Best anchorages and harbours in Florida

Vilano Beach Anchorage

Anchorage on the Tolomato River near St Augustine, Florida, just off the Intracoastal Waterway on a sand bottom.

• Sheltered E, SW, W

Sunken Island

Anchorage off a spoil island in Hillsborough Bay, in the upper reaches of Tampa Bay, Florida.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W, SW

Oyster bay

Inner bay on the Wilderness Waterway within Everglades National Park, Florida, about 18 miles north of Flamingo via Whitewater Bay.

• Sheltered SE

Clearwater Beach North

Anchorage off Clearwater Beach on the Florida Gulf coast, on a mud bottom, between two marinas.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, E

Seaplane Basin

Anchorage in the Seaplane Basin at the south end of Davis Islands, Tampa, Florida, with a mud bottom.

• Sheltered NE

Coconut Grove Anchorage

Anchorage on the western side of Biscayne Bay off Coconut Grove, Miami, just outside the Dinner Key mooring field.

Canaveral Lock approach

Anchorage near the Canaveral Lock on the Canaveral Barge Canal, Brevard County, Florida, with a sand and mud bottom.

• Sheltered E, SE

Clearwater Beach South

Anchorage off Clearwater Beach on the Florida Gulf coast, on a mixed mud and weed bottom.

• Sheltered NW, NE, W, E, SW, SE

Bal Harbour Anchorage

Anchorage off Bal Harbour at the north end of Biscayne Bay, near Baker's Haulover Inlet, Florida, sand bottom.

• Sheltered E, SE

Bird Key (E)

Anchorage in the Manatee River off Snead Island, near the entrance to Tampa Bay in Florida. Sand and mud bottom, shelter from all directions.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W, E, SW, S, SE

Bird Key Harbor

Anchorage in Dry Tortugas National Park, about 68 miles west of Key West in the Gulf of Mexico, Florida.

Biscayne Bay

Daytime anchorage in Biscayne Bay near the Venetian Islands, off Miami, with the city skyline to the west.

• Sheltered E, SE, S, SW, W

Boca Chita Key

Anchorage off Boca Chita Key in Biscayne National Park, Florida, 22 miles south of Miami, with a mud and sand bottom.

• Sheltered NE, E, S, SE

Bokeelia

Anchorage off Bokeelia, the village at the northern tip of Pine Island, looking onto Charlotte Harbor and Pine Island Sound on the Florida Gulf coast.

• Sheltered NE, E, SE

Cabbage Creek

Mangrove creek anchorage off Little Harbor near Ruskin, on the east shore of Tampa Bay, Florida, on a mud bottom with all-round protection.

• Sheltered N, NE, E, SE, S, SW, W, NW

Cat Island

Anchorage in the Tongass Narrows near Ketchikan, southeast Alaska, on a rocky bottom and sheltered from W, SW and S winds.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W, E, SW, S, SE

Newfound Harbor anchorage

Anchorage in the lower Florida Keys off Big Pine Key, near the Newfound Harbor Keys and Coupon Bight.

• Sheltered NE, E, SE

Tierra Verde anchorage

Anchorage near Tierra Verde and Fort De Soto Park, at the mouth of Tampa Bay on Florida's Gulf coast.

• Sheltered N, NE, W, NW

Fisher Island

Anchorage in Biscayne Bay off South Beach, just inside Government Cut, with a sand bottom.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, S, SE

Golden Gate

Anchorage off Golden Gate Point, a peninsula on Sarasota Bay one block from downtown Sarasota, on the Florida Gulf coast.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, E, SE

Green cove North of port

Anchorage on the west bank of the St Johns River off Green Cove Springs, Florida, about 40 miles upriver from the ICW junction.

• Sheltered W, SW, S, SE

Gulfport

Anchorage off the town of Gulfport in Boca Ciega Bay, on the inland side of St Petersburg, Florida.

• Sheltered N, NE

Harbour Ile West

Anchorage off the ICW near Fort Pierce Inlet, eastern Florida, with a mud bottom and shelter from north and west winds.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W, E

Joes Cove

Anchorage on the Indian River near the St Lucie Inlet, off Hutchinson Island in Stuart, Florida. Sand bottom.

• Paid
• Sheltered E, SE, S, SW, W

Juno Ridge Anchorage

Anchorage in the lagoon off Old Port Cove, on Lake Worth at North Palm Beach, Florida, just inside the Intracoastal Waterway. Sand bottom, sheltered from north through east.

• Sheltered N, NE, E, W, NW

Key West Bight

Anchorage off the entrance to Key West Bight, Florida, on a sand bottom in the Old Town harbour.

• Sheltered W

Lake Santa Barbara

Anchorage in Lake Santa Barbara, a cove off the Intracoastal Waterway at Pompano Beach, Florida, with a mud bottom and shelter from NW, NE and SW winds.

• Sheltered NW, NE, SW

Little Shark

Mangrove anchorage at the mouth of the Little Shark River, near Cape Sable within Everglades National Park, Florida.

• Sheltered SE

Mandan

Anchorage off Key Largo in the upper Florida Keys, with a sand bottom in shallow water on the Florida Bay side.

• Sheltered NE, E, S, SE

New River Sound

Stretch of the Intracoastal Waterway through downtown Fort Lauderdale, Florida, just north of the New River mouth.

• Sheltered NW, N, NE, W, E, SW, S, SE