Where can your pup play when you are here for your fishing charter?

Where Can You Take Your Pet to Play and Enjoy the Emerald Coast during your fishing vacation.

So, you’ve found pet friendly accommodations and made it to your destination here on the beautiful Emerald Coast.  Now that you are here, you’d like to know where to take your fur baby for some salt air and sun when you are not out on your fishing charter.  As a general rule, state and local laws prohibit pets on the beaches (both gulf and bay).  However, there are numerous dog parks in the region that have water access areas.  For ease of explanation, we will break down the amenities by city.

By the way, we welcome dogs on our vessel as long as you think they can handle the conditions and will not try to exit the vessel to do a little fishing of their own.  Dogs sometimes get excited and want to chase the fish back in the water when you release them, or sometimes when they see something interesting.

Pensacola and Pensacola Beach

Pensacola Dog Beach East (on the Gulf of Mexico)

Pensacola Dog Beach West (on the Gulf of Mexico)

Bayview Park and Beach at 2000 E.  Lloyd St. Pensacola

Gulf Breeze

Shoreline Beachside Dog Park at 800 Shoreline Drive Gulf Breeze

Fort Walton Beach

Liza Jackson Dog Park and Beach at 342 Miracle Strip Pkwy SW Fort Walton Beach

Walton County Beaches

Per county ordinance, dogs are allowed on the beaches from 3:30 pm to 8:00 am. A permit is required ($40 annual fee).

The beauty of this area does not only lie along the waterways.  There is an abundance of nature trails and state parks where you can enjoy scenic walks over wetland bridges and strolls under majestic live oak trees.  In Destin, check out Henderson Beach State Park and Topsail Hill Preserve State Park.  Dogs with leashes are welcome on the hiking trails.  Grayton Beach State Park is another great place for woodsy hikes in a coastal forest of magnolias, palmettos and oak trees.  The Gulf Island National Seashore, which stretches from Destin to Pensacola, offers miles of hiking trails for you and your pet to explore.  In the Milton area, the Blackwater Heritage State Trail offers 8.1 paved miles that meander through wetlands and countryside.

If you are looking for a typical dog park with seating, shade, water fountains and agility obstacles, there are a number of places in the tri-county area.  In Pensacola, Bayview Dog Park and Roger Scott Dog Park are two options.  Optimist Park in Milton has lots of open space for running.  There are two dog parks in Navarre (a small dog park and a large dog park). Niceville Dog Park on Hwy 85 has 4 acres with designated leashed and unleashed areas.  Nancy Weidenhamer Dog Park at 4100 Indian Bayou Trail in Destin has 3 acres to play with watering stations and shade.

You can find more information about each of these dog parks and recreation areas online.  A good place to start for a more exhaustive search would be the website Bring Fido.  We hope you and your pets have a super fun and memorable time while visiting the Emerald Coast.