Went to Highs Pier to view the sunrise on our last day in Key West. Easy to park. Long clean pier with benches. Beautiful view. Would recommend checking read more

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During our four days in Key West during a 2022 cross country road trip, the Picante family enjoyed a great Key West morning at Higgs beach. We arrived early and found parking near the children's playground area, and walked out onto the white sand beach with only a few other AM visitors. We did not utilize or investigate what looked like umbrellas and beach chairs for rent, and instead waded out into the bathtub temperature water with our masks and snorkels. The swim area stays shallow farther than we SoCal folks are used to in our beaches, and it is roughly enclosed by a break wall of sorts, and a long walking pier with stairs down into the water for access. Still plenty of small snapper, grouper, and other fish can be seen out near the structure of the pier and break wall. After a warm morning in the water, we left our towels on the beach and enjoyed a delicious lunch at Salute (see other review) before packing up and exploring the other great parts of Key West. We found this beach to be cleaner than Smathers beach, and maybe more laid back. Also of note: there was a marked sea turtle nest on the beach surrounded by caution tape and signage. Yet another wonder of the keys for us touristy visitors who live in Sunny SoCal with her cold California current ocean temps. read more

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This is one of those places where most visitors to Key West never find out about. We grab a cup of coffee in a to go cup, pack up 2 beach chairs in the golf cart and head there in the morning to start the day. The pier has 4 benches, but we like to bring our own chairs and either sit on the pier or, now the beach is back open, settle in the newly added Bahama sand. They have extended the beach a bit, and although there is a bit more work to finish, most of the beach is now open. I've seen jumping fish, jelly fish and even a shark! My favorite is watching the pelicans elegantly skim over the surface of the water, then crash into the water beak first to fish. There is a volleyball net, and on some mornings, a little coffee vendor. It is a beautiful way to start the day! read more

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It is not the most stunning beach, but it's worth a visit. It's a free public beach with plenty of amenities. There's even free parking, but it's limited. In regards to amenities, they have just about everything you might need: Playground, beach volleyball, kayak rentals, restrooms with outdoor showers, picnic tables, etc. Right on Higgs Beach, you'll find Salute! on the beach, a very popular Italian restaurant. I have never eaten here, but it's always packed. There's also the African cemetery and the West Martello, a civil war fort. Make sure to visit Kaia's coffee cart- Delicious organic coffee made with love. Oh yeah, there is also the Edward Knight pier, a fishing pier. Right across from Higgs, you'll find tennis courts, dog park, another playground. Seems like there is a lot to do here, even tough it is a small beach. 4 stars. read more

Higgs Beach - Beaches Near Me - Key West, Florida

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We were returning from Duval St. to our resort and just happen to pass by Higgs Beach. Nice views from the pier. It was extremely hot so we couldn't stay there too long. Otherwise, we would bake. I would recommend visiting early or late in the day when it's cooler.. read more

Free Florida fun! So Higgs is a pretty good beach so far as Keys beaches go, seagrass and such, they do a pretty good job of keeping up with it and people seem to Love it. It's got a really cool art deco Southbeach like vibe though it probably helped invent it. There's bathrooms, a pier to swim off of, a pavilion, a pretty good children's play area, beach volleyball courts, and you've got a larger kids play area, dog park, and tennis across the street. Vendors pop up, including a really cool coffee hippy chick and then there's Salute! on the beach which is really nice if you've got the scratch. West Martello Tower and gardens are adjacent as well and are worth exploring as is the Edward B. Knight Pier, African Refugee Cemetery (very respectfully important), the ever small County beach nobody ever pays any attention to in between, and the Aids Memorial, all of which are cool and interesting and very well worth fleshing out any Keys trip if you're into robusting up your time here. The Martello Tower gardens is worthy in and of itself; lots of great photo ops. Lots of things to do in a relatively small area. read more

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It's no South Beach Miami, but it has its charm! It's small and quaint, but my favorite is the pier here that has a staircase to the ocean. Perfect for snorkeling if you got some gear! There's a playground here great for kids. Also, definitely check out the Key West Garden Club and Edward Knight Pier! Both free and will put you in a peaceful state of mind!! read more

