the beach today
Gulf Coast Guide

Siesta Key

Powder Sand

Everything for a barefoot day on the powder-white sand. Conditions, parking, the Sunday drum circle sunset and where to eat after.

Today on the Sand

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Water Temp

84°

warm · gentle surf

UV Index

9

very high · 10am–4pm

Beach Crowd

Busy

holiday weekend

Beach Toolkit

Pick Your Sand

north to south

Siesta Beach

World-famous powder-white quartz sand

Big free lot · lifeguards

Crescent Beach

Quieter sand just south of the main

Walk from Siesta lot

Point of Rocks

Snorkeling & limestone outcrops

South Crescent · reef

Turtle Beach

Shelly sand · campground & boat ramp

Free lot · south end

Palmer Point

Wild, secluded tip of the key

Walk-in · no lot

Siesta Village

Beach-town shops, bars & sand access

Trolley · paid lots

Dolphin Cruises

Open →

Compare daily sails from the marina — wild dolphins on nearly every trip.

Beyond the Beach

day trips

Sarasota

15 min east

Ringling Museum, St. Armands & bayfront

Lido Key

20 min north

St. Armands Circle & wide flat sand

Longboat Key

30 min north

Quiet, upscale barrier island

Venice

30 min south

Shark teeth, the jetty & Old Florida

see you on the sand

Water temp, surf and UV are live from NOAA & Open-Meteo; sunset is computed locally for Siesta Key. Crowd level is a weekday/weekend estimate.

Right now at Siesta Key, the water is 89°F, surf is running 0–1 ft and the air is 84°F but feels like 91°F. Wind is 12 mph from the WNW and the UV index peaks at 8 (very high) today. Unprotected fair skin burns in about 29 minutes right now, and the strongest stretch runs 12 PM to 3 PM. Today’s tides: High 12:56 AM, Low 7:45 AM, High 2:22 PM, Low 7:25 PM. Whether dogs are allowed here depends on which part of the beach you are on.