What It’s Really Like Camping at Bahia Honda State Park
- Lisa Kelley, Native Floridian
- Jan 1
- 7 min read
Bahia Honda State Park is one of those dreamy spots everyone fantasizes about. The water is stunning, the park is rich with history, and the Florida Keys setting is like a postcard come to life. Camping here feels like you've stumbled upon a hidden paradise, where you wake up just steps from both the Atlantic and Gulf waters. In many ways, it really is paradise.
The park is truly breathtaking and the waters around the Florida Keys are gorgeous. The park features a designated swimming area with clear, shallow waters, safely shielded from the numerous fishing boats. The historic Flagler railway serves as a picturesque backdrop. This is the iconic image of the Keys that you often see in photos and dream about. Whether you're on the shore or in the nearby waters, the area is rich in captivating history, including remnants of Henry Flagler’s Overseas Railroad.
But Bahia Honda camping, as it turns out, comes with a price.
There are three distinct camping areas, each providing a unique experience.
The Buttonwood sites are the most sought-after, accommodating larger RVs and offering the best views. Reservations are highly competitive and are usually booked up 11-months in advance by Florida residents. Reservations open 10-months in advance for out-of-state visitors. Be advised the person who made the reservation must be in the campsite for the duration of the stay. Rangers verify occupants on a regular basis and cheaters will be evicted and banned.
The Bayside sites are intended for primitive camping and cabins, but accessing them requires passing under a low bridge (US 1 Overseas Hwy) with a maximum clearance height of 6'4". This is very low! On a previous stay we worried our truck might not make it and the kayaks in the bed of the truck had to be re-adjusted to be sure they could make it under without damage.
The Sandspur Beach area is ideal for smaller RVs (less than 23 feet in length from hitch to bumper), tents, and pop-ups. If you have a larger set up, this is not the camping area for you.
Bathhouses and Access Issues
The park includes clean, well-maintained restrooms throughout the park. They include restrooms and showers for men and women, and family showers for guests requiring assistance.
Visitors should familiarize themselves with the daily cleaning schedule of the campground bathhouse to avoid inconvenience. During our recent stay at the Buttonwood area, mid-morning visits to the bath house often coincided with cleaning times. Unfortunately, the facilities cannot be used during the cleaning periods, which can pose challenges. On a previous visit, we enjoyed primitive camping at Bayside, which features a small, clean restroom but no shower facilities. Showering required a drive to the Buttonwood bathhouse each day.
It's crucial to remember that outside the campgrounds, the public restrooms remain closed until the park opens at 8 a.m. This schedule may affect early morning activities like hiking the old Flagler Overseas Railway Bridge to watch the sunrise, which we highly suggest. To ensure a comfortable experience during your morning adventures, remember to use the campground restroom before starting your day.
Campsite Considerations for Your Visit
As you plan your trip, it's helpful to become familiar with the camping areas. Even though it's tough to score a campsite at this park, there are a few sites I would exclude from consideration. Some of these are sites are located adjacent to the bathhouse and other facilities. For instance, our friend had site 38 which is adjacent to the RV dump station and near the trash dumpster. This situation attracted a variety of wildlife, including rats, promoted heavy foot traffic near their tent, and Truck/RV noise in the early mornings as people utilized the dump station.
Another site (37) was positioned very close to the bathhouse, which compromised privacy. It is not on the below map which makes me think it may only be assigned to guests in special situations. The pathway to the ladies room completely overlooked this site. For some unknown reason, one night a tent camper did not use a rainfly cover and they had zero privacy. I did notice that this site never had anyone stay too long, maybe that was because of the temporary arrangement or maybe due to the constant bath house lights and sounds.
To have the best experience, consider selecting a site that offers more distance from these amenities. But hey, if you don't score a better site just know that some sites come with disruptions.
The Sounds of the Keys
Bahia Honda is a small island, and geography matters. With nothing substantial to block sound, noise travels very far. The Overseas Highway runs right through the park, and traffic doesn’t stop when the sun goes down. All night long, you will hear the steady hum of vehicles passing by. It’s not overwhelming, but it is constant. If you’re a light sleeper or someone who dreams of total silence while camping, this is something to consider. This is camping on a busy island, not in a place with backcountry solitude.
The Rats: the reality no one warns you about!
The Keys are islands, and the wildlife reflects that. At Bahia Honda, rats are plentiful and bold. They live in the trees and come down at night, moving confidently through campsites. These are not shy creatures, they are not afraid of people, and if you sit still long enough they will come close. Shockingly close!
