SJC Beach Services at (904) 209-0331 or beaches@sjcfl.us.
Vilano Beach
Location: 2 miles north of downtown St. Augustine, on Highway A1A just over the New Vilano Bridge at the end of Vilano Road. 2725 Anahma Drive, St. Augustine. Vilano Beach Map
Facilities: Restrooms, dune walkover, and showers. Lifeguards staffed seasonally.
Park Hours: Dawn to dusk.
Other information: Vilano beach is a popular spot for fishing, sunbathing, and surfing (when the tide is coming in).
For more information, please contact SJC Beach Services at (904) 209-0331 or beaches@sjcfl.us.
Anastasia State Park
Location: On Anastasia Island, at St. Augustine Inlet, 1 mile east of downtown St. Augustine and directly north of St. Augustine Beach at 340-A A1A South, St. Augustine. Anastasia State Park Map
Facilities: Offers windsurfing, kayaking, snack bar, hiking / biking / nature trails, dune walkover, campground, restrooms, picnic tables, and showers. Lifeguards staffed seasonally. Driving is prohibited on Anastasia State Park beaches.
Other Information: This is a Florida State Park and is not a St Johns County managed facility. For more information, please contact Anastasia State Park directly at (904) 461-2033 or visit https://www.floridastateparks.org/anastasia.
St. Augustine Beach
Location: On Anastasia Island 4 miles south of downtown St. Augustine on Highway A1A Beach Blvd in the City of St. Augustine Beach. St. Augustine Beach Map
Facilities: Offers fishing, picnicking, a splash park, a pavilion that can be rented out for special events, restrooms, picnic tables, showers, and a visitor center are available. Lifeguards staffed seasonally.
Other information: The SJC Ocean Fishing Pier is the first of the pedestrian access points within the City of St. Augustine Beach limits. For more information about the City of St. Augustine Beach visit their website at www.staugbch.com.
Frank B. Butler County Park – East
Location: On Anastasia Island two miles south of St. Augustine Beach at 5860 A1A South, St. Augustine. Frank B. Butler Park East Map
Park Hours: Dawn to dusk.
Facilities: Restrooms, dune walkover, covered picnic tables and showers. Off-beach parking is available as well as designated parking for horse trailers. Beach entrance by way of Mary Street Ramp. Will seasonally close upon onset of Designated Spring Break Season. Horseback riding is permissible with a special beach use permit only. For more information concerning horseback riding regulations on beaches managed by St Johns County, please contact Jade O’Neill at (904) 209-0619 or joneill@sjcfl.us. Lifeguards staffed seasonally.
Other information: Frank B. Butler hosted Martin Luther King, Jr. and associates in his motel in 1964 during a widely publicized civil rights visit to St. Augustine. In 1980 the State of Florida turned over the management of the park to St. Johns County. Environmentally sensitive dune system home to the native Anastasia Island Beach Mice and gopher tortoises.
For more information, please contact SJC Beach Services at (904) 209-0331 or beaches@sjcfl.us.
Crescent Beach
Location: On Anastasia Island just three miles south of St. Augustine Beach at 6930 A1A South, St. Augustine. Crescent Beach Map (approximate location).
Facilities: Restrooms, dune walkover, covered picnic tables, and showers. Lifeguards are staffed seasonally.
Park Hours: Dawn to dusk.
Other Information: The natural profile of the coastline gives this beach its name, Crescent Beach. Vehicular beach access is available at Cubbedge Rd. Vehicular access is dependent on beach conditions — weather, sand, or tides may cause ramps to temporarily close or limit access to 4 Wheel Drive vehicles. From March 1 through September 30, vehicles are required to pay a vehicle access toll and obtain a beach pass. Daily and annual beach passes may be purchased at access ramps. Daily driving conditions are posted to our Facebook and X accounts (follow SJC Beaches) and in the Reach the Beach Mobile App.
For more information, please contact SJC Beach Services at (904) 209-0331 or beaches@sjcfl.us.
Fort Matanzas National Monument Beach
Location: At the southern tip of Anastasia Island, at the Matanzas Inlet, follow Highway A1A 7.5 miles south of St. Augustine Beach. Fort Matanzas National Monument Map
Facilities: Restrooms, off-beach parking and dune walkover. Lifeguards are seasonal.
Other information: Fort Matanzas National Monument visitor Center is located across the street. Horseback Riding is not permitted within park boundaries. The area hosts an assortment of protected species such as least terns, Anastasia Island Beach Mice, gopher tortoises, and sea turtles. This is not a St Johns County managed facility. For more information, please contact the national park directly at (904) 471-0116 or visit http://www.nps.gov/foma
River to Sea Preserve
Location: At the south end of St. Johns County before entering the town of Marineland. Small parking area on intracoastal side. River to Sea Preserve Map
Facilities: Very limited off-beach parking, just steps away from famous Marineland.
Park Hours: Dawn to dusk.
Other information: Very quiet beach with coquina shell and plenty of opportunities for wildlife viewing.
For more information, please contact SJC Beach Services at (904) 209-0331 or beaches@sjcfl.us.
