Access for All: Forgotten Coast Beaches

Are you looking for a beach vacation with wheelchair access? No need to reinvent the wheel, Franklin County Florida strives to be a fun-filled destination for every visitor, including wheelchair users. 

Lighthouse Park

St. George Island Florida is a gorgeous 22-mile barrier island in the Gulf of Mexico.

St. George Island’s Lighthouse Park is the main beach access and includes accessible parking, covered picnic areas, and sidewalks. Lighthouse Park also features a Mobi-mat handicap public beach access point to enable residents and visitors alike to enjoy Franklin County beaches. The mat is about 300′ long and joins the sidewalk south of the basketball court to the edge of the dune line at the public beach.

Julian G. Bruce St. George Island State Park

The Dr. Julian G. Bruce St. George Island State Park features nine miles of pristine beaches, majestic dunes, coastal woodlands, and tranquil bay shoreline.

The park also features amenities that make it accessible to everyone, regardless of their mobility challenges. The St. George Island State Park is equipped with three non-motorized beach wheelchairs, two electric beach wheelchairs, a recumbent floating wheelchair, and Mobi-mats allowing unobstructed beach, bay, and campground access within the park. The wheelchairs are free for visitors, and reservations can be made by calling the park office at 850-927-2111.

Bald Point State Park

Located at the farthest east end of Franklin County, the Bald Point State Park features some of the most picturesque wilderness and isolated beaches along north Florida’s Gulf Coast.

Located on Alligator Point, where Ochlockonee Bay meets Apalachee Bay, Bald Point features more than 4,000 acres of North Florida wilderness boasting many land and water activities. The Bald Point State Park offers Mobi-mat access to two Apalachee Bay beaches in the park; sunrise beach and North End beach. Other accessible amenities include one beach wheelchair, accessible picnic pavilions, multi-use trails, and outdoor showers. Bald Point State Park also features accessible-friendly amenities, including an accessible boardwalk and observation deck, outdoor showers/rinse stations, accessible picnic pavilions, a beach wheelchair, and two Mobi-mat beach access mats. Reservations for the wheelchair can be made by calling the park office at 850-349-9146.

Carrabelle Beach

Carrabelle Beach is a white-sand beach just over a mile west of Carrabelle’s city center.

There is plenty of accessible parking, outdoor showers, bathroom facilities, and covered picnic areas. Carrabelle Beach features a Mobi-mat handicap public beach access point to enable residents and visitors to enjoy Carrabelle Beach. The mat joins the sidewalk at the picnic area and continues to the high tide mark at the public beach.

It is also good to note that many of the private areas, like St. George Plantation, offer Mobi-mat beach access, accessibility features, and accessible vacation rentals.