Island Camping Fees, Cash Kiosks and Pet Rules

The campsite fee applies even if you sleep in your boat rather than on shore. Fees are due each day when you arrive.

Payment runs through the Recreation.gov app, so download it before you arrive. Harbor kiosks display scannable codes for docking and camping that you can read with your phone. Any vessel still in the harbor after six in the evening counts as an overnight stay, and both fees then apply.

Recreational vehicles are not permitted to camp anywhere in the park, so plan on a tent or on sleeping aboard your boat. Pets are permitted only at Convoy Point and Elliott Key, not at Boca Chita Key, even when your boat is tied up in the harbor. They are also barred from the Dante Fascell Visitor Center.

Boca Chita Key draws more visitors than any other island in the park. Its camping area is open grass running down to the water, with picnic tables and grills. The island has toilets, but nothing for washing up: no sinks or showers, and no drinking water, so pack in what you need. Elliott Key, the largest island, offers restroom buildings with cold showers, plus tables and grills in the campground and marina. Its campground lies on the bay side, and individual sites cannot be reserved, so they go to whoever arrives first.

Access to either island is only by boat, since no ferries run to the islands. A single campsite holds no more than two tents and six people. Elliott Key has drinking water outside the restroom building, though bringing your own supply is a sensible precaution in case the generator fails.