Just a cool little beach. It's driftwood but it could be driftwood tree. Great photo spotread more

Driftwood Beach is pure coastal magic…read more I stopped here during a short business trip to Jekyll Island, and I honestly fell in love with this place. The beach gets its name from the incredible collection of weathered trees and driftwood scattered along the shoreline, creating the most dreamy, almost storybook-like scenery. Jekyll Island has such a fascinating history, and this area is a beautiful reminder of how nature and time continue to shape the island. What was once a thriving forest has gradually transformed into this unique coastal landscape due to erosion and changing shorelines. Walking along the beach surrounded by these beautiful, sculptural trees felt so peaceful and surreal. Add in the friendly locals, Southern charm, and laid-back island atmosphere, and I completely understood why Jekyll Island has such a special charm. I came for business, but Jekyll Island quickly became one of those unexpected places I'll remember long after the trip is over. Driftwood Beach was definitely one of my favorite stops, and I'm already looking forward to coming back.

*********** I started this page for the JEKYLL ISLAND TRAIL SYSTEM, which is a thing, but Yelp then…read morechanged it to the Jekyll Island Campground, which is an entirely different thing that already has a different Yelp page elsewhere.******** I also put this under categories for hiking and biking but Yelp changed it to camping. Hiking and biking trails are NOT the same thing as a campground!!!! I hope Yelp can get its act together to acknowledge the trails on this island, which are a huge draw for visitors, and which have their own web presence as acknowledged by the Golden Isles tourism org, as well as the state parks system! JEKYLL ISLAND TRAIL SYSTEM So this review goes with the dozens of photos I posted of the trails all over the island, better known as the Jekyll Island Trail System. JI has over 25 miles of paved trails throughout the island. They also have dirt/sand trails, and gravel trails. Most trails are handicapped accessible, though I'd stick to the paved ones if exploring on wheels of any kind. It is very popular to circumnavigate the perimeter of the island, which can be done, nonstop, in under an hour on bike. But you can easily spend a day traveling this island by bike if you pause to take in all the sights. I would not call any of the trails difficult, neither for biking, nor for walking. The island is mostly flat, so virtually no inclines at all, and the paths are so well-maintained that you will never encounter overgrowth or mud or anything on the paved or boardwalk trails. From Corsair Beach Park, northward, one can ride their bike on the beach, including all over Driftwood Beach, which is arguably the main attraction of not only Jekyll Island, but all of the Golden Isles put together! Other worthy stops include the Historic District, St. Andrews Picnic Area, and Clam Creek Picnic Area. But those are just highlights. Bikes can't go on the southern beaches because it is a haven for sea turtle nests. However, you can chain your bike in the parking lot and walk these beaches, which are worth every second of detour. Beach Village is another fun stop, and the perimeter bike trail goes right through it. Beach Village houses Love Shack inside Jekyll Market, which is my top recommendation for a food stop! On the southern end of the island, there are a lot of inland trails, running through swamp, and under thick tree canopies, allowing you to really explore the innards of the island, and a lot of wildlife. At the northern end, between Clam Creek and Driftwood Beach, there is a trail through the swamp that has beautiful views in every direction, especially at sunset. More toward the center of the island, Tupelo Trail runs past Horton Pond, and Shell Rd. Trail navigates some of the best wildlife spotting areas on the island.

We loved our time here! Parking was ample. The fenced in play area was large and very entertaining…read morefor all of my kiddos. It was busy with kids and parents mostly stayed to the sideline letting kids make friends and have a blast. There are loads of shaded picnic tables right next to the park where you can sit or bring lunch to eat at! The squirrels are very friendly and the birds come up to you almost like they expect a due for sitting under their tree, haha! Very clean and safe. There are public restrooms at the brick building across the sidewalk on the side of the picnic tables towards the parking. For public restrooms they're not bad! A quick straight stroll (2 blocks or so) to get ice cream and go out to eat or shop around! Great location.

Adjacent to the Saint Simons Island lighthouse at the southern end of the island, this large park…read morehas a fun zone pool, a lovely walking path at waterside, a large fishing pier and a playground, with a dozen or so benches scattered about, most of which are in shade and all have a great view. When it's not being used freely by all sorts of visitors and tourists, the park gets set up for different events throughout the year, including for Memorial Day, Fourth of July and music festivals. Enjoy the view of the Saint Simons Sound. The big widget is the recovery ship that is cutting up the Golden Ray, a car transporter that capsized a few years back. Great spot. Parking can be a challenge during the busier times but there are plenty of bike racks. [Review 15742 overall - 424 in Georgia - 1246 of 2021.]

