Big Lagoon State Park was amazing. We went there last fall and enjoyed it tremendously. We are hoping to get a campground hosting position there in 2015. Sadly, we cannot get back there until then because we are booked up with assignments in other areas of Florida until then. Anyway, the park is located in the southern part of the Northwest area of Florida. Just a couple of miles from the Alabama border. It has lots of camping spots of various sizes, most with sand or dirt drives. There are three large bathhouses spaced throughout the camping areas with a separate one for the Group/Youth campers at the very end. The campground is situated in the middle of the park. The bathhouses are kept cleaned and supplied by the various assigned campground hosts. There is a nice sized children’s playground in the middle. And the middle bathhouse is not really wheelchair accessible but the other two are. There is plenty of hot water and the water pressure is just fine.
On the weekends the camping area fills up quickly so if you want to stay it is best to stay during the week. There is a long road leading down to the boat launch, then to the middle picnic, playground, and swimming area, you will pass a very large picnic pavilion that has its own bathroom facility, lots of picnic tables and a large stone fireplace on one side and huge barbecue grilling station on the other. Still, further down the road, you come across the large amphitheater building for concerts that sit right next to the inlet. And towards the end of that road is more picnic pavilions, canoe rentals and launch areas, fishing areas, and a viewing tower. We climbed to the top of the tower and took great shots of the entire area. And while we were there the Blue Angels buzzed our tower on their way home to the Pensacola Naval Air Station. We were not quick enough with our cameras to catch them as they passed us.
From the campground you can walk the trails, some sand paths, some through boarded walkways to the lagoon with more canoe and kayak rentals and launch area and finally over towards the inlet. It is a nice hike so bring some water, your camera or a set of binoculars to see the abundant wildlife. There is fishing in the lagoon from the boardwalk too. My daughter and I tried to catch a picture of a hawk with a mouse in its talons but he/she was too fast for us to catch a picture. There are some swampy areas and I am sure during the late spring and summer months you will have problems with bugs so bring plenty of Deep Woods Off. The late fall and early winter are a great time to go camping in Florida because there are fewer bugs and mosquitoes. We did try our hand at fishing here along the waterway from shore but we didn’t have any luck. The seagulls got most of our shrimp bait that day. But we had a good time sitting next to the water just enjoying the slowly sinking sun.
Big Lagoon State Park
12301 Gulf Beach Highway
Pensacola, FL 32507
(850)492-1595
https://www.floridastateparks.org/park/Big-Lagoon
Admission Fee:
$6.00 per vehicle. Limit 2-8 people per vehicle.
$4.00 Single Occupant Vehicle.
$2.00 Pedestrians, bicyclists, extra passengers, passengers in the vehicle with holder of Annual Individual Entrance Pass.
Boat Launch & Entrance Fees:
$10.00 for one person with a boat.
$12.00 for 2 – 8 people with a boat.
Camping Fee:
$20.00 per night, plus tax. Includes water and electricity. Florida residents who are 65 years of age or older or who hold a social security disability award certificate or a 100 percent disability award certificate from the Federal Government are permitted to receive a 50 percent discount on current base campsite fees. Proof of eligibility
Group Camping Available.
Picnic Pavilion Rental:
$75.00 per day, plus tax. Two are available at the east end of the park.
$150.00 per day, plus tax, Governor’s Pavilion at the West Beach day use area.
