Bahia Honda Campground

Bahia Honda State Park is famous for its award-winning beach, which has been named best beach in the continental United States several times now. This state park also has great camping. With sites placed facing the Atlantic Ocean, just feet from the water’s edge and amidst the sand and dunes, Bahia Honda Campground is one of the best places for camping in the lower Florida Keys. Not only are there tent and RV spots, but also available are cabins complete with linens and kitchen wares.

The island itself is gorgeous because of all the lush tropical trees and plants that have prospered and flourished for years, under the State Park’s protection. There are nature trails, large patches of shady palms, and quite a few rare plants as well. This makes the camping even more special, compared with many other campgrounds in the Florida Keys. Not all campgrounds are this lush, and if you’ve ever camped elsewhere in the Keys or even Southern Florida, campgrounds can be quite barren and dusty. Not Bahia Honda Campground. Located at Mile Marker 37, it’s a 45-minute drive to Key West. Looe Key Reef, one of the most abundant and beautiful reefs in the Florida Keys, is just twelve miles offshore from Bahia Honda. The park closes at sunset, but campers get the combination to the lock for the gate. Half of the campsites are rented out at first-come first-serve basis and the other half is on a reservation policy. The rangers recommend making a reservation as early as possible, up to eleven months in advance. There are actually three different campgrounds within Bahia Honda State Park, accommodating everything from tents to full-size RVs. You can reserve through Reserve America.

The largeste campsites are at Buttonwood Campground. They’re gravel bottom and don’t have much shade, either. Good for RVs! They all have 30 amp electricity, water, table and grill. There’s also a dump station and hot showers. Some of the sites have some vegetation between them for buffer

Sandspur Campground has sites that are on the water, and they are smaller with lower clearance. The vegetation in Sandspur is beautiful and RVs are not allowed in the rare habitat. Sandspur sites also have picnic table, grill and water at each site. Some also have electricity.

Bayside Campground has only eight sites and no electricity. Tall vehicles won’t fit under the Bahia Honda bridge to get over to Bayside. They also have picnic table, grill and water. The small bathhouse only has cold showers and no electricity so go to the Buttonwood bathhouse.

Pets can go camping with you, but they have to be quiet from 11pm to 8am. Of course you must pick up after your pet, keep him under control, and be vaccinated according to Florida law.

Campfire activities include a slide show or Ranger Talk for campers only. A Park Ranger will give a talk at the ampitheater on any number of subjects, like natural history, flora and fauna. If it’s raining or really windy, go to the Nature Center. The ampitheater is called the Campfire Circle.