Good bathrooms with outdoor showers, scattered shade, clean and friendly locals - look for coconut Larry!! read more

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Chair/umbrella rentals only $20 for whole day, decent swimming area (not all mud and weeds like some other KW beaches) food and drink available, off street parking available. Had a good time here.. read more

Two beach chairs and an umbrella for $20 is not too bad of a deal. The beach is free with ample parking. A playground for the kiddies is across the street and there are free range chickens running around. The water is nice and so is the scenery. You can enjoy the picnic tables and watch the Navy jets play in the airspace overhead. A pleasant place to get some sun and have a picnic. read more

Clean, white sandy beaches sit near the ocean as far as you can see. It's a really nice view. There's sizable amount of people there in the off season so I can only imagine how crowded it gets during peak times. Other features include a large shaded gazebo with a handicap accessible ramp, and a small little restaurant / cafe that I did not get to try. It was packed so it must be somewhat good. One negative was that you had to pay to use umbrellas and chairs that were already out there and they clearly have some kind of ordinance to keep people's personal tents and chairs off the main beach since across the sidewalk there was a line of them all parked next to their cars. But other than that it's a solid beach in walking distance to the fort and the unfinished road to Cuba so take a stroll through if you're walking by. read more

Went there on a cloudy and windy day so it may not reflect a sunnier one. But overall the beach looked awful. Lots of seaweed collecting on the shore and no one cleaning it. No dogs there. Water looked dirty as hell. Big sewage pipe releasing water just behind the walkway nearby. Overall its small and not clean. read more

Higgs Beach - Not many people going in - Beaches Near Me - Key West, Florida

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This beach is relatively good when it comes to water but there is too much seaweed and tons of rocks it's an obstacle course just to get in the water and the bathrooms are DISGUSTING with lines of POOP on the floor I was horrified when I when I there not the best beach I went to. read more

It's okay for a key west beach. There's a halfway decent shallow area but the seaweed and grey water were not the best for snorkeling. Other then that not bad... None of the Key West beaches are that great in general. read more

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

Higgs beach is just up the street from the better known Smathers Beach. Higgs Beach runs along Atlantic Blvd between the White Street Pier on the eastern end, and Reynolds Street on the western. Higgs Beach is actually a pretty nice beach. It has shady coconut palms, a small pier, several pavilions, a volleyball net, a beach vendor with a beach shack , a walking path along the beach, (but it is too hot to walk during the day and at night it might be best to skip it as it is home to the local homeless ) (Key West homeless are harmless just looking for a place to rest) and a restaurant right smack on the beach. It's a very laid-back vibe. It is much more laid back than Smathers beach. The big draw of Higgs Beach is that it is very close to the heart of Key West and less crowded than Smathers. A lot of people beat up on Florida Keys beaches because they are mostly poured sand but this is the Atlantic Ocean people! I never quite could accept during my short stay in Chicago where I had to live there briefly that they said they had a "beach" there is no ocean there! Just a lake with sand. This is the Atlantic Ocean! And without the nastiness of South Beach! read more

Not a bad beach. They have a pier you can bike down and fish off of. The beach also has a volleyball net and stretches down and in front of the West Martello Towers, which is definitely worth a stop in to. If you're looking for outstanding beaches, Key West probably shouldn't have been your top destination to begin with. But, Higgs Beach will definitely do the job for a stretch of sand to soak up some rays and get in a swim. read more

Love this beach! You can rent an umbrella and chairs. There is a place to eat and you can walk or bike to this beach. A short stroll away from the White St pier and bocce courts. If you don't find a beach in Key West, you didn't venture out enough. This is my favorite of the four that I know of. read more

Umm, this is a beach? We stopped here on our city view trolley tour and were very disappointed. I'm wondering if we were on the wrong part of the beach or something... We were told there was a boardwalk with shops so I was imagining something like Santa Monica Pier, hah! There were just a bunch of locals fishing off the pier, a couple of homeless guys, teenagers. The water was cold and very sandy when we went, boo. There were bathrooms and stations to rinse off, some kind of restaurant/bar nearby, bunch of chickens and roosters walking around. The end. read more

Beautiful pier, ok parking, the water is beautiful. Lovely beach!

The first stop along a sick bike path from the Southernmost Beach Hotel to basically the airport, Higgs Beach is a gorgeous place to spend the afternoon. Next to the botanical society building and an African grave memorial, there is also some pretty cool history right on site! There is also an AIDS memorial which is absolutely beautiful. White's Pier is incredible, so make sure to walk or bike to the end and get some panoramic photos of the surrounding area. There is plenty of parking, plenty of sun and sand, and plenty of beach chairs and sail boats to rent! A nice, low-spot to spend the afternoon. read more

I read that Fort Zach was a better beach, which we had visited a few days prior to going to Higgs. We loved this beach! We found it was less rocky than Fort Zach, the beach was even better, and it was free! There is a restaurant/bar very close by and you can rent chairs and umbrellas for just $20. This has been our favorite beach so far! Great place to soak up the sun and enjoy the water. read more