Got the chance to spend a couple of days on Jekyll Island, and during our time there we got to…read morevisit a number of the different locations that the island has. One of those was St Andrews Beach on the Southwestern portion of the island. This is not a heavily used beach area, mostly used by those who want to walk their dog in a safe location or families looking for an out-of-the-way place for a picnic lunch. There is no surf, since the beach is on the bay side of the island, and because of the trees it is well shaded except for the actual beach itself. The location is a park that has a historical trail describing the plight of the slave trade in the area, and is well worth going through to understand some of the history of the area. There is a small trail to the North that will end at a tower where you can look out over the bay side as well. The beach itself is very calm, and great for dogs, particularly at low tide. We really enjoyed ourselves at this beach after walking around the park and seeing the beach. Definitely worth a visit if you have the time!

The Wanderer Memory Trail is worth a visit, but the mosquitoes are horrible at any time of year…read more We spent some time tossing a frisbee around in the water, which was dead calm except for the occasional wake from passing boats. It's a decent place to fish or to walk your dog. But it's just not worth getting eaten alive on the way from the parkinhg lot to the beach.

Corsair Beach Park is farrrrr better than the beach on SSI, but among Jekyll Island beach parks,…read moreit's just not the best of the best. Corsair is basically the first beach you can get to when entering the island. Just off the bridge, you're fed into the roundabout. To your right is The Westin, to your left is Beach Village, and the Jekyll Island Convention Center. Straight ahead is Corsair Beach Park! But parking is to the left, behind Beach Village. This is a very obvious park, one where most day trippers and Westin guests like to hang. The beach is huge, a long, flat sandy surface, which provides ample room for setting up camp to just lie in sun or play beach games. If that's what you're after, this is the best option. If you want to hike the beach, I advise Driftwood Beach at the northern tip, or Glory Beach at the southern point of the island. Both are amazing walks around the top/bottom of the island, and the sights and wildlife are breathtaking. Corsair allows leashed dogs, and bikes, but dogs and bikes are not allowed on the JI eastern shore any farther south than Corsair, due to sea turtle nesting. This beach park has beach showers, and food/shopping is very close by in the Beach Village shops.

Super convenient free parking with easy access to bathrooms, shower, and even a play park! The…read morebeach is a short walk over a bridge or two depending which walkway you take. It's a vast open beach with no shade and it's beautiful! Unfortunately for us when we went the wind was so incredibly wicked it was like an getting assaulted by the beach the second we walked onto open sand and it whisked my sons bucket down the shoreline which was tricky to get back lol so we didn't last long lol if the weather was better I imagine we could spend a day there. Bring a lunch and when you're ready go shower clean up eat and let the kids play at the park!

This is actually a free access point to the beach that is open until after dark (but not…read moreindefinitely). It has some facilities and there are picnic tables, but this is also the kind of island that has a lot of mosquitos so I would be heading towards the beach. This area has some inland water that is apparently permanent enough that they've put pontoon bridges over it, which is kind of cool. The beach here is a little bit wider than on other nearby areas, so the tide is not forcing you to literally sit on a dune and you can walk around the surf fishers. So it is a decent ocean beach, if still on the crowded side.

We came out to Jekyll Island to do as a outing for the day. The island is small, but we were…read morevisiting towards the end of the day, so it wasn't a bad visit we took the scenery road ended up on one side where the beach was and spent some time out there and had fun. We also went into a tiki hut type bar place and had some drinks and sat on the bar side, so you got to overlook the ocean overall it was a great time and we had fun.

