Gulf Shores, Alabama
Gulf Shores, Alabama
West Beach puts you a short walk from the sand and about two miles from The Hangout, the restaurants and everything on the Gulf Shores Parkway. Head west on Highway 180 and the houses thin out, the dunes get taller, and the road runs out at Fort Morgan.
Our homes sit at both ends. Each one has the beach gear by the door, a full kitchen, and someone who knows the house and answers when you message.
Every one is stocked before you arrive and looked after by people who know it. Book direct on each home's page.
Leave only footprints. Take the rest home with you.
March to May
The beaches get busier as the days warm up. Spring is also one of the best times to see birds moving through the Fort Morgan peninsula.
June to August
The busy season, with the warmest water and the longest beach days. Sea turtles nest on these beaches from May through October, so gear comes off the sand each evening and lights stay low.
September to November
The crowds thin after summer. The National Shrimp Festival takes over the public beach for four days each October. Hurricane season runs through the end of November.
December to February
Quiet beaches, mild days and a lot of winter visitors from up north, many of them at the Gulf State Park campground. Good weeks for the bike trails and the fishing pier.
A few of the things we send guests to first. Ask us for the rest when you book.
About 6,150 acres between Gulf Shores and Orange Beach: two miles of beach, freshwater lakes, and a fishing pier that runs more than a quarter mile into the Gulf. About ten minutes from West Beach.
More than 28 miles of paved trail through the park's dunes, marsh and pine forest. Bring the bikes, or walk a loop from one of the trailheads.
Free to visit, on Highway 180 out toward Fort Morgan. The Pine Beach Trail ends at one of the quietest beaches on this coast. Trails are foot traffic only, and pets aren't allowed in the refuge.
A brick fort at the mouth of Mobile Bay, standing since 1834 and a National Historic Landmark. It sits at the end of the peninsula, a few minutes from Surfside Serenity.
Calm water behind the beach, easy going on a kayak or paddleboard. Outfitters on the lagoon rent both and run guided tours.
Catamaran sails out of Orange Beach go looking for dolphins in the bays, with sunset trips in the evening.
The Hangout on the public beach, LuLu's on the Intracoastal Waterway, and the Flora-Bama on the Florida line, each with bands most nights in season.
Blalock Seafood on the Gulf Shores Parkway sells local Gulf seafood and will steam it to order. Pick some up on the way back from the beach.
Drive times are routed from our West Beach homes. Allow about 25 minutes more to the Fort Morgan end.
Surfside Serenity is beachfront, with the dunes at the bottom of the stairs. Dragonfly and Sea Haven are on West Beach, about fifty steps from the sand.
Pensacola International (PNS) is about 75 minutes from our West Beach homes. Mobile International (BFM) is about 85 minutes. Add about 25 minutes for Surfside Serenity, out toward Fort Morgan.
No. Each of our Gulf Shores homes keeps beach chairs, umbrellas and a cooler ready for you, and most have a beach wagon to carry it all down.
Our Gulf Shores homes don't take pets, and the local beaches ask that pets stay off the sand.
It's the beach rule in Gulf Shores and Orange Beach. Chairs, tents, toys and anything else you carry down come back up with you at the end of the day, and holes get filled in. It keeps the beach clear for nesting sea turtles from May through October.
Every October, over four days at the public beach where Highway 59 meets East Beach Boulevard. Entry is free. It's one of the busiest weekends of the fall, so book early if you want to be there.
