Hollywood Beach — Attraction in Hollywood

Unique! I’ve been fortunate to live on this island (yes, Hollywood Beach is an island if one looks at a map) for a shade over 10 years. The Broadwalk is a unique feature stretching almost 2.5 miles along the clean, beautiful sand and aquamarine water. Nowhere else in Florida (or the entire East Coast - ??) has this type of walkway - pavers with a built-in bicycle lane ( do NOT be a touron - DO NOT WALK IN THE BIKE LANE - you will receive bells, horns, sirens, whistles and not-too-polite suggestions from angry cyclists to walk on the pavers - all FACTS) directly adjacent to the sand - the bars, restaurants, retail stores and buildings are all to the West of the Broadwalk with nothing coming between the walkway and the sand - which I feel is quite awesome! The beach in each town is unique - not “better” per se - just different. The ocean is almost always quite flat with waves rolling in at ankle-height breakers - unless there’s an aggressive East wind, then a 12 - 18 inch breaking wave will form (in other words unless a storm is offshore the water is pretty calm). The majority of attractions most visitors will be interested to see are located North and South of Johnson Street. The Bandshell is an outdoor amphitheater (and the ONLY structure East of the Broadwalk) which hosts live entertainment Wednesday through Sunday, 7-9 PM year-round with music representing a wide variety of styles (Rock, Latin, Country, Island (steel drums and Reggae),etc - free of charge with bench-style aluminum seating provided on a first come / first seated basis. The restaurants offer beautiful views regardless of which you choose to patronize and each offering food and drink that is quite tasty and varied. The Northern most eatery is Ocean’s 13 - Vinny is the Owner Chef and the Southern most is Sardelli’s (technically not on the Broadwalk but 1 block West on the North side of VanBuren St - and the Food is a pricey but amazing and worth it in my humble opinion).

Just come see for yourself why the population of the 33019 swells each year between January and April (New Year’s Day to Easter Sunday is actually “High Season” on the island) - if you are disappointed or unhappy with our beach I - and everyone else who is fortunate to call this sliver of paradise home will agree - it is not the beach, it...

This is one of my absolute favorite places! Really a great place to relax & reflect. There are plenty of restaurants; a bustling, easily walkable boardwalk; many cabana rental areas ($50.); shopping; and, hotels, not to mention the star attraction, the beach & ocean itself.

Parking is generally easy, but, at high-time if you arrive before noon, you’re usually going to find some parking available.

Fourth of July requires a lot of planning (like 9 mos to a year in advance for hotels) & remember to always bring comfortable clothes, water bottles, sunscreen & a hat is a good idea ( & an umbrella in July-Aug is helpful for that pesky afternoon rain). Also, I’ve seen plenty of visiting tourists walking around looking very “lobster-esque” 🦞(read: exceedingly sunburned individuals) and I do not recommend it for so many reasons, respect that sunlight! Seriously, buy a rash guard if you’re not diligent with sun protection.

On a side note this beach has always felt reasonably safe (that’s a big focus of mine being from the city…) and, generally, there’s a good amount of police presence as a crime deterrent. My BFF & I have actually gone night swimming here quite a bit & have never had an issue. However, a few years back there was a shooting where innocent bystanders were caught in the crossfire in broad daylight and my opinion on that tragedy is it was an isolated incident, need not be a reason to pass.

In general, a visit here is a really nice way to spend some quality family time with the kids… If you go,...

6-26-25

Stayed nearby for the week of 6-22-25 and walked on/used this beach daily.

Easily accessed from the Broadwalk. Restaurants, shops, bars, etc are within a short minute or less walk.

There is maintenance on the sand as each morning machines/tractors come and rake it essentially. Beautifully done. You can rent chairs, umbrellas, and cabanas on the beach. There are several volleyball nets, trash cans, benches, and probably the best lifeguard stands I have ever seen. All these throughout the entire length of the beach. Also has periodic spray/shower stations for your convenience. Clean beach.

The water has several colors of blue and green. It is noticeably warm.

For a tourist area, I didn't find it too crowded. Family-friendly yet appeals to all folks per my observation. I enjoyed people-watching at night on the beach as folks use it then too. Everything from gatherings, parties, quinceaneras, and people relaxing took place at all times of of...