LOVE THIS PARK! it offers easy drop in access for your paddlecraft and has a beachy swimming area to enjoy for when you're done. Parking is limited but there are many other places to park nearby. read more

Hunter Springs Park - Parks Near Me - Crystal River, Florida

Florida has some amazing parks. We are so lucky to live in such a beautiful area. The beach here is gorgeous and there are chance encounters with the manatee, but no touchie! read more

During our stay in the surrounding area, we came here a few times. The park was nice and clean and well kept. We enjoyed the local people and the clear crisp water. We also witnessed a bible lesson on a Thursday evening and saw members being baptized in the waters, which was a first for us. A great place to visit if you are in the area. read more

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I bring school kids to swim with the manatees here! It's a lil piece of Heaven! Be sure to visit while in Crystal River! So peaceful & fun! read more

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Way overcrowded. Like insanely. The playground isn't that good, decided to skip it when we saw it. Only one slide and it's not good for toddlers. Maybe we came on a peak day but was not impressed. read more

Nice beach area not to crowded during week. Met some nice people. Water was 72 degree

Amazing public park. Lots of parking (also easy to park in town and walk). Easy access to water and the manatees are right there!!! If you are a good swimmer who is courteous and kind perfect way to see manatees without doing a tour. But you MUST be kind and courteous. Look at where the tours are and head that way. Bring a floaty (pool noodle) and your own mask/snorkel. Also watch the video by the wildlife park on how to interact with the manatees so you don't do something wrong. read more

Since we got a late start and covid had reduced the capacities of the tubing parks we could not get in for that but we did get over to this spring to at least do some swimming. Parking is rough and we had to park about 4 blocks away but that was fine. The beach had nice sand and the water was nice a chilled. A lively crowd and lots of fun on a hot day. read more

Hunter Springs Park - Parks Near Me - Crystal River, Florida

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This is a great little park. They have picnic tables, bathrooms, and a swimming area right off the beach. It's a popular kayak launching spot. There is limited parking that you do have to pay for and it quickly fills up. We came early in the morning, so we didn't have that issue. Beautiful sunrise photo opportunities!! They open at 8am. read more

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This was a great little beach spot. Perfect for sunning on the beach in the powder sand and you can then walk into the water to cool off, it's also a good spot to snorkel. We had the pleasure of seeing a manatee and some fish go by which was cool to see. There is a paid lot there so it's easy to access and there are bathrooms on site too. read more

Hunter Springs Park - Parks Near Me - Crystal River, Florida

Great day! My grandsons and son in law snorkeled all day. They loved it. We will definitely go back. read more

This is a great city park. People complaining to pay $5 to park (all day!), really?! You have a beach, a designated swimming area, a place to launch your kayak/ paddle board, a play ground, places to grill, a pavilion, picnic tables, bathrooms, I mean all this for $5 bucks are you kidding me?! And less if you only want to park for a few hours. 2 hours..$2! I think this place is a gem. If you want to get to Three Sister Springs, this is the best launch spot. Make a right out of Hunter Springs, then make a left just past the marina, go under the bridge and it's down on the left. Don't pay crazy tourist trap prices when you can come here. This place is a family favorite. read more

Hunter Springs Park - Madeline's first paddle board trip at Hunter's Springs - Parks Near Me - Crystal River, Florida

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This park is beautiful. The water is crisp, clean and fresh. Some people brought their dogs but really hope they keep the fur babies home and go to a designated dog park/beach. This is our second visit here and love visiting the spring. There are manatees, clear water and it feels so refreshing. There's a playground and bathroom facility. We visited on a Friday and it wasn't to busy. This is a great place to visit with friends and family Since there's lots to do read more

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Best thing we've found near Weeki Wachee for swimming, aside from the water park which hits capacity nearly as soon as it opens. We came to this area on a little vacation with the internet of swimming I n the springs, and we're very disappointed in the area in general. Hunter Springs is a nice little place - it is very small, but quaint. Nice for the kids (especially little kids) and if you wanna rent a paddle boat or whatever it would be a great time! Just depends what you're looking for. I'm from a bit south of here, Fort Myers, which has a ton to do but no springs. read more

Hunter Springs Park - The beach at Hunter Spring - Parks Near Me - Crystal River, Florida

Really nice park but parking is a hassle and of course this place was packed to the top. We really enjoyed swimming in this tiny beach park. The water was freezing cold but once you are moving its okay just the initial getting in. Loads of families here. There are bathrooms and changing room. You can take your kayak or tube and enjoy this free park but you do have to pay for parking. I did not see any manatees . read more

Nasty. Got a $50 parking violation saying it's paid to park but didn't see the sign. Be careful!

