I participated in a triathlon at Fort Desoto Park and the setting was beautiful. Great Beach and the common grounds/facilities were clean. A lovely place to spend the day. more

As far as Florida beaches go, this is probably one of the best. It hasn't been overly developed as most Florida beaches have. There are plenty of long stretches, to walk on. The water is usually very clear and clean. A good place to go kayaking, and you can also rent them here. Being a West Coast person, I really... more

Great clean beaches, never crowded and usually only moderate waves. We take our dog there regularly to enjoy the at least 1/2 mile stretch of dog beach. Dogs are allowed to roam and swim freely in this area as long as they respond to voice commands and you "police" after them. It is a joy to bring your picnic lunch... more

What other reviewers don't mention is that Ft. deSoto is a great place--certainly one of the best on Florida's west coast, where birds arrive from Latin America-- for observing migrating birds in great numbers and varieties of species. I've no idea what the actual count is in an average year, but I've stopped there for an hour a couple of... more

Love Fort DeSoto area, a must see if you are in St. Petersburg or Tampa area! You can day-beach it, picnic, swim, camp or just sightsee at the fort and beaches. I won't hesitate to say, anyone can get something great out of going there, even if you are not a "beach" person. It's great for a driving tour, just... more

What a wonderful place. The kids and I went snorkeling! We found live sea urchins, conchs, sand dollars, and other species that I'm unsure of what they were. It was so wonderful not only to find some wonderful empty shells to take home, but to see all the sea life outside of an aquarium. The beach sections we visited were... more

Stopped for a few hours at North Beach on our way from Tampa to Ft. Myers. The beach were a very beautiful white powder and the park was very clean. Went during spring break timeframe, and it was not very crowded at all. It happened to be extremely windy that day, so we did not have idea beach conditions -... more

My husband and I went for a couple of days to Fort De Soto and we had a wonderful time. The park is in an island connected to the mainland of St. Petersburg and it has really good access. The camping area was nice and the facilities were clean, although a little bit old (and maybe rusty). We rented a... more

Fort DeSoto Park is a beautiful place. There are endless miles of beautiful beaches with picnic tables at the edge of the sand under palm trees or farther back in the grassy area. There are a couple of docks for fishing or taking excursions to nearby islands. There is a place to rent kyaks and to go kyacking in calm... more