Events & What’s Happening
Spring festival celebrating the start of beach season with sand sculpting competitions, live entertainment, food vendors, and family-friendly activities on the public beach.
💡The sand sculpting contest is a highlight for kids — bring your own buckets and shovels to join informal building nearby.
Annual springtime festival at Meyer Park featuring boiled crawfish, local food vendors, live Cajun and Gulf Coast music, and outdoor activities for all ages.
💡Kids who have never tried crawfish often enjoy the interactive boil demos — staff are happy to teach little ones how to peel them.
Major three-day beachfront music festival featuring top national acts across multiple stages on the white sands of Gulf Shores.
💡Family four-packs are available; younger kids do best on Friday when crowds are thinner and daytime heat is manageable.
The U.S. Navy Blue Angels perform their world-famous precision flight demonstration visible from Gulf Shores beaches and nearby Pensacola Beach during the annual Pensacola Beach Air Show.
💡Watch from Gulf Shores State Park beach for a free, uncrowded alternative to the Pensacola side; bring sunscreen and snacks.
One of the largest outdoor festivals in the Southeast, celebrating Gulf seafood with live music, arts and crafts, and plenty of shrimp dishes along the beach.
💡Arrive early on Saturday morning to snag a shaded spot and hit the kids' activity area before lines build up.
Free beachfront airshow featuring military and civilian aerobatic performers, static aircraft displays, and fly-overs above the Gulf of Mexico.
💡Bring ear protection for young children as the jet noise is intense; stake out a spot on the public beach early for the best viewing.
Gulf Shores' beloved holiday parade through downtown featuring lighted floats, school marching bands, local businesses, and a visit from Santa Claus.
💡Grab a spot along Gulf Shores Parkway at least 30 minutes early; bring a bag for the copious candy thrown from floats.
Weekly Saturday market at Gulf Shores City Hall featuring local produce, Gulf seafood, baked goods, handmade crafts, and food vendors.
💡Go before 10am for the best selection and cooler temperatures; many vendors offer free samples kids love.
Free weekly story time at the Gulf Shores Public Library for toddlers and preschoolers, featuring themed books, songs, and a simple craft activity.
💡Perfect rainy-day escape; check the library's Facebook page ahead of time for themed weeks so kids can dress up.
Free interpretive programs led by Gulf State Park rangers covering local wildlife, dune ecosystems, and beach ecology along the 6,150-acre park.
💡Programs fill up fast in summer — register at the park's Nature Center the morning of; kids 5 and up are most engaged.
The Hangout restaurant and beach bar hosts free outdoor live music on the beach on Friday evenings throughout the warmer months, welcoming families early in the evening.
💡Families are welcome before 8pm; grab a table on the beach deck early and let kids play in the sand while you enjoy the music.
Planning Your Visit
Neighborhoods & Areas
Local Tips for Families
- 💡The Gulf State Park fishing pier charges $10 for adults and $5 for children under 12 to fish, but walking the pier without fishing is free — it's one of the best vantage points for spotting pelicans, stingrays in the shallows, and the occasional dolphin, and costs nothing for families who just want to walk it.
- 💡Arrive at Gulf State Park's main beach access before 8am during June, July, and August to claim a premium spot near the dune walkovers — by 10am the beach parking area fills and rangers begin diverting cars. The park's beach tends to be less packed than the Gulf Place public beach even on peak days.
- 💡The National Shrimp Festival held annually on the second weekend of October at Gulf Place draws over 250,000 attendees over four days, effectively tripling Gulf Shores' population — if you're visiting that weekend, book accommodations 6-9 months out and expect traffic on AL-59 to back up past the Foley Beach Express toll road.
- 💡Lulu's at Homeport Marina, owned by Jimmy Buffett's sister Lucy Buffett, has a dedicated kids' activity area with a climbing structure and sand play zone adjacent to the outdoor dining area — families with toddlers can let kids burn energy while waiting for food, making it far more manageable than most waterfront restaurants in town.
- 💡The Foley Beach Express (toll road connecting Foley to Gulf Shores) costs $3.25 each way but cuts bypass time significantly compared to AL-59 during summer — keep cash or a SunPass transponder handy if you're driving from the north, as the toll plaza does not accept all electronic payment methods.
- 💡Gulf State Park's Lake Shelby swimming beach on the freshwater lake side of the park is almost always less crowded than the Gulf beach and has lifeguards on duty during summer — it's an excellent alternative for families with very young toddlers nervous about Gulf waves, and it's included in the standard vehicle admission fee.
- 💡The Gulf Shores Public Beach pavilion's outdoor showers and rinse stations on the east end of Gulf Place are free and open 24 hours — locals use these to rinse off rather than the pay-to-use beach equipment rental shacks, which can run $40-60/day for chairs and umbrella.
- 💡Waterville USA's height requirements start at 42 inches for the larger slides — measure your kids before paying admission ($45-55/person in 2025 pricing) since children under 42 inches are limited to the children's area only, which may not justify full-price tickets for the youngest kids in your group.