While playing cards at the picnic table at night, the rats were darting in and out of the vegetation and one came within a few feet of us. It was calmly investigating the area until we made enough noise to scare it away. But, scaring it once wasn't enough, the rat was bold enough to try to reach the table several times. Also, because we are tent campers, you could hear the rats running against the outside of our tent all night long, their movement unmistakable. If you think you might find safe refuge in an RV, think again. One neighboring RV camper had a rat jump onto the roof and attempt to enter through the air conditioning unit in the middle of the night. We also noticed many campers tried using lights under their RV to scare them away but we are not sure if this works or just deters them until they get used to the lights.
This isn’t meant to scare, just to inform. Like camping in any area, proper food storage is essential, and campers need to be mentally prepared for wildlife encounters that feel a bit more… personal than expected.
Pigeon Poop
If you manage to chase away the rats at night, you should stay vigilant during the day for potential pigeon invasions. We observed flocks of pigeons taking over campsites, and they were seemingly impossible to chase away. The site across from us became a pigeon haven, and at one point, the camper packed up most of their belongings to keep them free from droppings. Not all sites experienced this, and while I’m not sure if pigeons only favor certain sites, be aware that they can overtake your site and leave plenty of droppings behind. We had to remain alert in the afternoons to shoo them away.
Fishing Under Shark Bridge
There were a lot of fish under the bridge, but we had to race against the sharks to get them in the boat. One afternoon, we encountered two large bull sharks camping out just beneath us, waiting for the perfect moment to strike as we reeled in our catch. They were hungry, and falling overboard was definitely not advisable.
The fishing in this area is fantastic, but it is swarming with sharks. So much so that the bridge is often referred to as "Shark Bridge" by locals and frequent visitors. A simply youtube search of Bahia Honda Sharks, will provide you several videos of both very large Hammerheads and Bull Sharks. Shark Week even featured the area in their show "Monster Under the Bridge" where researchers searched the area to learn more about the largest known hammerhead shark that makes this area home.
Is It Worth It?
Despite these challenges, Bahia Honda State Park remains an incredible place to camp. The beauty is real. The water is magical. The fishing and history make it one of Florida’s most sought-after camping destinations.
But this is not a sanitized, resort-style experience. Camping in paradise means sharing it with road noise, wildlife (rats, no-see-ums, pigeons), and all the realities of island life. For many, that trade-off is absolutely worth it. For others, it’s helpful to know ahead of time what you’re signing up for.
If you go prepared, and expectations set, you may find that the price of paradise is one you’re happy to pay. If sharing an island with rats and other discomforts is troubling to you, maybe a day visit would be a more enjoyable way to enjoy this historic park.
Campers, just don’t say you weren’t warned.
Wishing you Warm Memories!
Florida Native Life
Here's a list of our favorite camping related items available on Amazon:
Chanel Cleeton’s The Last Train to Key West is a gripping historical novel that weaves together the stories of three women whose lives intersect in unexpected ways during the devastating 1935 Labor Day hurricane. It's an easy campground read that can be finished in just a couple of days (my read time was <6 hours).
No-see-ums are a real issue when camping in Florida, including at Bahia Honda. NoNats spray combined with lightweight long pants and shirts have proven very effective.
We enjoy using a variety of rechargeable lights
Rechargeable twinkle lights were a nice feature and provided the perfect amount of light to help navigate the dark campsite.
A rechargeable bottle lamp is both a cute and practical addition to the picnic table. When paced on top of a gallon of water the light dispersed perfectly over our dinner.
Although not used on this trip, we do find it very easy to recharge items by using a Jackery power pack.
Tent essentials
Placing moving blankets on the tent's floor provides protective and soft barrier to the hard island ground.
We prefer using a good mattress pad that providing both cushion and comfort. For this trip we tried an inflatable mattress and it was terrible. We returned it immediately and are sticking with our reliable mattress pad.
Instead of bringing blankets, we opt for two quality sleeping bags. We use oversized bags rated for the cold but are cozy for any weather.
After camping, we remove residual campfire odors from the tent by giving it a GearAid bath and setting it up to dry before storing it away.
A few other favorites
A percolator makes the best camp coffee. Although ours is an antique this would be my replacement percolator if we needed a new one.
Bahia Honda State Park does not provide in-ground fire rings. Any fire must be off the ground. Because we knew this in advance, we brought our solo stove and firewood. For added entertainment, we sprinkled some mystical flames into the fire - never a dull moment!
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