Guest guide
Gulf Shores rewards people who know a few things ahead of time. Here's what we'd tell a friend staying at the cottage.
Fishing
About 1,540 feet into the Gulf and the most reliable place to catch something without a boat. Spanish mackerel and bluefish in spring and fall, king mackerel in the warm months, pompano in the spring. Rod rentals and bait are on site; get there very early if you want a corner spot. There's also a cool little tiki bar out on the pier that's open sometimes for refreshments.
Walk to the public access. Get a spider weight — it holds bottom in the surf instead of rolling back to your feet. Two hours either side of a rising tide can be more active. In the busier beach months the sand is generally too crowded to fish during the peak of the day, but early morning, evening, and night are usually fine even in busy season.
A big area for flounder, redfish, and speckled trout. It gets pretty crowded on nice weekends and in peak season with people lounging, so like the beach, keep the timing in mind — go early or late. Be careful of the current running through the pass as the tide goes out — it moves harder than it looks.
The lady fish here put up a fight way out of proportion to their size. You can also pull amberjack, redfish, and a bit of everything else. Fun place to fish at night.
Little Lagoon and the Bon Secour side hold speckled trout, flounder, and redfish. Keep an eye out for gators, especially on the small inland waterways.
Anyone 16 and over needs an Alabama saltwater license — buy it online in two minutes at outdooralabama.com, at any local tackle shop, or usually at the Walmart Supercenter sporting goods counter. Pier fishing at Gulf State Park includes its own pier permit at the gate.
Eating and drinking
The oldest beach bar on this stretch and the shortest walk. Amazing frozen drinks — great Bushwhackers, Key Lime Coladas, and the Crazy Horse. We enjoy it for a late afternoon refresher, fried calamari, and a bowl of gumbo. The gumbo is the best value on the menu.
Large selection of options and really good grouper when they have it. Walk-up counter and self-seating, so it's easy to go — only about a 3 minute walk from the cottage. One of our main go-tos.
Big, loud, family-friendly, live music, fountains for the kids. If you've never been, it's worth the experience, but going for dinner is a rarity for us. Fair warning: the noise, lights, and crowds can be overwhelming for people with sensory issues.
Great little outdoor place with good island vibes, a good happy hour, and no-frills burgers. Perfect for a sunset on the inland waterway. It's part of a small chain of four or five — and the only one not in the Virgin Islands.
Fun late-night bar with a band outside and karaoke inside. Great back deck and patio with cornhole and other games.
Less than a 10 minute walk. Great breakfast tacos and crazy donuts. You can order online and pick up by the time you walk there — just let them know you've arrived, or you'll sit there waiting.
Get there early or expect a long wait. Fair warning on the bill: a family of four with older kids can easily run over $100 for breakfast.
We're originally from New England, where great pizza is everywhere. This is the best and closest to authentic New York style pizza we've found in the area.
If you want fried seafood, this isn't your place. But they do sometimes run really good raw oyster specials — you just have to catch them at the right time. Also excellent Bushwhackers.
A longer walk, but on a nice night walking along the boardwalk it's a really nice stroll. Excellent grilled tuna. It kind of has that old-school nostalgic seafood restaurant vibe, plus a huge patio. Right off the beach, but not really an ocean view if that's what you're looking for. Right across the street from a couple of frozen treat options.
Worth the drive
Iconic, ranked the #1 beach bar in America on plenty of lists. About 15 minutes by car or Uber. Music all day, a massive place, three restaurants on the compound. A must-see.
Great food and a really cool beach atmosphere, right on the beach in Orange Beach. The bar side runs a slightly cheaper menu than the restaurant side.
In peak season it's usually a little less crowded than you'd expect. We've walked into restaurants with no wait at hours when it would be an hour around The Hangout.
Jimmy Buffett vibes — it's owned by his sister. If you throw leftover fries over the counter into the waterway at night, something like a thousand fish come up after them. It's crazy.
