Vanderbilt Beach, Naples, Florida

Vanderbilt Beach in Naples, has a public-access point on Vanderbilt Beach Road, right off of Gulf Shore Drive. The address is 100 Vanderbilt Beach Road, with three miles (4.82 km) of white sand and an azure blue horizon. Vanderbilt Beach was among the first beaches to reopen, Christmas 2022, after Hurricane Ian.

For out-of-town visitors, parking is the most important amenity a beachgoer would need. Vanderbilt Beach Parking Garage is located steps away from the shoreline. There are three hundred parking spaces in this credit-card-only garage, with attendant. Clearance is eight feet, two inches (2.5m). Metered street parking is nearby for this beach.

The Vanderbilt Beach Parking Garage has three levels and this is the first level. Two levels are covered, with the third level on the rooftop open to the elements. The cost for the garage is $10 via credit card, and the hours are 8 am till sunset year-around. Beachgoers already parked in the garage before it closes can leave well after sunset.

Collier County, wherein Vanderbilt Beach is located, has a link on its website, collierparks.com, for parking garage availability. Clicking the link will reveal the number of open spaces on each level, which is updated every few minutes.

The signs of Hurricane Ian are everywhere along Vanderbilt Beach Road, but that has not slowed the influx of leisure-seekers to Vanderbilt Beach. Down the road, Buzz’s Lighthouse is open once again with lights and oven. Access points have reopened on the boardwalk, and the Vanderbilt Beach Resort will take reservations again at the end of March.

The Collier County parks website is the best place to check before visiting any Collier County beach or park. In season, January through March, the Collier County site suggests arriving before 10 am for easy garage or street parking. However, sun-seekers had barely begun arriving at 10:30 am on Sunday, March 11, 2023.

The bathhouse is just steps away from the Vanderbilt Beach Parking Garage and is convenient to the beach itself. This facility has men’s and women’s amenities, plus a bench to sit on outside while waiting for family members. There is an Area of Assistance here plus a fire extinguisher, but the AED was missing on this visit.

The drop-off circle is empty now, but will be filling up soon as noon approaches. Although the sign at the circle states that alcohol is not allowed, many beachgoers brought in bottles and cans obscured by neoprene coozies. From about mid-afternoon until past sunset, most beverages were sipped from coozies or Yeti wine glasses.

A visit to Vanderbilt Beach begins at the public access point at the western end of Vanderbilt Beach Road. Naples Trolley Tours stops here several times each day, among other locations such as Tin City. Currently, the cost is $29, hours are 8:30 till 5:30, seven days a week except for Thanksgiving and Christmas.

The view from the public access point at Vanderbilt Beach is the classic white sand and blue water vista. High tide occurred at 4:17 am at 2 feet (0.61m) and again at 3:14 pm at 2.6 feet (0.8m). Low tide occurred at 9:30 am at 0.7 feet (0.21m) and again at 10:58 pm at -0.1 feet (-0.03m). The sun rose at 7:38 am and set at 7:35 pm.

Vanderbilt Beach has an endless blue-sky horizon looking out into the Gulf of Mexico. The temperature right now is 78 deg F (25.55 C) at 10:30 am. The morning low started out at 60 F (15.55 C) and the temperature reached 82 F (28 C) at 4 pm. Relative humidity was 55 percent. Wind gusts were up to 15 miles an hour (24 km).

According to Weather.com, the UV Index reached a level of 8 out of 11 on March 12, 2023, in Naples, Florida. From EPA.gov: Be careful outside, especially during late morning through mid-afternoon. If your shadow is shorter than you, seek shade and wear protective clothing, a wide-brimmed hat, and sunglasses, and generously apply a minimum of  SPF-15, broad-spectrum sunscreen on exposed skin.

Looking north toward Bonita Springs, the beach umbrellas and condos stretch out until they reach Delnor-Wiggins Pass State Park (temporarily closed) and the Cocohatchee River. Shown here in this image is the Beachmoor Condo. Vanderbilt Beach is located in North Naples, which is an unincorporated area of Collier County.

Many Collier County beaches have life-jacket stations for children; this program is administered by the US Coast Guard. While some families bring their own Coast Guard-rated life jackets for their kids, these life jackets are free to use and are inspected monthly. This station is located near the drop-off circle close to the boardwalk. There are no life guards at this beach.

