In decay but lovely; iguanas running everywhere, pristine beach and islands of palms. Trash littered around garbage cans, probably not collected on weekends and the critters make use of that, but the staff was charming, parking was affordable and close. read more

Crandon Park is great! You can do so many different things here. There are nature trails, the beach of course, a playground/water playground for the kids, a skating area, snack bar, BBQ area with shelters. This is a great spot for any kind of group - we got our office together and had a great BBQ picnic here and we sat at the picnic tables for hours and chatted. Great for people watching. It's awesome to go during the week and just sit on the beach - you can watch the kite surfers doing their thing - on a windy day they can really get some air!! Ride your bike along the "boardwalk" - really asphalt but awesome to ride alone. It's worth the $5 you pay for parking. No dogs allowed, but you can take them to "dog beach" before you get into Crandon Park! read more

After reading the reviews on Yelp, decided to fork over the $5 entrance fee (for parking) to check out Crandon Beach. Very serene, peaceful - there were only a few other couples walking around at sunset in December. I have to admit - the trash cans everywhere kind of ruined the place, especially since there were still bits of trash littered about in the sand. I wish we could all just learn to take our trash out with us and deposit and throw it away on the way home.....Anyway, a very nice respite from the Miami hustle and bustle. read more

nice beach. much more relaxed compared to South Beach. family friendly. calmer water. 5 dollar entrance.the sand is littered a bit with plastic. read more

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I really enjoy myself at this beach. If you want to get away from all the craziness in South Beach then come to this beach. Though my girlfriend and I are the "Let's go out and be crazy" types, we still like to settle down on a blanket and enjoy the very still water of Crandon's beach. Sometimes I feel that we are literally the only ones on the beach. Clean and family friendly. A must try. read more

We went here on Saturday, paid 7 dollars, stayed 15 minutes and left. We could not find any bathrooms and the water STUNK so bad. It was like dead fish stink. The water was also covered in seaweed and very gross mushy feeling on your feet. Very unpleasant. We even walked down a ways to see if it was better, but no. We went to Bill Baggs park down the street and it was infinitely better. Fresh, clean water with a pleasant current that made the water so clean and clear. Maybe its not always like this but it was so disappointing I would not go back. The only reason I give it two stars is because it was a beautiful looking beach and if it wasn't for the fact that the actual water was awful it would have been a nice place. read more

My review will be similar to others. I love the tranquility of it. Where we were the beach area, sand area was very slim. Kept the sitting on top of one another down, but we did go on a tuesday. The water was the most clear and beautiful water ive ever seen!! Lots of people were exercising. You can also rent bikes. It would be a great place for a family to go and explore. The wildlife was also very cool! Hoping to go further down to the keys next year! read more

I like to add besides a nice Tennis venu, a great place to rollerskate around the block with some excellent views.

Such sweet people and amazing service. Great experience and again, amazing service. P.s. Tour guide Chris is the bomb !!

If I could give this beach a zero I would. This is one of the nastiest beaches I have been to. Trash all over the place, in the sand, water and even in grass. There was so much debris in the water you could barely walk, once you got past that the water might have been nice but I wasn't exploring. We walked all the way down to hotels hoping it would get better and it never did. From afar the beach looks very pretty, I wish they would take the $5 I paid to park and spend it on cleaning up the place. read more

My favorite beach in Miami, however the guy running the concessions that rents the umbrellas and beach chairs is a complete d**k. Rented a couple of chairs an umbrella for my wife and kid and my sister and her kid who arrived 10 to 15 minutes after we did after being there for a couple of hours I left with my wife and child and my sister and her kid stayed behind. the guy proceeded to kick my sister and her kid out of the beach chairs saying they were non transferable rental which is crap cuz my sister arrived shortly after we did and we rented it for all of us that is no way to treat people especially somebody with a kid that is just seeking shelter from the Sun read more

Beach was disgusting. Be aware there is high level of seaweed and at one point is up to my knee level. Trash everywhere, and it was just horrible. It smelt like sewage and the rotten seaweed made swimming unbearable. Do not come to this beach. It was disgusting read more

