When people think of Floridians they think of a bunch of rednecks that hang out at the beach all day, am I right? Believe it or not, until we adopted the kids we actually didn’t spend a ton of time at the beach. At one point we lived 5 blocks from the ocean and rarely ever hit the sand. Now that we have kids, however, we’re at the beach every weekend. It’s the perfect way to wear them out. Huguenot Park is the beach that we visit most frequently. The fact that you can drive on the beach makes it super convenient when you have little ones.
Table of Contents
What is the Huguenot Park?
Huguenot Memorial Park is a 450-acre horseshoe-shaped peninsula that is surrounded by 3 bodies of water: the Fort George Inlet, St. Johns River, and the Atlantic Ocean. The park is famous for birding, the ability to drive on the beach, and for the one mile of jetty rocks that are used to guide ships into the mouth of the St. Johns River. The jetties, as well as other areas of the beach, are well-known for fishing.
The park was named after the French Huguenots that arrived in this area in 1562. The Huguenots were led by explorer Jean Ribault who reportedly landed less than 1 mile from Huguenot Memorial Park. Ribault and his men established the settlements of Charlesfort and Fort Caroline (both named in honor of his king, King Charles).
On his second voyage to the Americas in 1565, Ribault and his men were shipwreck near St. Augustine. The crew encountered the Spanish Governor, Pedro Menendez, at the Matanzas Inlet. The Governor feared that the French were encroaching on his territory and killed Ribault and his men.
There is a memorial plaque honoring these men at the entrance to Huguenot Park. The park is formally named Huguenot Memorial Park in their remembrance.
Things to Know…
- Bicycle entry is $3, vehicle entry is $5 per car for up to 6 people, $1 for each additional person.
- The beach is open from 6 AM until 7 PM (6 PM after we fall back)
- The entrance gate closes 1 hour prior to closing time.
- The park is surrounded by 3 bodies of water; St. Johns River, Fort George Inlet, and the Atlantic Ocean.
- The sand is extremely soft when accessing the Atlantic Ocean side of the beach. 4 wheel drive is highly recommended.
- Family Beach is accessible by 2-wheel drive and all-wheel drive.
- Pay close attention to the tide signs at the front of the park. The high tides can get super high- you DO NOT want to get your car stuck in the high tide.
Where is Huguenot Park located?
The beach is located off of Heckscher Drive near Big Talbot Island State Park and Little Talbot Island.
The physical address is: 10980 Heckscher Drive Jacksonville, FL 32226
Huguenot Park Highlights
- Paddle boarding and kayaking at Family Beach
- Fishing (everywhere)
- The “hidden beach” on the opposite side of the jetties
- Camping
- Birding
- Surfing and body surfing on the Atlantic side
- Being able to drive directly on the beach
- Scoping out the naval ships across the river at Mayport Naval Base
East Coast Greenway
The Timucuan Trail runs right back Huguenot Park. This trail is a small portion of a large trail network known as the East Coast Greenway.
The Greenway is part of a large network of trails connecting 15 states, 450 cities and towns and running from Maine to Florida. It runs from the Canadian border all the way down to the Florida Keys!
Our Experience
Considering we spend nearly every summer weekend at Huguenot Park, I think it’s safe to say we love this place. We bought an annual pass for $100 and it has been well worth the money! There are some weeks where we visit twice.
The park is surrounded by 3 bodies of water: the Fort George Inlet, St. Johns River, and the Atlantic Ocean. When we visit we tend to gravitate to two different areas: the jetties (the Atlantic Ocean side) or Family Beach (the Fort George Inlet side).
The ocean side is great for fishing, searching for crabs, surfing, and boogie boarding. Growing up, we LOVED climbing the jetties. There’s a “hidden beach” on the opposite side (the St. Johns River) which is an excellent place to go to get away from people. Since the jetties are an easy landmark, it’s a popular place to meet up with others. Since accessing this part of the beach requires navigating through soft sand, 4WD is strongly recommended.
Our favorite place to go, however, is Family Beach. The water is super calm and there is a sandbar that you can walk to/paddleboard out to depending on the tides. This is a popular place for paddle boarding and kayaking. It is also closer to the campsites so many of the campers fish in this area.
Our Huguenot Beach Essentials
Coppertone Kids Sunscreen
Toddler Striped Hooded Poncho Towels
Women’s 50+ SPF Shirt
Girl’s Roxy Rashguard
Inflatable Paddleboard
Electric Air Pump with 12V adaptor
Boogie Boards
What is there to do nearby?
- Black Rock Beach
- Little Talbot Island
- Big Talbot Island
- Kingsley Plantation
- Jacksonville Zoo
- Fort Clinch
- El Faro Memorial
- Yellow Bluff Fort
Save a Pin & Start Planning Your Adventure!
10 replies on “Huguenot Park- The Locals Favorite Summer Hangout”
[…] Drive, home to several beaches. This area is known as the North Florida Keys. We suggest visiting Huguenot Memorial Park, Little Talbot Island State Park, Big Talbot Island State Park, and Fort Clinch State Park. One of […]
[…] Huguenot Beach […]
[…] time out at the beach- where we were able to easily social distance. And, if we weren’t at Huguenot Beach, we were in the backyard zooming down the […]
[…] spent every weekend at our favorite beach, Huguenot Memorial Park. The beach sits right across the river from Mayport Naval Base. The naval ships, and passing cargo […]
[…] Many of our beaches, such as Jax Beach, are free to the public. Some of our favorite beaches are Huguenot Beach, Blackrock Beach, and Little and Talbot Island State […]
[…] Huguenots were led by explorer Jean Ribault who reportedly landed less than 1 mile from Huguenot Memorial Park. Ribault and his men established the settlements of Charlesfort and Fort Caroline (both named in […]
[…] rounded out the month with a trip to our local hangout, Huguenot Beach. The water was much too cold (and it was jellyfish season), but the kids got in ankle deep to […]
[…] Huguenot Memorial Park is a 450-acre horseshoe-shaped peninsula that is surrounded by 3 bodies of water: the Fort George Inlet, St. Johns River, and the Atlantic Ocean. The park is famous for birding, the ability to drive on the beach, and for the one mile of jetty rocks that are used to guide ships into the mouth of the St. Johns River. The jetties, as well as other areas of the beach, are well-known for fishing. […]
[…] [Sheffield Park] [Pumpkin Hill Creek Preserve State Park] [Silver Springs State Park] [Huguenot Park] […]
[…] Bicycling– Bicycling can be enjoyed around the park, but we enjoy the 2.5 mile paved trail. The Park Drive Timucuan Trail is part of the Greenway Trail that goes from Florida to Maine. There’s also a new segment that connects to Huguenot Park. […]