Is Cape San Blas Worth Visiting? 8 Reasons It Is!

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One of my favorite places in Florida is Cape San Blas up in the panhandle, not far from the more well-known St. George Island.

Today I’m sharing all the reasons I think it’s worth visiting Cape San Blas. So, spoilers I guess, I DO very much think it’s worth going to Cape San Blas, even if it doesn’t have much happening.

Another spoiler, that’s one of the reasons I love it! Or more than one said in a few different ways.

Travel Services I Recommend:
AllTrails – This is my favorite hike tracking app.
America the Beautiful – The national park pass is essential.
Booking.com – This is great for finding and booking hotels.
Get Your Guide – I recommend Get Your Guide for booking tours.
National Park Obsessed – This is the best national park planner.
Skyscanner – Skyscanner is great for finding and booking flights.
Enterprise – This is my rental car recommendation.
See all my resources here.

It’s quiet

Cape San Blas is a quiet little area and I love it! It’s not like it’s just one or two houses there, it’s full of houses, but it’s not a major vacation area since it doesn’t have tons happening as far as other amenities goes.

People do live there but a lot of the houses are vacation rentals. But even with the high number of rentals, it was still very quiet while we were here in the beginning of March 2020 (pre-shutdowns).

If you want a party place, skip this one but if you want somewhere quiet and relaxing, Cape San Blas is for you.

It’s great for shelling

Before we went I had to look up shelling in Cape San Blas (obviously) and everything said it wasn’t all that great.

But they were wrong and it’s actually one of my favorite places for shelling in Florida, and I’ve been to quite a few places for that by now! (Of course not as much as if I lived closer to the beach).

We had a rental right on the beach and right outside of that was my favorite spot for shelling, but the state park at the end of the island and the elbow (this makes sense looking at a map) were also pretty good.

What to bring shelling

Sunscreen – If you plan on being outside, you’ll want sunscreen. I like the Hawaiian Tropic Sheer Touch a lot AND it’s reef safe! If you’re sensitive to fragrance though, it’s not a good choice. I also like the same one but specifically for your face.

Shell bag – I got these mesh shell bags over the summer and really like them so far. I do wish they were bigger but then I’ll just use two since it came with four. Buy my shell bags here!

Shark tooth sifter – The best and easiest way to find shark teeth is with a sifter. Scoop the sand into it with the sifter below, carefully shake the sand out of it on the water, and dig through whats left. We liked this one. You can use it alone but it’s easier with two people (one to scoop, one to sift). Buy our sifter here!

Big sand scooper – The best way to get the sand into the sifter is with one of these giant scoopers. We liked this one. Buy our scooper here!

Shell scoop (for standing) – A Sand Dipper shell scoop can help you get shells that are under water if you don’t want to snorkel/swim. They can also help just on the beach so you don’t have to bend over. You can scoop the shells right up. Buy a shell scoop here.

Sun hat – I got this giant sun hat and I love it! Mine doesn’t have the lining underneath but they do have some with UPF 50+ linings. Buy my hat here.

Water bottle – It’ll be hot and you’ll need to stay hydrated. Even if it’s not hot you need to stay hydrated. A Hydro Flask will keep your water ice cold all day long.

Headlamp – This is really only necessary if you’re going shelling at the crack of dawn so you can still use your hands to pick up shells and carry your bag.

The beach is beautiful

Aside from the shelling in Cape San Blas being some of my favorite in Florida, it’s also just generally one of my favorite beaches in Florida because it’s so beautiful!

The sand is beautifully white and one thing that I love about it, is that there aren’t beach umbrellas and things like that all over like other famous beaches in Florida (hello, Clearwater).

There is a state park to visit

We visited the state park while we were here but I still have to Google the name every time because why is it so long!?

T.H. Stone Memorial St. Joseph Peninsula State Park is the state park at the very far tip of Cape San Blas.

The beach is the main draw of the park but there are two short hiking trails you can do (0.6 and 1.6 miles) plus six miles of trails in the wilderness area at the northernmost part of the park (but you need a permit for that).

And while you can visit beach almost anywhere here, this is particularly nice since it doesn’t have houses along the shore.

Cape san blas florida bay — The view from the Salinas Park boardwalk

And a short boardwalk to enjoy

I tend to refer to Cape San Blas by the beach side and bay side, and on the bay side you can do a short little boardwalk trail!

I’m having a very hard time finding the exact thing I’m talking about, and I don’t even know if it has a name. (In my head it was like an angled horseshoe shape, but on the map it’s just straight).

I’m fairly certain that it’s the straight boardwalk at Salinas Park, right by the elbow.

It’s a pretty short boardwalk but the view from the end is beautiful, especially for sunrise or sunset (since the sun wouldn’t be blasting you in the face at either!)

It feels secluded

You may have gotten the gist by now, but Cape San Blas, while it isn’t that far away from anything, Port St. Joe is very close, it feels very secluded thanks to it’s lack of high rises, hotels, and major vacation crowds.

Sure, your rental might be right next to someone else’s but it’s so quiet and relaxing here that it doesn’t really even matter!

If you want to feel far from everything without being far from everything, consider Cape San Blas!

And it’s not busy!

Again, thanks to it’s lack of high rises, condos, and hotels, Cape San Blas is far less busy than other Florida beach destinations.

I’m sure it has it’s moments when it’s busier than others, but comparing it to Fort Myers and similar areas, Cape San Blas is like a ghost town in the winter.

It may be because it’s in the panhandle and cooler than SWFL, or because of it’s lack of amenities and services (very few shops and restaurants) that other panhandle destinations have, like Destin or Panama City Beach.

Whatever the reason, I love it and will absolutely be coming back here for a lovely beach getaway.