North Beach · painted for this minute from Fort De Soto Park’s own horizon and tonight’s cloud forecast
The sun is touching the horizon · overcast at 98% · low clouds 83% on the horizon
The sun goes down at
6:51 PM
T-00:05:00It drops behind land 193 m away to the west-south-west, 1 min before the official sunset time of 6:52 PM. Look west-south-west, to the left of North Beach. Golden hour starts at 6:19 PM.
Sunset Score · Overcast (99% cover): you may not see the sun go down. Try another night. Mid-level clouds (85%) that glow orange from underneath; low clouds (83%) along the horizon could hide the sun a few minutes early.
Prefer the real thing? Watch the live Fort De Soto County Park cam →
Know Before You Go
Entry
$5/vehicle
county tollbooth, cash or card
Fishing
2 free piers
Gulf pier + bay pier, no license at the park pier
Ranking
#1 US beach
voted multiple times by travel publications
No shops
bring food
snack bar only — pack a cooler for the full day
see you at sunset
Tonight’s times, the week ahead and the year by month are below. North Beach Sunset runs nightly, weather permitting, from about two hours before sunset.
Tonight, Wednesday, October 28, the sun sets at 6:52 PM at Fort De Soto Park. From the sand it drops behind land 633 feet away 1 min earlier, at 6:51 PM. Golden hour starts at 6:19 PM, and the sky stays light until about 7:15 PM. Tonight's Sunset Score is 3 out of 10. Overcast (99% cover): you may not see the sun go down. Try another night.
Sunrise today was at 7:40 AM, which gives Fort De Soto Park 11 hr 12 min of daylight. It is fully dark by about 7:42 PM.
The next seven evenings at Fort De Soto Park: when the sun goes down, when golden hour starts and when the last light fades, plus the Sunset Score from each night's cloud forecast.
| Day | Sunset | Golden hour | Last light | Cloud | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tonight | 6:51 PM | from 6:19 PM | 7:15 PM | 99% | 3/10 |
| Thu Oct 29 | 6:50 PM | from 6:18 PM | 7:14 PM | 68% | 6/10 |
| Fri Oct 30 | 6:49 PM | from 6:17 PM | 7:13 PM | 75% | 6/10 |
| Sat Oct 31 | 6:48 PM | from 6:16 PM | 7:12 PM | 100% | 3/10 |
| Sun Nov 1 | 5:48 PM | from 5:15 PM | 6:12 PM | 100% | 3/10 |
| Mon Nov 2 | 5:47 PM | from 5:14 PM | 6:11 PM | 4% | 5/10 |
| Tue Nov 3 | 5:46 PM | from 5:14 PM | 6:10 PM | 7% | 5/10 |
On nights the sun drops behind land, the table shows the time it disappears from the beach, which is earlier than the official sunset.
Tonight the sun goes down in the west-south-west (256° on a compass), to the left of North Beach as you face the water. The favorite place to watch is North Beach.
Tonight’s timeline for North Beach Sunset is at the top of this page.
Can’t make it to the beach? Watch the live Fort De Soto County Park cam at sunset.
The spot where the sun sets moves along the horizon through the year. Around June 21 it goes down furthest north, in the west-north-west (295°); around December 21 it goes down furthest south, in the west-south-west (244°). In June it drops behind land 131 feet away. In December it sets over open water.
Golden hour tonight runs from 6:19 PM to sunset at 6:52 PM. The sun is low, the light is warm and soft, and shadows are long. It is the best time for photos of people on the beach.
Blue hour follows, from about 7:05 PM to 7:24 PM, when the sun is below the horizon and the sky turns deep blue. The first lights come on along the shore and the water holds the last of the color.
Sunrise, sunset and daylight on the 15th of each month. Over the next year the earliest sunset is 5:37 PM (Tue Dec 1) and the latest is 8:32 PM (Thu Jul 1). Times are local and include daylight saving time where it applies.
| Month | Sunrise | Sunset | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|
| October 2026 | 7:32 AM | 7:04 PM | 11 hr 32 min |
| November 2026 | 6:53 AM | 5:41 PM | 10 hr 47 min |
| December 2026 | 7:15 AM | 5:40 PM | 10 hr 24 min |
| January 2027 | 7:24 AM | 5:59 PM | 10 hr 35 min |
| February 2027 | 7:10 AM | 6:23 PM | 11 hr 13 min |
| March 2027 | 7:42 AM | 7:40 PM | 11 hr 58 min |
| April 2027 | 7:08 AM | 7:56 PM | 12 hr 49 min |
| May 2027 | 6:44 AM | 8:14 PM | 13 hr 30 min |
| June 2027 | 6:36 AM | 8:29 PM | 13 hr 53 min |
| July 2027 | 6:46 AM | 8:30 PM | 13 hr 44 min |
| August 2027 | 7:03 AM | 8:11 PM | 13 hr 8 min |
| September 2027 | 7:17 AM | 7:38 PM | 12 hr 21 min |
The official sunset time is when the top of the sun sinks below a flat sea horizon. We also check Fort De Soto Park’s real horizon: the hills, headlands and islands you can see from the sand. When land is in the way, the sun disappears before the official time, and we show you that earlier time. The Sunset Score rates how colorful the sky should be from the cloud forecast at sunset. Buildings are not included, so a tall hotel beside you can still hide the last minute.
The sun sets at 6:52 PM at Fort De Soto Park today (Wednesday, October 28). From the beach it drops behind land 1 min earlier, at 6:51 PM.
The sun rose at 7:40 AM at Fort De Soto Park today.
11 hr 12 min of daylight, from 7:40 AM to 6:52 PM.
Golden hour at Fort De Soto Park runs from 6:19 PM to sunset at 6:52 PM, when the sun is low and the light turns warm and soft. Blue hour follows, from 7:05 PM to 7:24 PM.
The sky stays light enough to see without a flashlight until about 7:15 PM, the end of civil twilight. It is fully dark by about 7:42 PM.
Tonight's Sunset Score is 3 out of 10, from the cloud forecast at sunset. Overcast (99% cover): you may not see the sun go down. Try another night.
Tonight the sun sets in the west-south-west, at 256° on a compass. Through the year it moves between the west-north-west in June and the west-south-west in December.
Not tonight. The sun drops behind land 633 feet away, to the west-south-west.
Over the next year the earliest sunset at Fort De Soto Park is 5:37 PM on Tuesday, December 1, and the latest is 8:32 PM on Thursday, July 1.
North Beach is the favorite spot at Fort De Soto Park. Get there 30 to 45 minutes before sunset for a good place, and stay 20 minutes after for the afterglow.
Yes. The Fort De Soto County Park live cam shows Fort De Soto Park in real time, linked from this page.
| Pass-a-Grille sunset | 4 mi | 6:52 PM |
|---|---|---|
| Anna Maria Island sunset | 6 mi | 6:52 PM |
| St. Pete Beach sunset | 7 mi | 6:52 PM |
| Treasure Island sunset | 11 mi | 6:52 PM |
| Bradenton Beach sunset | 11 mi | 6:52 PM |
| Madeira Beach sunset | 13 mi | 6:52 PM |
See every beach on one map: sunset times tonight across the US →