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We came to see the sun set We arrived shortly before it did. There was free parking. We came on a Tuesday night and there were about 10ish people there (on the pier). Good place to see the sun set without the crowds. read more

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Key West doesn't have many great beaches, but this one is one of their best. It looks old school with the pale blue paint, but the restrooms are decent, parking is free, the sand is nice, and the beach is wide. There's two piers. The west one is good for taking a stroll to see the water up close, and also walking down into the water. The east pier with the aids memorial is wide, safe, and modern, and best for watching the sunset. The attached Salute restaurant is excellent for ordering a drink and just admiring the sights and sounds of the beach. read more

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Pretty decent beach. There's a volleyball net, pickleball, tennis, large swimming area, a dock you can walk out on and a restaurant right behind the beach. The water is pretty shallow for the majority of the swimming area, you can pretty much walk the whole way. There are outside showers to rinse off at and restrooms. There was a security person there all day. Seemed a bit odd, given it's not a very large beach. It felt more oppressive rather than protective mostly since the beach is small it felt like they were on top of the beachers. Overall it's a decent beach for the keys area, main con is that since it's not super large it has the potential to get pretty crowded. read more

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The 'beach' is rocky and small, with scummy water. We tried it, but didn't stay. However; the dog park and piers are awesome. In particular; the eastern pier is a stupendous place to view or photograph the sunset from! We came back at sundown for the express purpose of viewing the sunset from this pier. Highly recommended. read more

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While walking to the Key West Garden Club, we walked through Higgs Beach... It wasn't bad, by Key West standards, as Key West really isn't known for beaches in the first place, just popular for every other form of watersport. The beach has public restrooms, with no air conditioning, so they aren't very comfy. There are homeless people hanging out here and it's a little dirty and rundown looking. read more

Higgs Beach - Restroom - Beaches Near Me - Key West, Florida

If you stay on the paths you will have opportunities to see a lot of wonderful wildlife. We got to see a lot of tropical fish and an octopus! However the garbage along the beach is so disappointing. I would not advise walking without shoes. There is broken glass and garbage everywhere. We picked up what we could carry. A few broken glass bottles and wood pieces with nails, but we couldn't carry it all. :( Another positive... it has free parking. read more

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Beautiful beach that you share with the feral chickens whom are not aggressive and will eat right from your hands. read more

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We had a good time here. There's a long part of a bridge. The kids jumped off of. There are signs that say no jumping, but there are lots of locals. They're doing the same. So with a lot of caution, we executed a few. The water was turned up, so there was a lot of seaweed and plant but overall pretty neat. There are chairs and umbrellas to rent that were pretty reasonable. The chair and the umbrella were $15 as a pair. There was no set time limit. Plenty of parking, a restaurant nearby, the park was equipped with bathrooms and showers. read more

Higgs Beach - Beaches Near Me - Key West, Florida

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Another beach full of seaweed, mucky water & rocks. Key west beaches did not seem so nice during our visit. They did have a restaurant near by & bathrooms! read more

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Beautiful beach (didn't see the dog park, but I'm sure that's nice too...Shhhh, don't tell my dogs back home about it!!!) and best feature, other than the warm, calm waters, nice, large stretch of sand, great facilities, nice pier which must be AWESOME for sunset shots, WONDERFUL restaurant... The most SURPRISING feature (esp. at around 2-3pm when we showed up) was the abundant, FREE parking!! Great, WELCOME surprise!!! I've read quite a few reviews lamenting the lack of "good" beaches in the Keys. While this easily accessible public beach might not be exactly your dream of a hidden tropical getaway, it was a welcome surprise on a warm Friday afternoon, and if we had known about it sooner, I'm sure we would have planned to spend more time here!! Bring a blanket or rent some chairs and an umbrella, along with a picnic lunch and your snorkeling gear. At low tide, there are even steps toward the end of the pier where you can dive right into the water!! We saw a couple of people doing just that while we were there, and we were sorry we hadn't thought of bringing our own stuff... Take a walk, swim/snorkel, eat at the AMAZING, open-air restaurant right on the beach, Salute, or just relax and enjoy a much-needed break from the semi-craziness that is Key West!! read more