DO NOT EVER GO HERE. Apparently it is pay to park... but the signage is severely lacking. For one hour at a tiny spring... $50 ticket... this is either an intentional scheme against the tax payer or INCOMPETENCE of park operation. read more

It was a bit too early to check into our hotel, so we decided to explore the area. Our first stop was Hunters Spring Park. At the time, I was not too clued into the whole (hole) spring thing, nor did I know I was actually looking at a body of FRESH water. Given our location to the Gulf of Mexico, I (wrongly) assumed this was salt water, or least brackish. Boy was I wrong. Hunter's Spring Park (also referred to as Hunter Spring Beach or Hunter Springs) is one of Crystal River's crown jewels. The park is open to the public everyday from 8:00 A.M. to Sunset. Nice sandy beach. Picnic tables, pavilions and restrooms too. And a boat launch. Can you grab the ring? At the bottom of the spring, in I'd say about 10 to 12 feet of water, is a ring. I thought it was for anchoring, but my brother theorized it is to grab onto, since you might be wearing a wet-suit (we were). If you are, it's hard to stay down, so this is a pretty good theory. Hey here's an idea for yelp, allow SUNRISE and SUNSET as times, and adjust them based on time of year. From - http://www.hunterspringspark.org/ "Hunter Springs is free to enjoy or to use as a kayak, SUP, or canoe launch. While use of the facility is free, there is a fee to park or to launch commercially. If you do not wish to pay the fee, there are several free parking lots with in walking distance." Also, NO DOGS ALLOWED. Bottom line: Touch the ring at the bottom of the spring! I'd love to see a picture of it. read more

Park is nice but bathrooms are disgusting!!! We stopped by here with our kids on the way home from a work conference in Tampa. In need of a place to change before our 6 hour car ride home, but felt so disgusting after being in women's restroom; my husband, who is grossed out by nothing, refused to change in the men's after checking it out. I wish we had realized there are (what appeared to be) clean bathrooms near the restaurants and large wall mural down the road. read more

Park is open. We used the boat launch to put in kayaks, and paddled over to see the spring in search for manatee. Access was easy, parking was plentiful. Restrooms were clean. A small fee parking lot is a block up the road... And there is an additional launch point at kings bay park to the west. read more

First time coming to hunter springs! I was meeting family and was surprised of how cute this park was! Hidden gem!!!!! Visitors are able to kayak on the river, there's a park for children to play, and best of all access to the beach! I would definitely come back and make this a full day activities trip for my family! read more

When you first drive in this park doesn't really look like much but there is a beautiful spring here for swimming/snorkeling and kayaking. The water stays cold all year round (around 72 degrees I believe) and is very clear. Only issue with this park is that it is small so I imagine the summers being very crowded and crazy. read more

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Nice small park & sustainable meeting put together the cleaning project so, it's nice to see people do something for the community in this park. read more

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Clean fun and great place for family time

We were excited to visit this park after reading the reviews only to be disappointed at the gate by the "no dogs" sign. We are responsible dog owners who assume the same of everyone else and we're not sure why we can't enjoy this gorgeous place without our furry best friend. read more

I love this place. I don't like what the city has done to it. They added parking lots and a lot of pavement which makes it hotter. But the worst thing they did was add paid parking. Yes, you now have to pay to park at the springs. They have a new bathroom but the handicap door does not work and it is not well maintained. The other problem is that the ​kayak company's block the entrance to the kayak launch. They park there waiting for​ customers to pick up and return kayaks. It is a real hassle to get your kayak in and out without dragging it across the pavement. It is the best place to launch your kayak to reach Three Sisters Springs. read more

Once was a good place take your family and have a good swim and enjoy the sun. Greedy Crystal River decided to profit from this long standing free swimming area for locals and tourists alike and destroyed this beautiful natural place into some white sand beach looking pay to park, asphalted eye sore. Thank God for a boat! read more

I put my kayaks in at this park when I want to kayak down Crystal River or over to Three Sisters Springs. It's nice and convenient for those purposes. I saw a manatee at this park on my first visit there. Definitely a unique place to visit. read more

Got here about 5pm on a weekday. My first time here, although I had been to nearby Three Sisters Springs before. My brother tried to put cash into the parking meter but it would only accept a credit/debit card so we had to take a chance on getting a ticket. Never fun. But once I put on my swimming googles and fins and swam about 30-40 yards out to the "boil" where it felt very (almost uncomfortably) cold in the Florida summer heat it was pretty awesome. Yeah, the water directly above the spring is a lot colder...it let's you know you're right over it. I saw a school of Sheepshead swimming down there near the hole that the spring water boils out of. A few kids were trying to see if they could swim down to the bottom. Heard some foreign accents---a trio of French kids cavorting and talking about something while they attempted to reach the bottom of the spring. I would recommend that kids be somewhat strong swimmers if attempting to swim out to the "deep end" of the spring...keep a close eye on younger kids attempting it. It's only my 2nd time this summer swimming outdoors (many of us Floridian's just kind of stay indoors in the a/c during these oppressively hot and humid summers) in a spring so It was really nice----makes you feel like a kid again. This park is pretty nice. Probably hard or impossible to find a parking spot on a summer weekend but there must be some empty parking lot nearby where you could park and just walk a block or two to access this beautiful "swimming hole". Sorry no rope swing hanging from a tree. For that, try the spring at the Chazkowitzka River. read more

AWESOME! Sometimes very crowded, but a great way to beat the heat when the gulf is too warm.

I was excited to go here and paddle board and drove 3 hrs only to find the park is closed for construction until 9/16/16.