The bike-rack station is near both the bath house and the drop-off circle at the end of Vanderbilt Beach Road. The remnants of Hurricane Ian—orange netting and no-trespass signs—abound, but the beach is as beautiful as ever. There are a few other racks on the other side of the circle, but this is the closest to the beach.

The boardwalk that leads directly from the bath house through the mangrove stands to the beach is closed, due to Hurricane Ian. To get to the bath house, beachgoers must exit the beach toward the drop-off circle and then walk along the sidewalk and into the washrooms. The two footbaths at this beach are located adjacent to the drop-off circle.

Vanderbilt Beach experienced red tide during the month of March. According to the US NOAA.gov website. Red Tide is the common term for harmful algae bloom or “hab.” Not all algae blooms are harmful, but the out-of-control algae bloom here produced toxins that kill fish. The parking garage had a sign regarding red tide posted at the entrance today. Naples will implement more HAB mitigation efforts this year.

The Ritz-Carlton overlooks Vanderbilt Beach and the temporarily closed Gumbo Limbo restaurant. Naples is still rebuilding after the hurricane, and electrical lines are marked throughout the beach with orange flags. Bring a cooler to this beach if staying all day as the shoreline eateries are still closed.

The watersports rental shown here was a lively spot in an otherwise sleepy scene at this beach. This company had set up shop for the weekend and was not present during the week. There were six wave runners at $125 per half hour plus one large inflatable raft known as the “Banana Bus” at $56 per person. Parasailing and paddle boarding were also offered.

Vanderbilt Beach came into being in 1952 after a hydraulic dredging operation. Land developer J.B. Conners chose the name to lend an air of high class to a previously undeveloped area sparsely inhabited by farmers, fishermen, and scrub oaks. This area is bordered on the north by Cocohatchee River, on the south by Vanderbilt Beach Road, on the east by Vanderbilt Drive and on the west by the Gulf of Mexico.

Lower tide at Vanderbilt Beach makes for easier shelling. The beautiful and varied shells here make for the great ornamentation of any sand castle. Angel wings, barnacles, cat’s eyes, cockles, conches, coquinas, horse conch, horseshoe crab, scallops, sponges, tulips, welks, and more await the beachcomber.

The rough surf and gusty winds on this mid-March day have carried over from the morning into the early evening. The tide is high, which makes for more difficult shelling. The white sand is easy on the feet, however, and there is still more than two hours of daylight left to enjoy. Those who are in the ocean can walk out quite aways in the shoulder-deep warm water.

Sunset-seekers begin arriving during the late afternoon. At about quarter till seven, Vanderbilt Beach is lined north to south with many faces looking west. There is more space to spread out than around noon, and the gulls have come in looking for dinner. This is the best time to find that last handful of shells before the sun goes down.

The afternoon rolled quickly into evening. The time is past seven o’clock with just half an hour of daylight left. That means getting out of the water after sunset. NOAA.gov strongly cautions against swimming in the ocean in twilight conditions due to possible shark or jellyfish hazards. Sunsets are best absorbed on the beach.

Leisure-seekers at Vanderbilt Beach are just as active at sunset as they are at peak afternoon. The sunset here is enjoyed by all, whether singly, in pairs, or in groups large and small. A group of boys and young men is enjoying a game of pick-up soccer. People are still being dropped off in the circle to catch the sunset.

Anticipation for this evening’s sunset is growing . . . only twenty more minutes until the finale. So what does tomorrow hold? That doesn’t matter right now; only this moment right here holds any importance. No hats, no sunscreen, no sunglasses are needed to soak in the beauty on this beach.

The most unsung amenity at any beach has got to be the drop-off circle. In about half an hour, this circle will be full of cars picking up sandy-footed sun-setters who have enjoyed all that Vanderbilt Beach has to offer. Their day is done and perhaps it’s time to get a late dinner or enjoy the night-life on Fifth Avenue in downtown Naples.

The sun sets at 7:35 pm tonight, which is in ten minutes. Naples is still recovering from Hurricane Ian, with more residents returning and businesses re-opening each week. Many state parks and other venues are still closed. That is why each sunset should be enjoyed and celebrated, and should never be taken for granted.