Super amazing would recommend to everyone for swimming & culture life. Clean & friendly

Nice, small beach. If you want to swim though, this is not the place for you. There are small pepples, seaweed and other things floating in the murky water. read more

So after being told that Higgs beach is better than the other beaches in the area we ended up here after going to Fort Zach. The beach here is right off the street, with no admission and dare I say, it's better than the beach at the fort. Sure, it's free which makes things better but the beach isn't as hard on the feet-Key West is a lot of coral. There's plenty of space to lay out and the water is shallow enough where you can walk out about 20 feet. There's also a large pier there that parallels the water where it's easier to head in and out of the water if you want to snorkel. Volleyball court, restrooms and showers and and if you're a fan of the Key West chickens then you can definitely watch some here, saw a couple of hens with their chicks foraging around. We went to two beaches but after this the wife said she was content with her beach time-which I never thought I would hear her say. read more

The African graves there are worth visiting. It's a quick stop, and it's free. The plaques are informative and well done. It's an easy bike ride from the Duval Street area. read more

3stars because the beach needed to be cleaned up. Lots of people but no one in the water...jelly fish! Can't help that, restrooms were ok for a beach area. read more

I swam and swam and swam and swam! Nice Spot, has bathrooms, changing rooms and rinse off showers too!

love this beach. the water is clear and the bottom is sandy. Very interesting people to watch, sort of a mini venice beach. people exercising and playing games. cool place to cool off in the water in key west! read more

Play tennis on Fl Parks & Rec hard courts. Courts are in excellent condition.once playing by the beach.

Nice beach. Keywest does not have many beaches anyways. This is one of the few beaches. Water is shallow for a long distance from the shore. Perfect for water volleyball, snorkeling. You can take nice pictures if you want . Chairs and cabanas are available for rent. Lots of trees. No problem for shade. Very good for a beach walk. read more

The least rocky of all the key west beaches but still some small rocks at the shoreline. The best sand of all the beaches. Good size and was not crowded, even on a Saturday. Water in the swimming area is not much higher than waist deep but you can get a decent ways from shore. Lots of underwater vegetation but you can easily walk around it. Lots of cool wildlife. Paddle board and canoe rental available. We paddle boarded and saw star fish, sting rays, crabs, and a few large fish. Many locals said Fort Zach Taylor was the best beach but I preferred Higgs. read more

We went on a recommendation on Trip Advisor that the snorkeling was good from the shore. The snorkeling wasn't bad, but a LOT of stinging jelly fish in the water when we went. Just so-so. read more

Beautiful in-town beach with great restaurant -- Salute --right there. Couldn't be better for spending an entire day. Shallow water goes way out, lots of fishies to watch, free parking, down the road from a botanical garden and more beaches and a big park with volleyball etc. . Rental chairs and umbrellas. read more

Higgs beach made for a great day. Word of advice pick up water shoes, you will be so much happier if you do. The first part of the water is very rocky but when you get a bit out the sand is soft and the water is clear. The darker parts of the water further out is all seagrass/seaweed which you can see fish swimming through with snorkeling gear. I even saw a stingray. read more

Higgs Beach is a nice way to spend the day. The beach is clean and there is a playground across the street. There is a restaurant there called Salute. read more

Lots of kelp washed up on the shore & waves were pretty strong. But it was a nice beach to explore, chill on a rented chaise, and clean bathrooms. read more

Was looking for a place to snorkel off the beach and read it was hit and miss here. Well, was a miss on our visit due to poor visibility and just plain dirty water. Did see a few fish but not worth getting in the water for. Perhaps on a clear day there are more. Stay near the pier if you want to see anything. Plenty of parking, decent bathrooms and actual sand on the beach. read more

this is an artificially created beach that sits right beside a salt marsh. it stunk to high heaven when i was there (SE winds). someone told me it was decomposing seaweed--it was so foul. they had a fecal coliform bacteria warning that day i found out later. it's good for pictures. and if you have kids it's good because it has bathrooms, tiki huts, a concession stand and really placid, shallow water. read more

Nice beach not too packed, but we did visit on a Wednesday at around 11 am. You could rent 2 chairs and an umbrella for $20 for the whole day until 6 pm. If you want to leave to grab lunch tell the very friendly lady at the beach chairs kiosk and she will put a reserved sign on the chairs which is nice. I definitely recommend water shoes if you plan on getting into the water from the shore line as there are a lot of rocks and just rough terrain close to the shoreline. I went in from the dock stairs which was perfect for avoiding the rough terrain of the shore. Right below the dock there is a coral reef with beautiful fishes so bring snorkel gear to enjoy the fishes. read more

The wife and I liked it seemed fairly kept up, a few rocks when you first walk in but nice after that. Not to busy free parking!!!! We'd go back. read more

Beautiful weather and scenery! The dock was nice to see the birds and fish! The sign said look out for jellyfish, but we did not see any! That was kind of sad they would have been near to see! read more