Higgs Beach - Beaches Near Me - Key West, Florida

We were looking for a doggie beach and came across this Beach which accepts Service dogs. We loved the beach and it's doggie friendly very clean and the people there love dogs. Everyone kept it cleaned. Our doggie Jasper met other doggies and enjoyed digging sand. It was his first time at the beach and took him to the shore till he got used to the waves. We went in with him and he got to swim. What a beautiful sunny day. A Sundog beautiful day. Loved all the beautiful rosters and chickens. Everyone cleaned and left the beach in good condition. We pet lovers are responsible for our babies and are happy to be able to enjoy a beach that is doggie friendly and our pup loved it. Parking was right there not faraway. Recommend this beach. Will visit again. read more

Higgs Beach - Doggie at Higgs Beach - Beaches Near Me - Key West, Florida

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Very nice beach with ample parking and even a small restaurant and playground. Their is also a pier with binoculars located in two areas of the pier. BIG WARNING: THE PIER IS NOT FENCED ON THE SIDES. read more

Great sunset spot...not crowded at all when we were there. Park nearby and some great food options as well. read more

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Well...we were told this was the best beach to go to. We give it one star because it is a beach with free parking. It's a small beach with a large amount of seaweed that washes up to the shoreline and super rocky, weedy ocean bottom at the shore. I recommend water shoes because my boyfriend went in first turned and looked at me and shook his head no. So I didn't even attempt to get in the water. Several homeless people set up camp on the picnic tables. No alcohol allowed on the beach signs were posted. We are rebels...and drank our two beers. So many better beaches closer to home. Disappointing! read more

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Key West does not have much in the way of beaches even though they are an island in the most southern point of Florida. It's more of a get on a boat and go party at the sand bar or go out for drinks on Duval Street type of place. The only reason I'm giving it three stars is that it is one of the 3 beaches on Key West and they have nice clean bathrooms. Plus I liked how close it is located to the Martello Tower Garden. This sand isn't really sand, more like little rocks and the beach area is very small. If you want to good beach you're just gonna have to suck it up and drive to Miami! read more

Higgs Beach - My fiancé and I were looking for some beach time on my birthday, will do in a pinch! - Beaches Near Me - Key West, Florida

this is review about Higgs beach.. "I guess best beach in key west... Definitely better then smathers beach. Reason as mentioned below" - Hi there. People were saying key west beaches are much cleaner, better than Miami beaches. Personally, I found Hollywood/ south point park/ Fort Lauderdale beach are much better than key west ones this beach is really beautiful. White sand... Calm and peace. Soothing waves... less crowd- scenic beauty. Palm trees at the beach making it more beautiful. Perfect picture scene. Water is clear and looks greenish under sunlight making it desirable. asking you to come, have fun in the water. Water sports and snorkelling are also there. You can book in advance taking the whole package. That would be cheaper Shower facility is there at the beach and its clean. No doubt key west beaches can beat any beach out of Florida (except top10) bt isn't Florida known for its beaches ;) What I found best about this beach is, its pier Pier is small and not that long People were diving from pier (though it wasn't allowed) and you can have fun in deep water, though it was only up to your chest There is the only restaurant is out there (Salute! On the beach)... You also wanna see park (Key west garden) beside it. read more

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Fairly quiet lately in the morning , I've been going about 3 times a week to swim if it's not too windy! I kind of like some waves though. Water isn't too clear because it's churned up pretty good with the waves. I still find it relaxing in the morning listening to the surf! Really nice pier to walk, park with tennis courts and shuffle board & dog parks right across the street, showers need some more pressure, bathroom, free parking, restaurant on site, picnic areas and a nice big walking path. Next to old Martello fort and garden which is nice to tour. Not many rocks in the water most places, but stairs into water can get slippery and dangerous at times. Overall, really great beach! read more

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Less gross than Smathers. You can be in the sand without retching from the seaweed bloom smells. I would not go in the water though due to the seaweed blooms. If you walk out on one of the piers it will be stinky while you are near the shore, but will get better after you pass the seaweed. read more