Amphitheater:
$150 + tax per day
RV/Trailer/Tent Camping
18 back-in 50amp 2
20 back-in 30amp 1
20 back-in 50amp 1
21 back-in 50amp 1
23 back-in 30amp 1
24 back-in 30amp 2
24 back-in 50amp 1
25 back-in 30amp 1
25 back-in 50amp 1
26 back-in 30amp 3
26 back-in 50amp 1
27 back-in 50amp 1
28 back-in 30amp 3
28 back-in 50amp 1
30 back-in 30amp 2
30 back-in 50amp 2
32 back-in 50amp 1
33 back-in 30amp 1
33 back-in 50amp 3
34 back-in 30amp 1
35 back-in 30amp 3
35 back-in 50amp 1
36 back in 30amp 3
36 back-in 50amp 1
37 back-in 30amp 1
38 back-in 30amp 4
38 back-in 50amp 1
39 back-in 50amp 1
41 back-in 30amp 1
41 back-in 50amp 1
42 back-in 30amp 1
42 back-in 50amp 1
43 back-in 30amp 1
44 back-in 30amp 1
44 back-in 50amp 1
45 back-in 30amp 2
45 back-in 50amp 2
46 back-in 30amp 2
47 back-in 30amp 1
48 back-in 30amp 1
48 back-in 50amp 1
55 back-in 30amp 1
57 back-in 30amp 1
57 back-in 50amp 1
58 back-in 30amp 1
58 back-in 50amp 1
60 back-in 50amp 1
65 back-in 50amp 1
WHERE TO GET WHAT YOU NEED
FOOD
Trigger’s Seafood Restaurant
12700 Gulf Beach Hwy
Pensacola, Fl 32507
www.triggersseafoodrestaurant.com
(850) 492-1897
Oyster Bar Restaurant & Marina
13700 River Rd
Pensacola, FL 32507
(850) 492-5600
http://oysterbar31.com
Sunset Grille
14050 Canal A Way
Pensacola, FL 32507
(850) 492-1063
(doesn’t have its own website)
The Original Point Restaurant
14340 Innerarity Point Rd
Perdido Key, FL 32507
(850) 492-3577
www.point-restaurant.com
Fisherman’s Corner
13486 Perdido Key Dr
Pensacola, FL 32507
(850) 791-6971
www.thefishermanscorner.com/ (website down 05/14/13)
Shrimp Basket
14600 Perdido Key Dr
Pensacola, FL
(850) 492-1970
www.shrimpbasket.com
The JellyFish Bar
13700 Perdido Key Dr
Perdido Key, FL 32507
(850) 332-6632
http://thejellyfishbar.com
GAS
Circle K 5073
13440 Perdido Key Dr
Pensacola, FL 32507
1.2 mi W
(850) 497-1630
http://circlek.com
Tom Thumb
12410 Sorrento Rd
Pensacola, FL 32507
1.8 mi N
(850) 492-1828
http://tomthumb.com
Sorrento Shell
12388 Sorrento Rd
Pensacola, FL 32507
1.9 mi N
(850) 492-1612
http://shell.com
Murphy USA
2941 S Blue Angel Pkwy
Pensacola, FL
4.3 mi NE
(850) 453-8104
http://murphyoilcorp.com
Chevron Station Lillian (Gas Prices in Ala less than FL)
33780 U.S. 98
Lillian, AL 36549
7.3 mi N
(251) 962-3600
http://chevronwithtechron.com
GROCERIES
Winn-Dixie in Park Plaza
13019 Sorrento Rd
Pensacola, FL 32507
0.7 mi NW
(850) 492-2076
http://winndixiegrocerystores.com
Publix Super Market at Shops At Perdido Key
13390 Perdido Key Dr
Pensacola, FL 32507
1.1 mi W
(850) 492-5090
http://publix.com
LAUNDRY
Blue Angel Laundry – We love this Place – Clean and Not too expensive
700 Giese Ln
Pensacola, FL 32506
7.4 mi NE
(850) 912-4552
http://blueangellaundry.com
PROPANE
U-Haul Moving & Storage Pensacola-Bellview
4921 Mobile Hwy
(N Of Fairfield Dr)
Pensacola, FL 32506
(850) 456-9248
http://uhaul.com
Busy Bee Storage LLC.
30241 U.S. 98
Elberta, AL 36530
(251) 947-8673
Doc’s RV Parkmore
17595 Alabama 180
Gulf Shores, AL 36542
(251) 968-4511
http://docsrvpark.com
MEDICAL CARE
Baptist Hospital
1000 West Moreno Street
Pensacola, FL 32501
13 mi NE
(850) 434-4011
http://ebaptisthealthcare.org
American Family Care
Urgent Care Clinics
5775 Perdido Beach Boulevard
Orange Beach, AL 36561
11 mi W
(251) 974-3004
http://americanfamilycare.com
Naval Hospital of Pensacola
6000 U.S. 98
Pensacola, FL 32512
8.7 mi NE
(850) 505-6601
http://med.navy.mil
Nemours Childrens Clinic
5153 N 9th Ave
Pensacola, FL 32504
16 mi NE
(850) 505-4700
http://nemours.org
SUPPLIES
Walmart
2951 S Blue Angel Pkwy
Pensacola, FL 32506
4.2 mi NE
(850) 458-5550
http://walmart.com
Target
2950 S Blue Angel Pkwy
Pensacola, FL 32506
4.5 mi NE
(850) 454-3000
http://target.com
Camping World
6242 Gulf Breeze Pkwy
Gulf Breeze, FL 32563
27 mi E
(850) 939-3484
http://campingworld.com
Camping World
21282 Alabama 59
Robertsdale, AL 36567
23 mi NW
(888) 445-5990
http://campingworld.com
Map of the Area
And here is our little movie from Big Lagoon State Park