I'm a FL resident so I explored ALL our beaches. I have NEVER EVER encountered such a situation on the beach before. The beach was absolutely empty. It felt like we had the entire beach to ourselves. Until I wanted to rent 2 chairs with an umbrella. The rental company rep shows up and provides us with the umbrella and proceeds to unchain really crappy looking old chairs. So we ask for 2 chair from a near by stack that look newer. Should be no big deal, nobody is there, beach is empty and for $25 it should not be an issue. But this guy proceeds to yell (!!!) that we ask too much and he won't do it and starts getting into his ride to drive away without giving us even the old chairs. I said ok and asked for my cash back. He declared that he won't refund my money. I look at him in puzzlement and ask for the chairs, any chairs at this point. So he proceeds to unchain the old chairs that look like they are falling apart, throws them on the sand and leaves. WTF. Never ever going back to that dirty beach with those awful people. Add to that foul smelling sea weed up to our knees just to get into the water.... and that's a permanent no go list. Avoid! read more

Great family atmosphere. ...If you want beach, sand, relax this is the perfect place. The south beach portion is my favorite although the light house is breathtaking. read more

I must be at the wrong place! We came to Crandon Park based on the many great reviews during our research of the best family beaches to visit in Miami. The only positive about this park is the parking lot. There is plenty of parking (for a reason), and the picnic area/playground area at initial sight is very nice and clean; however, the smell of dead fish hits you as soon as you open your car door, and only gets worse the closer you walk to the ocean. There is quite a distance you will need to walk to get to the beach (which I had read, so I was prepared for this), but once we got to a nice shaded area with our 5 and 1 year old children, my husband immediately found a used needle in the sand (thankfully before one our children stepped on it), and the smell was so intense that it was hard to breath at times. I was a little worried about the tractors traveling up and down the beach, as again we had small children and this was a safety concern for me; however, I seen the reason for their presence pretty quickly, as I walked to the ocean. There is at least 6 feet of sea weed, and dead fish before you even get to the ocean, and as you can imagine, my children would not even begin to walk through that mess, nor would I want them to...beacuse based on smell alone, the bacteria that was present would not have been OK to walk through for me, let alone my children. My children were pretty excited about going to the beach, so I let them play in the sand (away from were we found the used needle), and then happily left. Needless to say, tomorrow we will find another (better hopefully) beach. Not sure how this place is considered a family beach, as your children can't swim, walk on the beach safely due to tractors, or play in the sand safely due to used needles. (I guess they DO have a playground.) ‍ read more

Just for those of you that do not know, besides the grills that are free to use as you please, and pavilions which you can rent for the day, Crandon Park also has beach cabanas that you can rent either daily, monthly, or on a year to year basis. These can be found at the southernmost part of the park, on the beach behind the old Miami Zoo (which became the new Miami Metro Zoo). Part of the package if you rent one is you also get to use a grill that is located on the beach itself, with a picnic bench, less than 50 yards from the waters edge. Talk about private. They also have a couple of sand volleyball courts I believe. The cabanas do not have electricity, but they do have parking in the rear, and your own private bathroom & shower. If you're gonna be there all day with some friends, the $35 bucks for the cabana is a steal. Also, for those of you that do not know... the northern most part of the beach (north part of north beach) is home to a petrified mangrove reef that dates back to the time of Christ. Diving and Snorkeling, even fishing can be fun during high tide. Just ask the kayakers, most are familiar with the reef. And finally, For the Adventurer...Not for the faint of heart: If you have a chance to walk through the old zoo, southernmost part of the park, you might also see besides the birds, and other animals mentioned above, some really big iguanas. They can measure up to 8 ft. Well, that's the biggest one that I've seen. They look like crocodiles. Oh, speaking of which, if you do go in the old zoo, and you are the adventurous type, actually look for crocodiles. There are signs in a few areas of key Biscayne that warn against feeding them, and as you enter the area (area because it's entirely fenced off with a gate they usually close at night) look on the gate entrance and there should be a warning sign on the fence warning you not to bother or feed them. I saw a pair, once, in the old zoo, but I was exploring way deep in the brush in areas that you can't even see from any of the sidewalks, with my crazy girlfriend, I mean way, way off any of the trails, and since they have a natural fear of man, you might not see any. Best chance is in the area on the path, behind the really big wall that protects you from falling in, where you will see most of the iguanas. Just remember, not all of them are iguanas. For the romantics: Don't let the details above, about the croc's scare you or let it take away from any romantic endeavor... The place is romantic as any. I have had a number of romantic picnics in this area of the park. And I have been in there near dark. Big lizards, all big lizards... have a natural fear of man. Just go into the Glades or anywhere else in Florida and you'll understand. They stay the hell away from us if they can. I don't want to scare anyone away from a really lovely and romantic park that almost no one enters. It's safe enough, that a few years ago, they even planned on putting a couple of restaurants and caffe's on the small lagoons, and rent paddle boats for families to explore the lagoons. Problem is... funding died. The family that donated the park land to the state also wanted to just keep it as natural as possible. Too bad, that would have been pretty cool. I, the author, have lived in Key Biscayne my entire life. I've been playing in that old zoo with my friends since I was 11 or 12, and I'm still alive, and only saw a croc once in my life, other than the zoo, sooooo.... Enjoy the park, and each other, it's a great place and I give it 5 stars. Good tracking! read more

