Anne's Beach — Attraction in Key Largo

Anne's Beach has a lot more to offer than most people realize. I'll make this review easy and split it into "Has" and "Doesn't Have".

Has: -Multiple Separate Secluded Beaches -Crabs, hermit crabs, snails, lizards, birds -Shallow calm water -Two parking lots (North & South) -Public restrooms (in the North parking lot) -Really cool mangroves and other beach vegetation

Doesn't Have: -Coral reef style snorkeling -Sandy tropical beaches

This isn't a beach, but is more 20 or so tiny beaches separated by trees. It's awesome if you want to chill by the water in a chair, get a tan, and let the kids hunt for animals. The water itself is extremely calm and shallow, and it's mostly "sea meadow", which means it's a bit sludgy and lots of seaweed. Not great for snorkeling, definitely not for swimming. You'll be wading at the most looking for creatures living in the grasses if you go in the water at all.

I'll say this, my seven year old daughter absolutely loved this beach. We went twice because she begged us to bring us back the next day. That's also partially because you have to drive all the way to Marathon to find a good beach from Islamorada so it's the only real option as far as I can tell.

Pro Tip #1: PARKING! There are two lots! The North lot fills up quickly and people don't realize just south of the north lot is an entire second lot that acts as the southern terminal to the boardwalk.

Pro Tip #2: There's a series of secret beaches south of the southern parking lot. Just walk past the big mangrove tree and you'll see the first one. There are several more if you keep walking. We hung out here on the second day and not a single person was at the beaches even though the northern lot was jam packed to capacity. It's so nice having an entire beach...

The location is right off the highway. Two parking lots - north end and on the south end of this sweet little spot. I’m guessing this to be around 200 feet long, give or take I’m sure! Nice little walk from end to end. Smaller parking lots on either end.

This was a spur of the moment stop and boy did it impress! Although our stop here occurred around 530pm and it was low tide, this was a lovely walk with great views.

Lots of seaweed this time of day. You’re able to tell where the tide comes in due to the seaweed pushed up past the sandy shore in some areas. I’m curious to know if the seaweed is thick and floating when the tide is in.

You are able to Wade out into the water a good distance it appears from the shallows and observing others out further in the water. This would be a good place to float in more stiller water and just relax. It’s what I’d like to do later this summer.

There’s several covered picnic table areas. Each one made typically for a set of people to be at. About halfway down or so there are 2 of these with the largest sandy beach between them.

This is 4 star place today but I have hopes to come back 💯 and see this when the tide is in - I imagine it’s pretty spectacular and an outstanding place to float, relax, picnic and enjoy the small wildlife...

This is one of the few dog friendly places in the Keys. You should keep your dog on leash while on the boardwalk, since there are tables were not-necessarily-dog-friendly people might be hanging out, but dogs are typically okay to be off leash on the beach, since it's very unlikely that you have to be too close to anybody. Yes, it's a series of little beaches joined by a boardwalk, but did I mention is dog friendly?

We visited the Keys with our dog and it was a nightmare. There are no places to go with your dog. Many restaurants advertise to be dog friendly, but it only means you can take your dog to the outdoor area where all the smokers are and many times live music that can freak out some dogs. There's a park that costs $8 admission and the dog can only be in a designated area far away from the water with very little shade. Finding this beach saved us, because we were seriously thinking of cutting our vacation short.

There's a limited amount of parking, but we found a spot every time we visited. Don't come expecting an amazing tropical beach, this is the keys, but if you are traveling with your dog,...