Things to see and do
In season the Blue Angels practice at NAS Pensacola on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings. It's the full show without the ridiculous crowds, free to watch, and about a 45-60 minute drive. Bring earplugs for the kids. Although there are nowhere near the crowds of an airshow, you still need to plan time for getting in the gate. Military ID card holders: the main gate is further away but has an ID-holders-only lane, so you'll get in faster. Practice happens right next to the Naval Aviation Museum, and the schedule shifts for weather, travel, and show season — check before you go.
About 45-60 minutes away. Massive, free, and walks you through the whole history of naval aviation — excellent for a rainy day. Kids love it; when we lived in Navarre and ours were little we were there monthly. Flight simulators inside.
A 15 minute walk from the front door. Includes a waterpark, an escape room, and a go-kart track.
About a 20 minute drive and a nice change of pace and scenery from the beach. Foley does a great job with Christmas decorations and is really festive around November and December — a fun night out in Christmas vibes.
Over 25 miles of paved backcountry trail through the same nature preserve you look at from two of the decks. Alligators in the ponds, cool in the morning, and bikes to rent at the trail head. You can also rent kayaks for Lake Shelby.
First time on the Gulf and wondering about the lights moving along the beach at night? That's families ghost crab hunting. Grab a sand pail and a couple of flashlights and take the kids out. The crabs run about dime to quarter size and they're quick.
Sort of a Southern Living Magazine type of small town — on many lists of the most charming, walkable small towns in the South. About a 45 minute drive, depending on traffic.
The Shrimp Festival in October fills the island. The Frank Brown International Songwriters' Festival and Meeting of the Minds are local institutions, and there are big-game fishing tournaments through the warm months. Plan parking and dinner accordingly, or lean into it.
The Gulf Shores official events calendar is the best single place to see concerts, festivals, tournaments, and family events during your stay. Worth a look the week before you travel.
Open the Gulf Shores events calendarShopping
If you haven't noticed yet, there are several — and eventually they all start to look the same. If you have a car, the ones a little inland like Beach Supply tend to be a bit cheaper.
We love Rouses and wish we had one at home. A New Orleans-style market with great fresh food, often fresh local fish, and an amazing beer selection.
A 15-20 minute drive. Great to hit during Alabama's tax-free weekend, which comes around about once a year, so good luck timing it. Dads may want to stay back at the pool that day.
Two-tenths of a mile and it has the majority of what you need — it's a bigger DG with a decent essential grocery selection, most OTC medicine needs, and even some clothing and beach items like bathing suits and towels for a lot less than the beach stores.
Across from Waterville on Gulf Shores Parkway. These folks sell fresh local seafood seven days a week, and if you buy crab or shrimp they'll boil it for you free. Great stop if you want to cook a batch of shrimp or take some home packed for travel — call ahead in the morning, they get busy by dinner.
Only about a mile and a half — and like any other Walmart Supercenter they have everything, but sometimes gets overlooked with all the beach stores.
Stay active outdoors
Green is calm, yellow is moderate surf and current, red is strong current, double red means the water is closed, purple means dangerous marine life. Don't be fooled on a yellow flag day — you can still get caught in a dangerous rip current. Public beach access is about a 150 yard walk from the car entry gate to the Cottages. There's also public restrooms and rinsing showers right by that entrance.
Generally open sunrise to 10 pm, seven days a week, and free to the public — check the city page for current hours before you head over.
One of our favorites is running down to Lake Shelby and around the lake. It's a longer run, but it goes along the beach, around the lake, and through the swamps. Be aware there are some parts of Beach Blvd with no sidewalk, but there's plenty of space on the shoulder. Another nice route is out to Lagoon Pass Park — it's just under 7 miles roundtrip. You can take parts of it on the beach and parts on the road.
Rent kayaks or bikes from Ike's Bikes at Lake Shelby. If you paddle around the lake there's a good chance you'll see a few gators, maybe some otters, and plenty of birds.
Only available to active and retired military and dependants. About a 45 minute drive to Bayou Grande Marina, where you can rent kayaks and paddleboards and take sailing lessons for far cheaper than you'd pay in Gulf Shores or Orange Beach. NAS Pensacola has a second rental marina at Sherman Cove worth checking too.
Hours, prices, and discounts on the island change often — please confirm before you go. Staying with us? Read the house tips too.