Florida camping on Santa Rosa Island?

[Zipline65]

We are planning a trip to the South in a few weeks. I have been to Pensacola Beach several times and each time I have seen campsites just past the developed area of Pensacola Beach - the eastern side. I think the last resort is the Portofino and then the island opens up to dunes and beaches. That is where I have seent tents and I thought pop-up campers. I've been trying to find out what the camping situation is there but have not found anything online. Can anyone help?
We also want to camp in the Florida Keys - any suggestions?
Liz

[Roly Nelson]

Hi Liz,I'm afraid I can't help you about main land camping, but do recall driving my motorhome out to Key West about 15 years ago, only to find nothing but high-dollar RV parks, all filled up and no room for my less-than 800 thousand dollar motorhome. I hope some of the Florida locals chime in and give you some info, I would like to know if things have changed. I'm sure there must be some info on mainland camping, somewhere on the net. Good luck, and happy camping.......watch out for the 'no-see-ums' they can crawl right through your window screens.
Roly, the So Calif woody TD guy

[cheri832]

Liz,
Try http://www.floridastateparks.org
At the tabs along the top, under Find a Park you can select by state park map.
It divides the state into areas and maps hundreds so all you have to do is click on the map dots. All the information is
there, including being able to make reservations. It doesn't have the privately owned campgrounds, but Florida has a wonderful state park system. Hope that helps.
Cheri

[anon1]

There is camping in the keys on Bahia Honda.

[[email protected]]

Also Keys camping at Long Key State Park. All spots were right on the water!

[Redgloves]

March 2013 I stayed at two private campgrounds in the Keys because the state parks were full.

Key West: yes, the price is cheaper then a hotel. Rode the bicycle from campground to Key West. Always back before dark. Yes, I will stay there again. Rate as basic facilities for tourism activities.
Leo's Campground
5236 Suncrest Road
Key West, Fl 33040
(305) 296-5260

Key Largo: Worked great for the teardrop. Stayed in T9 area. Not a pretty site, but I was out playing tourist during the day so didn't care about a pretty site. Yes, I will stay there again. Rate as basic facilities for tourism activities.
Key Largo Kampground & Marina
101551 Overseas Highway
Key Largo, FL 33037-4546

Jean

[Doublacola]

Fort Pickens State Park just east of Pensacola is highly recommended.

[wincrasher]

Bahia Honda is tough to get into. It reserves up to a year in advance. You can book on the website and keep checking for openings. It's a beautiful park, but no hookups.

I stayed at Boyd's the week of Christmas this year. It was wonderful. There is a big mix of RV's from tents to the big rigs. Not a teardrop in sight on my visit.
It is expensive though - supply and demand I guess. But it's right on the water, was well kept and very lush. I paddled my kayak every day from their sandy beach! The bike ride circumnavigating the entire island is around 12 miles. But there is a protected bike path almost the entire way.

Leo's is essentially next door and a lot cheaper. But it's not on the water unless you count that little creek on the back side. It's a glorified typical florida trailer park with what looks like some permanent residents. But it's only $65 a night as opposed to Boyd's $105. Boyd's is a resort with everything. They may let a teardrop use a tent site, don't know for sure, but if you could, it would save a bit of money I'm sure.

Boondocking in the keys is strictly prohibited, but on the Stock Island side, I saw plenty of derelict looking vans that I know people were camping out in.

Blue Key is the highest end resort in the keys for RV's. It's an ownership park where you'll see all the Prevost's motor coaches. But those owner's offer their sites to rentals when they aren't there. It's around the same money as Boyd's, but it's too far to bike to Key West. I think there is a shuttle though. The park is gorgeous and all sites on the water. They may not let a teardrop in, but not sure on that point.

[jandmz]

If you go west out of Pensacola Beach, you get into the Gulf Islands National Park (used to be Fort Pickens State Park). There are places, after you leave Pensacola Beach, where you are driving out the barrier island, and you can see water on both sides. We camped for several days in the National Park campground on the barrier island last November. Since we are seniors, we carry the lifetime senior's national park card, so we didn't pay the entry fee and our campsite was half price (only about $13 a day) for an electric only site. The campground is really nice, but a little bit tight. The new shower house/restroom facility was not open yet, but the old one was OK. The camp store was not very well stocked as it was past prime season, and as usual, it was a bit pricey.

There is a lot of military history to see at Fort Pickens and the old coastal defense artillery batteries, some of which were active through WWII. We spent a lot of time visiting the batteries because its not a "seen one, ya seen 'em all" situation. At Langdon Battery, go around back and look at the rear entrances (both ends and the center). There is a museum and nature center near Fort Pickens that is worth the time to visit. If you are a military hardware fan, the Naval Aviation Museum on NAS Pensacola (across the bay) is a great way to spend a day.

Check out http://www.nps.gov/guis/florida.htm