boardwalk down to seagrove beach in 30a, florida

Seagrove Beach: Your 30A Launchpad

June 1, 2021

Seagrove Beach on Scenic Highway 30A is a place where worlds collide in the best (and breeziest) way possible. It’s where crystal clear water meets sugar-white sand, palmettos and pines surround tastefully developed town centers, old and new collide, and people from all walks of life come to enjoy one of the Florida Panhandle’s best beach vacation destinations. 

Seagrove Beach is ideally located halfway on Scenic Highway 30A, between Dune Allen Beach at the west end and Rosemary Beach at the other. This makes it a central launchpad with opportunities for mini-day trips along 30A to surrounding beach communities, town centers, and natural areas.

So, whether you want to go biking among towering pines or you want to scarf down the best shrimp po boy of your life, there’s something for everyone in Seagrove Beach. Here are our top 4 must-do’s when you stay at Seagrove along Scenic 30A.

Visit the Village Market

If Seagrove is central to 30A, Seagrove’s Village Market is the bona fide nucleus of it all. In other words, this little—yet downright legendary—market has for over 70 years served as an iconic town center for the community. It’s a place where, back in the day, folks would come from far and wide for gas, groceries, and gossip. For many years, it was the home of the community’s only pay phone. And since its opening in the late 1940s, the Seagrove Village Market Cafe—or the “Market” as locals call it—has been dishing out deep-fried love with all the mastery of a Michelin-starred restaurant yet without all the stuffy accolades. In other words, they do things right at the Market. Time and time… and time again, decade after decade. 

The Shrimp Po Boy is what most people (understandably!) write home about. But the entire menu is worth sampling—from seafood baskets to the Famous Grouper, even to the “turf” side of things with half-pound burgers and Fried Green Tomato BLTs. But two things you CAN’T miss are the fried shrimp and the hushpuppies. You can thank us later! 

Hit the Beach 

They don’t call it the Emerald Coast for nothing. The water along Scenic Highway 30A’s 26-mile coastline is nothing short of mesmerizing, spectacular, life-affirming, life-changing! Whatever superlative you choose, this much is true: when you come to Seagrove, you come for the beach. And for over 70 years, Seagrove’s sugar-white sand beach has consistently over-delivered the goods. 

First, let’s talk technical details. One thing that makes the beach here so incredible is that the Seagrove Beach community offers more public beach access points than all other 30A neighborhoods. Sprinkled along its 2-mile stretch of sugar-white sands are no less than 25 beach access points. So, getting there is easy, and staying there is even easier. The water is as pristine as the Gulf of Mexico gets; it’s clear, warm, and welcoming. And the sands are snow-white, clean, and wide. Plus, the area’s palmettos, pines, and natural greenery make for a stunning and relaxing backdrop. Whether you want to SUP, body surf, or just soak up some rays, Seagrove Beach is as good as it gets. 

Get Outdoors

As any lifelong local or visitor will tell you, the beach is only one part of Seagrove’s world-class nature scene. The area is also home to four state parks, many miles of greenway trails, rare coastal dune lakes, and glorious nature trails for biking and hiking. 

Only about a mile from Seagrove Beach up County Highway 395, the sprawling 15,000-acre Point Washington State Forest envelopes the area with longleaf sandhill pines, wet flatwoods, and cypress swamps. The crown jewel recreation experience within this forest is the Eastern Lake Trail System. With options of a 3.5-, 5-, or 10-mile loop, this trail system is great for hikers, trail runners, and even mountain bikers looking to get a nice morning sweat session before a day at the beach.

Or if paddling is more your speed, nearby Grayton Beach State Park offers access to the oh-so scenic Western Lake—a 100-acre coastal dune lake where canoeists and kayakers can get up close and personal with the native saltwater marsh ecosystem. 

Other Classic Seagrove Experiences 

Of course, Seagrove doesn’t stop at the beach, the outdoors, and shrimp po boys. There’s a near-endless list of things to do in the area. From bicycling along the well-worn and wonderful Timpoochee Trail, to fine dining at the can’t-miss Café Thirty-A, there’s something that will surprise and delight every member of the family. Catch some live music (and some fresh catches!) at Old Florida Fish House. Or pick up some local fare from the Market Café and head back to your beautiful beachside villa to cook and play games with the entire family. 

No matter how you spend your time in Seagrove, you won’t regret it!

Book your Seagrove Beach vacation rental with Scenic Stays today.

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