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Large public beach on the east side of Key West Fabulous soft fine light sand on the beach. Plenty of room for everyone. Only a few palm trees. Lounge chairs and umbrellas are available for $10 each. Sand volleyball court is in the middle of the beach. There are also a couple of covered gazebos. There's a pier that stretches out into the water with a couple of entry ladders. Decent restrooms with a outdoor shower to rinse of the sand. And a small restaurant called Salute is in the backside of the beach and very convenient to grab a bite at. Also a couple of fruit pop/coconut vendors. Really a nice public beach area read more

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Higgs Beach should be your second stop in the morning after Starbucks on Duval. Come early and enjoy the peaceful emptiness the white sand still warm from the day before the waves lapping the waters edge, walk out on the pier and watch the shrimp boats trawling for this evening's dinner. As the sun rises its apparent that this is no isolated beach but I've never seen it overly crowded just a few people in chairs and a few laying out on towels catching some rays. The African Memorial and Aids Memorial are both located along the parking area at the entrance to the beach there always seems to be a few people sitting on the benches having their morning fix and getting their minds right or just simple enjoying a break from their normal life and for a few lucky one this may be their normal life. read more

Higgs Beach - Beaches Near Me - Key West, Florida

This is a great beach with picnic tables, kid's area, parking, smooth sandy beach, restaurant, etc. It was a great place to catch the sunset away from the crowds around Mallory Square. Located near Casa Marina and the Garden Club, it is a great spot for relaxing and chilling. read more

Higgs Beach - Beaches Near Me - Key West, Florida

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Awesome pier. Beautiful views. Not that great of a beach since it's more like a pool what you have to jump in versus slowly go in from land. The history behind Higgs is what's amazing. Do read the historical market. Sad. read more

Most of the beaches in Key West suck, which took me by surprise my first visit here. Now that I've been here four times I know the deal, bring water shoes and keep expectations low. Higgs is par for the course for the area. Kind of not a great beach by other standards but it will do. There's some aspects here that upgrade it a bit, like the chair and umbrella rentals, Salute restaurant, and the pier. It's in a good location too and was only a ten minute walk from where we stayed. Personally I'd recommend staying at a hotel with a pool and skipping the beach here but if your little heart is set on it, it's not terrible. read more

Another lame man made beach in key west. Actually, avoid key west all together. Expensive, no real attractions. Casperson beach in Venice was way better. Natural, clear turquoise waters and the vibes were high there. read more

Best part of this beach was the chair and umbrella rental for 20.00. The beach on the end with the pier, was where I was pretty small and the water was extremely mud with lots and lots of seaweed. There was a drop when you first got in where the were several rigid rocks. The was a pier but it was not open. There also was a restaurant right on the beach that looked fairly expensive and a snack bar. The were as clean as beach bathrooms could be. We stopped here as we were on a cruise and this was the recommended beach on the trolley tour. read more

Higgs Beach - Beaches Near Me - Key West, Florida

This is a review for Higgs Beach Dog Park, which is not on the beach. It is across from Higgs Beach. There are actually two dog parks: one for smaller animals, the other for larger breeds. They are both fenced in, very large with doggie bags provided and plenty of seating areas aka lawn chairs. You can park for free by Higgs beach, walk across the street and wholah you will be in the dogpark. There are also water fountains for the doggies inside the park. Large, grassy area with palm trees across from the beach. Not a shabby park at all. read more

Higgs Beach - Inside the large breed, fenced-in dogpark; located across from Higgs Beach - Beaches Near Me - Key West, Florida

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This IS NOT the beach, this IS the DOG PARK across the road from Higgs Beach!!!! Great place to take your four legged furbaby to socialize and mingle amongst their kin and chat amongst some friendly KW locals. This is a fairly large doggie park located directly across from the pier and all the way down and across from West Martello Fort. There are 2 separate double fenced entries for both a large and small dog play areas. Leptospirosis IS a problem here in the KEYS (it's an island, RATS) and if your dog has NOT been vaccinated, DO NOT let them drink from the water containers here at the dog park, bring your own and don't share!!! This disease is very easily spread and very hard and costly to cure. Higgs Beach is nice but dogs are NOT ALLOWED on the beach! Go ACROSS the street to the actual dog park. Oh, and please be responsible and bring a bag and pick up after your pet! read more

