Sand Key Park is the Pinellas County beach park beside Clearwater Pass. The current operator page verifies six dollar pay-by-plate parking, two bathhouses with restrooms, showers, and 7 a.m.-to-sunset hours. Pinellas County's official launch layer marks Sand Key active, but that record was last edited in 2013; the current park page does not identify a launch or state whether current seawall equipment staging affects the historical beach portage. The earlier sheltered-lagoon and cheaper-bayside-parking claims are not supported by the reviewed current sources. Verify the launch point before carrying a board in, and treat Clearwater Pass as exposed moving water with boat traffic.
Where do I park, and is it free?
- Cost
- $6 / day (as of 2026-08)
- Parking
- Unknown
- Restrooms
- Listed in the checked source (checked 2026-08-21)
- Showers
- Current availability unverified
- Dogs
- Leashed dogs welcome
Pinellas County lists 6 dollar pay-by-plate parking, restrooms, showers, and 7 a.m.-to-sunset hours. Its official launch layer marks Sand Key active but was last edited in 2013, while the current park page does not identify a launch or say whether current seawall staging affects the historical beach portage. Verify the launch point before carrying a board to the water.
Access sources: pinellas.gov (checked August 21, 2026), egis.pinellas.gov (checked August 21, 2026).
How clear is the water?
Open Gulf side churns; the lagoon stays calmer.
What will I see?
- Dolphins working the shoreline and Clearwater Pass, often close in near the bridge
- Loggerhead sea turtles nest on the Gulf beach through the warm months, the nests roped off and marked
- Roseate spoonbills, herons, pelicans, and ospreys around the salt marsh and the nature trail
What's the fishing like?
Gulf pass and lagoon: snook and snapper around the pass structure, trout and redfish in the sheltered lagoon.
How do I share the water here?
From May to October the beach is an active loggerhead nesting ground, so stay well clear of any roped or marked nest, fill in any holes you dig and knock down sandcastles before you leave (both can trap a hatchling), and keep lights and flash off the sand after dark. Behind the beach the salt marsh feeds the spoonbills and wading birds, so watch it from the boardwalk and the trail instead of walking out into it.
See how it scores before you drive out.
Check Sand Key Park on the live map