Sombrero Beach is a public beach and park on the Atlantic side of Marathon in the Florida Keys, reached via Sombrero Beach Road. This guide covers hours, parking, accessibility, and practical visitor tips for planning your trip.
This guide was last updated in August 2026. The City introduced paid, camera-enforced parking at Sombrero Beach under Resolution 2023-33, so guides and reviews describing the beach as entirely free to park at are now out of date; many visitors are still caught off guard by the change.
Quick facts
| Opening hours | Daily, 7 am to dusk |
| Entry fee | Free |
| Parking | $5 for the first two hours, then $2 per hour; free for registered Marathon and Key Colony Beach residents |
| Address | Sombrero Beach Road, Marathon, Florida 33050 |
| Nearest transport | Personal vehicle recommended; Florida Keys Marathon International Airport is about 10 minutes away |
| Typical visit length | 2 to 4 hours |
Sombrero Beach opening hours
Sombrero Beach is open daily, seven days a week, from 7 am until dusk, with no seasonal variation to these hours. There is no gate or ticket booth at the entrance.
During sea turtle nesting season, from April through October, the City may limit access to small, marked-off sections of sand where active nests are located; the rest of the beach stays open as usual.
Sombrero Beach ticket prices
There is no fee to enter Sombrero Beach. This was checked on the official website and last updated in August 2026: Sombrero Beach, City of Marathon.
Parking now costs $5 for the first two hours and $2 per hour after that, payable through a pay station or mobile app; the system is camera enforced, and unpaid parking results in a $90 fine, reduced by half if paid within 15 days. Permanent and part-time residents of Marathon or Key Colony Beach can register their vehicle with the City to park free, though vehicles owned by a trust or LLC do not qualify. There is no overnight parking, and trailers left overnight are towed. Sombrero Beach is not included in any bundled city pass scheme such as Go City or CityPASS.
5 great Key West experiences to book
- 🛶 Look for wildlife in the mangroves on a guided kayaking tour.
- 👻 Go on a ghosts and mysteries tour and discover Key West’s dark side at night.
- 🐬 Combine dolphin-watching and snorkelling on a half day adventure.
- 🍴 Take a cultural food tour and learn about Keys heritage as you eat and drink.
- 🍹 Explore lesser-known bars on a craft cocktail crawl.
How to get to Sombrero Beach
From US 1 at Mile Marker 50, turn onto Sombrero Beach Road and follow it about 1.9 miles to its end, where the beach and parking areas begin. Florida Keys Marathon International Airport is roughly 10 minutes away, making Marathon a convenient base for exploring the Middle Keys. Many, however, visit as part of a Florida Keys road trip from Miami to Key West.
There is no public transit stop directly at the beach, though a bike path runs alongside Sombrero Beach Road from US 1, making it reachable by bicycle from elsewhere in Marathon.
Parking at Sombrero Beach
Parking runs along both sides of Sombrero Beach Road and the circle at its end, with fees charged per the current camera-enforced system. There are no RV or bus parking spaces at this location, and golf carts are treated the same as regular vehicles for fee purposes.
Kayakers can drop off equipment at the circle before parking in one of the marked spaces along the road.
How long to spend at Sombrero Beach
Most visitors spend 2 to 4 hours at Sombrero Beach, enough time for swimming, a walk along the sand, and use of the picnic and playground areas. Its shady park setting makes it comfortable for a longer stay than some of the more exposed Keys beaches.
Families combining a beach visit with a picnic or a game of volleyball often treat it as a half-day outing. Snorkellers and divers heading out to Sombrero Reef sometimes start or end their trip with a swim here as well.
Accessibility at Sombrero Beach
Sombrero Beach underwent a full redevelopment in 2001 to provide total handicap accessibility, including a wide, flat path from the parking area to the sand and water.
Accessible restrooms and showers are available on-site as part of the same redevelopment.
At Sombrero Beach
Sombrero Beach is a rare stretch of true sandy shoreline in the Florida Keys, made of soft coral sand rather than the silty marl typical of most Keys beaches. The Atlantic-facing beach frames a shady park with picnic pavilions, a playground, volleyball courts, restrooms, and showers, and a kayak launch area is located near the circle at the end of the road.
Offshore, the Sombrero Key Lighthouse marks a popular reef for snorkelling and diving. From April through October, the beach also serves as a nesting site for loggerhead sea turtles, with the City surveying the sand for new nests and marking off any active ones, which typically make up less than 10% of the beach’s total area. The remainder stays open to visitors throughout nesting season.
Practical visitor tips
| Tip | Detail |
|---|---|
| Timing | Arrive early on weekends and holidays, since the parking areas fill up quickly. |
| Crowds | The beach draws large crowds on weekends and during Marathon’s spring events. |
| Layout | Parking lines both sides of Sombrero Beach Road, with the beach and park at the road’s end. |
| Entry process | There is no gate; pay for parking at a station or app once you’ve found a spot. |
| On-site logistics | Bring a card or phone for the parking app, since the system no longer accepts cash on-site. |
Frequently asked questions about Sombrero Beach
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Is Sombrero Beach free to visit? | Yes, entry is free, though parking now carries a fee under the City’s camera-enforced system. |
| Are there lifeguards at Sombrero Beach? | No. There are no lifeguards on duty, so swimming is at the visitor’s own risk. |
| Are dogs allowed at Sombrero Beach? | Yes, on a leash; it’s one of the few dog-friendly beaches in the area. |
| Is RV or bus parking available? | No. There are no RV or bus parking spaces at Sombrero Beach. |
| Is Sombrero Beach wheelchair accessible? | Yes, following a 2001 redevelopment that added a wide, flat path to the water. |
Things to do near Sombrero Beach
- Crane Point Hammock & Museum: a nature centre and historic site, about 10 minutes’ drive.
- The Turtle Hospital: a working sea turtle rehabilitation centre offering tours, roughly 10 minutes away.
- Dolphin Research Center: an interactive dolphin facility, about 10 minutes’ drive.
- Curry Hammock State Park: a beach and nature park a short drive north on US 1.
- Sombrero Reef: a popular snorkelling and diving reef offshore, reachable by boat tour.
What to visit tomorrow
- Anne’s Beach: a boardwalk beach in Islamorada with shallow water and picnic pavilions, about 50 minutes away.
- Bahia Honda State Park: a beach often ranked among Florida’s best, roughly 15 to 20 minutes’ drive.
- Harry Harris Park: a beach and picnic park in Tavernier, about an hour’s drive.
- Higgs Beach: a palm-lined Key West beach with a wooden pier, roughly 50 minutes away.
- Smathers Beach: Key West’s largest public beach, about 50 minutes’ drive.
More Florida Keys travel
Other Florida Keys travel guides on Planet Whitley include:
- Know the differences between the Mel Fisher Maritime Museum and the Key West Shipwreck Treasure Museum.
- How to spend three days in Key West – including the Hemingway Home and Museum, Harry Truman’s Little White House and a cruise to Dry Tortugas National Park.
- What to expect at Key West Aquarium.
- Key West beach guides: Fort Zachary Taylor Historic State Park and Smathers Beach.
- Can you go inside the Key West Lighthouse?