I took a trip last Saturday July 7th to North Beach in Crandon Park. The water and sand were great, the weather perfect and the price to park was quite reasonable. Everything took a nasty turn as I approached my car to leave at around 4pm. My passenger's window had been smashed, there was glass all over my front seats and a backpack I use to carry my macbook in and kept hidden under the seat had been stolen. As I got over the shock and ready to call the police, I noticed another beach goer who was ready to leave as well stood over broken glass next to his car. In total, five cars had their windows smashed by a burglar and the interiors wiped out from everything down to the pennies in the cup holders. It's sad such a beautiful beach day had to be ruined by the POOR SECURITY IN A PAID PARKING LOT!!! All in all, I'd love to return, but I doubt I'll be making another trip there due to the safety and security issues there. Too bad... read more

When I first moved to Miami I used to go to Crandon all the time. I would bring a book and relax all day in the Northern part of the beach where the kitesurfers serve for entertainment when you get bored. Since then (5 years and many friends later) I have enjoyed many amenities they have to offer from barbeques to volleyball courts to gazebos for parties. The park can get very busy on weekends (and especially holidays) but durig the week it can be a very peaceful and relaxing place to go. I enjoy the fact you can go in the water, which is shallow, and about 20 yards out there are sandbars to just chill on. The only thing to warn people about is sometimes the seaweed can build up on the beach- it's kind of sporatic when this occurs, sometimes I go and there's hardly any seaweed on the beach and sometimes there's lots. Overall it's a great way to spend a day for $5 + the toll to get out there. Also, very nice place to bring the family or a group of friends. read more

Ok so I really wanted to go to the beach and I've been here before . It's wonderful, unless there's a freaking tennis event going on . If there happens to be any kind event when you visit , hope you don't get told to go to lot 1 and that said lot is actually full making you go home because you need a pass to enter lot 2 on the day of the event . read more

So I visited Crandon Park today to rollarblade. I have to say that I couldn't find "good" directions to this Crandon Park Gardens everyone keeps talking about. Basically once on Key Biscayne look for the "South Beach" sign. It's after the North Beach sign, coming from the mainland. Once you turn left into South beach you will come to guard shack to pay for parking. Pay your parking and turn right.... go as far right as you can. Pass all of the empty parking spaces. If you park in the last row possible you are viewing Crandon Park Gardens. I put my skates on and skated for over 2 hours.... SO MUCH FUN. Completely paved sidewalks in the old zoo, the amusement area, and a long stretch of sidewalk along the ocean. This is a piece of heaven! There are plenty of clean restrooms (I counted at least 3). If you are looking for a safe place to bike or rollarblade this is it. Happy rolling! read more