Note: I created this local flavor listing specifically for the Old Bridge Fishing Pier on Jekyll…read moreIsland, but Yelp admin changed the title to just Jekyll Island so my attraction is now unsearchable & confusing with 2 other listings for the island as a whole, titled "Jekyll Island" (latter 2 are dupes of one another, which Yelp admin refuses to correct). It is one of many actions by Yelp designed to block users from accessing local info on this destination, which keeps Yelp users ignorant if they use Yelp instead of Google, who has it all! * * * * * * The former drawbridge access bridge onto Jekyll Island from its causeway was built in 1954, decommissioned in the early 1990s, and turned into a fishing pier once the metal drawbridge was removed. As a kid, I first visited the island via this bridge, just a couple years before it was decommissioned. At that time, toll to visit the island was $1/day, now it's $10/day. I have visited both sides of the pier. The causeway side is longer and fishermen there had some decent catches. This water is the river side of Jekyll Island, so it's briney, and you're liable to catch just about anything saltwater or freshwater in there! A family fishing was kind enough to let my child use their rod and within minutes caught a little fish (too small to keep). But we saw their cooler and they had a stockpile of a catch, including a huge trout, and on the ground was a ray they had caught, which they couldn't save to return to the water. A bald eagle nearby was perched ready to clean up the discarded seafood as soon as the fisherfolk left. I know from rangers that the eagles had two eaglets this year who are still in the nest, so the unused catch went to hungry birds. On the island side pier, I often see it used by cyclists hoping for a breeze and a view along their route, but it's not as long, so less useful for fishing. There is a large parking lot on the island side, which is pretty hidden from tourists, and a great parking anchor spot for daytrippers when the island is crowded. The causeway side has places to park alongside it, but no real designated parking lot. Its access road is where the GA state patrol sits in wait for speeders at night and pretty much all weekend. All in all this is a very cool spot for fishing, picture taking, sunset watching, birding, etc. my only negative was on the island side, there is a sidewalk at the very end, that raises the concrete up too high to be a safe height with the railing. This is super dangerous, and ought to be safeguarded somehow. Otherwise, a little-known spot for seasoned visitors!

Sharktooth Beach is a hidden beach on Jekyll Island, accessible by a path off of S Riverview Dr.,…read moresouth of the water park. There is no designated parking by the trail, nor any signage to indicate it's for Sharktooth Beach. When I stopped, I just saw other cars parked there and asked people nearby if it was for Sharktooth Beach. (I've posted a picture of the trailhead in case you arrive with no one else there.) It is a 0.85mi walk to the beach, through marsh on one side and woodsy brush on the other. There was a gator near where we parked. The walk took about 20min with a toddler. I do not recommend bringing a bunch of beach gear and expecting to stay here for beach leisure. The "sand" is almost pure crushed shells, and is NOT pleasant to sit on nor even to walk on with bare feet. I don't even recommend bringing your dogs because their paws will not be happy either. This beach is only meant to be walked for a fossilized shark tooth hunt. The span of "beach" is short compared to the coastline on the other side of the island. You will walk it in 2 minutes, tops. Again, this place is really just to look for those fossils. And the shark teeth are not easy to find. Luckily, there was a seasoned shark tooth hunter present, and she gifted a tooth to my kid, otherwise we'd have had nothing to show for our expedition. Jekyll is in the Golden Isles shark breeding zone, one of the biggest in the world, so you are likely to find teeth here, and much of the shell matter is dumped there after they dredge the river. But the diminutive size of these teeth is the challenge. You need to have time, patience, and an eagle eye. Good luck!

Was unlucky as far as finding anything but it was a blast to go and at least look also the trail…read morein was not as bad as advertised and u found a friend

I was in town for the day and decided to go check out this area since there were no reviews yet…read more The playground looks like a fun place for kids and there are baseball fields too! The women's bathroom was clean (which is always nice). Across the street there are two tennis courts and a space to walk or play with pets. The locals I came across were very friendly too!

Why the great review?…read more Besides being off the beaten path (south along the beach road to the Soccer Field Signs), it's the most accessible. Parking was a breeze. A small lot right by the boardwalk. And not that many people parked there when we went. The boardwalk itself has no steps. It's wide (you could easily take a wheelchair or a stroller here) and it is fairly level. Most other beaches on island require a painful trek up some wooden steps, then a long hot walk over a wooden boardwalk over the dunes, and then a steep stairway down to the beach. And another long walk to the water. We were ecstatic when we saw this. Only later did we read that the reason the walkway is so wide and smooth was that it was a shooting location for the film, Glory (1989). The walkway was built so that all the movie crew equipment could be easily transported. We easily made the walk over the dunes and pools to the beach. Kicking off our shoes (we weren't in beach attire), we strolled to the water's edge and up and down the beach collecting a few shells and enjoying the cool water. So, even though there are no facilities here, this was our favorite beach of all that we visited while we were here.

I am a huge fan of the 1989 movie Glory. So on my recent trip to Jekyll Island, I rode down to the…read moreJekyll Island soccer complex, and checked out the beach and boardwalk. This place is about a mile South past the Hampton Inn, and you turn left into the complex. Look for the Jekyll Island soccer complex sign. When you turn in, there will be a soccer field on the left and right side of the road. At the end of the road is the boardwalk, and a small parking area. According to what I read, the producers of the movie built the boardwalk to transport equipment out to the beach, where the final scene (attack of Fort Wagner) was filmed. Very calm and peaceful place. No facilities that I noticed.