GASPARILLA ISLAND STATE PARK

By  Mike Miller June 12, 2025

Gasparilla Island State Park sits on the southern tip of Gasparilla Island in Boca Grande, Florida. It features beaches along the Gulf and Boca Grande Pass.

The restored Port Boca Grande Lighthouse, built in 1890, houses a museum. Visitors enjoy swimming, fishing, shelling, and picnicking.

The park offers trails and wildlife viewing. It’s a peaceful retreat for nature lovers.

The park’s centerpiece is the Port Boca Grande Lighthouse, constructed in 1890. It guided ships through Boca Grande Pass for phosphate shipping.

The U.S. Lighthouse Service operated it until 1966. The Coast Guard closed it, and it fell into disrepair.

Lee County received it in 1972, and it joined the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. The state restored it in 1986, relighting it as a navigational aid.

The island’s name ties to the legendary pirate José Gaspar, though historians suggest the name came from a Spanish missionary, Gasparillo, in 1777. Phosphate shipping thrived here until the 1970s. 

The park is at 880 Belcher Road, Boca Grande, Florida 33921. From I-75, take Exit 164 to SR 776, then follow CR 771 to the Boca Grande Causeway.

The park is open daily from 8 AM to sunset. The lighthouse museum operates Wednesday to Monday, 11 AM to 4 PM, November to July, and September to October, but closes in August and on Tuesdays.

Check their website for closures. Call 941-964-0375 for beach wheelchair reservations. Pets are allowed but not on beaches or in the lighthouse.

Bring sunscreen and water, as shade is limited. Check warning flags for swimming conditions. 

• The lighthouse uses a 5th-order Fresnel lens for navigation.  

• Boca Grande Pass is the deepest natural harbor in Florida at 80 feet.  

• The park protects nesting sites for loggerhead and green sea turtles.  

• A quarantine house from 1895 stands near the lighthouse.  

• The museum displays fossils and artifacts from ancient island inhabitants.  

• The island was a major phosphate shipping hub in the early 1900s.  

• Banyan Street’s canopy of trees, planted in 1915, is a short drive away.  

• The park’s beaches are known for having prehistoric shark teeth.

GASPARILLA ISLAND STATE PARK WEBSITE