Private beaches are legal in Florida, but only partly. A beachfront owner’s property can extend down to the mean high water line, meaning the dry sand above that line can be privately owned. Everything seaward of it — the wet sand, the surf, and the water — belongs to the state and is open to the public. A 2025 law also strengthened the public’s ability to keep using privately owned dry sand for traditional recreation.
Where Public Beach Ends and Private Beach Begins
Florida draws the line between public and private beach at the mean high water line. Under Florida Code Section 177.28, that line separates “foreshore owned by the state in its sovereign capacity” from “upland subject to private ownership.”1Florida Senate. Florida Code 177.28 – Legal Significance of the Mean High-Water Line Mean high water is the average height of high tides calculated over a 19-year cycle, the standard the National Ocean Service uses to smooth out long-term tidal variations.2The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 177.27 – Definitions
On the ground, that line roughly tracks where the wet sand meets the dry sand on a typical day. Everything seaward of it is sovereign land held in trust for the public. The Florida Constitution puts it plainly: “the title to lands under navigable waters, within the boundaries of the state, which have not been alienated, including beaches below mean high water lines, is held by the state, by virtue of its sovereignty, in trust for all the people.”
So no matter whose house sits behind the dunes, you can walk the wet sand, swim, and fish. The contested territory is the dry sand above the line, which beachfront deeds often reach.
Public Use of Private Dry Sand: The Customary Use Doctrine
Private ownership of dry sand doesn’t automatically mean the public has to stay off it. Florida recognizes a doctrine called customary use, which allows continued public recreation on private dry sand where that use is long-established. The Florida Supreme Court set the test in its 1974 decision in City of Daytona Beach v. Tona-Rama, Inc., holding that the public keeps a right to use private dry sand when the recreational use has been “ancient, reasonable, without interruption and free from dispute.”3Florida Senate. SB 1622 Bill Analysis and Fiscal Impact Statement
The idea is simple. If a community has used a particular stretch of dry sand for generations without objection, the owner still holds title but can’t suddenly fence it off. Customary use covers traditional recreation — walking, sunbathing, fishing — not permanent structures, commercial events, or overnight camping on someone else’s land.
What the 2025 Law Changed
For several years, customary use was hard to establish in Florida. A 2018 law, HB 631, required local governments to prove customary use in court on a parcel-by-parcel basis before adopting an ordinance recognizing it.4Florida Senate. 2018 Bill Summary – CS/HB 631 – Possession of Real Property Most couldn’t afford that litigation, and beachfront owners could restrict access to their dry sand with little challenge.
In June 2025, Governor DeSantis signed Senate Bill 1622, repealing those restrictions.5Executive Office of the Governor. Governor Ron DeSantis Signs Legislation to Protect Local Beach Access and Expedite Coastal Restoration Local governments can again pass customary use ordinances without first winning a lawsuit against each affected owner. A beachfront homeowner who wants to block public access now has to go to court and show that the public does not have customary use rights over that specific stretch of beach.3Florida Senate. SB 1622 Bill Analysis and Fiscal Impact Statement The four-part Tona-Rama test still applies; the burden of proof simply sits on the owner trying to exclude the public rather than on the government trying to protect access.
The practical effect is a different default. Public access continues on traditionally used beaches unless a property owner successfully challenges it in court.
Beaches Rebuilt by Government Projects
One other wrinkle worth knowing: on beaches that have been widened by a government sand restoration project, any new land created by the project is subject to a public easement “for traditional uses of the sandy beach consistent with uses that would have been allowed prior to the need for the restoration project.”6Florida Senate. Florida Code 161.141 – Property Rights of Owners of Upland Property After Beach Restoration If people could walk and sunbathe on that stretch before the project, they can still do so on the restored beach, regardless of where the property line now sits.
When You Can Be Charged With Trespassing
If you’re on private dry sand where you aren’t welcome, you can face criminal charges. Under Florida law, trespassing on property — including private beach — is a first-degree misdemeanor when the area is posted with “No Trespassing” signs, fenced off, or the owner has told you to leave.7Justia. Florida Code 810.09 – Trespass on Property Other Than a Structure or Conveyance A first-degree misdemeanor carries up to one year in jail and a fine of up to $1,000.
Arrests on the beach are uncommon. Owners or security usually ask people to move, and most do. Refusing to leave after being told to is what tends to escalate a situation. If you see signs, ropes, or fences marking the dry sand as private, drop down to the wet sand, where your right to be there isn’t in question.
Customary use, where it applies, protects the kinds of casual recreation people have always done on those beaches. It doesn’t authorize building structures, running a business, or staying overnight on someone’s private sand.
How to Find Public Beach Access
Roughly 90% of Florida’s coastal access points are already public.8Florida Department of Environmental Protection. Florida Beach Access The Florida Department of Environmental Protection publishes a Coastal Access Guide and a State Parks Guide listing them, and county and city parks departments post maps of local entrances on their websites.
Public access points are maintained by local governments and typically include parking, a walkover, and clear signage. Some charge seasonal parking fees. If you’re new to a stretch of coast, entering through a designated public access point takes the guesswork out of it. From there you can walk the wet sand in either direction without worrying about where someone’s property line falls above you.