Higgs Beach in Key West is a sun-worshipers haven. When we went it didn't seem very swimmer-friendly. Maybe because it was during the week there was hardly any one there and the water pretty murky. We also noticed the sign warning about jelly fish. So, we walked the shoreline and sat at a picnic table to enjoy the sun for a bit. It does have a lot of activities for kids with a huge playground and BBQ grills for families along with tables. It was a short walk from one of the trolley stops on a beautiful day. So if you want to chill with friends and loved ones this is a nice little quiet beach to do so. As mentioned in previous reviews, it is a free beach and they have chairs available for rent. I noticed they also have beach towels and sunscreen in case you forget. They also have outdoor showers and restrooms in order to change so you can continue to see the island. read more

Higgs Beach - Beach hours - Beaches Near Me - Key West, Florida

So if you've never been to Key West, I'm sure you picture a tropical island surrounded by many lush beaches. You would be wrong. Despite being surrounded by water, it's not that easy to find a good beach. Luckily, they do have a few gems like Higgs Beach so you can get your beach fix. There's free parking, free public restrooms and an opportunity to rent beach chairs and umbrellas. They also don't mind if you bring your own chairs and settle down in the sand for free. The sand was lush or picturesque, but the view of the blue and green Atlantic was. Pro tip: walk out on to the dock and use the stairs to get into the ocean. There's too much aqua foliage to walk in from the beach. If only I made it to Higgs earlier in my trip. It's a great place to get some sun, sand and swim. read more

Higgs Beach - Beaches Near Me - Key West, Florida

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This is a beautiful FREE locals beach that has awesome snorkeling off the back side of the pier. There is also a kids play area, beach volleyball court as well as kayak rentals. There are public restrooms and decent parking for scooters, cars and bikes. This beach is very small and often has a lot of seaweed washed ashore, but that's pretty much close to normal for the Keys. There is also a terrific beach path for strolling, biking or running. Directly across the street are tennis courts, a racquetball court and two dog parks for large and small dogs. read more

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Love Higgs Beach! It was a free beach unless you want some beach chairs or umbrellas. I was only there for a few hours in the winter, but it was a wonderful place to hang out and dip your toes in the water. The sand was great, and the water was clear. I didn't get to wade in, but my sister did and she said that the bottom of the ocean for while was a sandy bottom and fun to swim in which is perfect. There is a lot of cool people that walk around and everyone seems really friendly. I even got a few recommendations and even an invitation to a Church brunch! We strolled along the beach and ended up at White Street Pier. The pier was fabulous and very long and has some great views of the ocean and the shore. There were lots of joggers and bikers there early in the morning and into the afternoon. There was a lot of place to sit down and hang out and enjoy the view or take a quick walk! It is a nice escape from the busy Duval Street or all the touristy attractions in Key West! It is also a stop on the CityView Trolley if you happen to take that tour. read more

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While there's parking along white and Casa Marina this place isn't the place for beaching. It's more of a park. On the west side of the park there's rocks and stars so it looks more like a place for mooring instead of swimming. I'm not really sure what that section of the beach is for really. There's a pier, ok but... I took a snap of the African Cemetary and then got in the car and drove over to Smathers beach because we were looking to get our touristing on. read more

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I briefly visited Higgs Beach only to check out the pier off Reynolds St. On a map of Key West given to me at the hotel I was staying at, it was depicted as "Rainbow Pier" however after a google search there isnt one by that name in Key West unless I missed something. However it was a nice beach and has a bit of African Slave history to it too, briefly mentioning of grave sites under the beach sand up by the sidewalk. I did find this comical given Key West tailors to prominately gay men. That the wooden pier at the end of Reynolds Street is nick-named 'dick dock', presumably because of the endless parade of male genitals barely concealed in skimpy, skin-tight swimwear. LoL. Cheers! read more

Higgs Beach - "Rainbow Pier!" The Ibis Resort gave me this local area map. - Beaches Near Me - Key West, Florida