Alabama Gulf Coast Accommodations, Restaurants, and Attractions
Alabama Gulf Coast Accommodations
At last count, there were 116 condos and resorts on the Alabama Gulf Coast in Gulf Shores and Orange Beach. In addition, there are hundreds of rental houses from one bedroom to many bedrooms, on the water's edge to sitting a block back or more. The closer to the water, or at least a view of the water, the more the rental fees. The resorts include those with golf courses or beaches. Some are just a few floors high, to genuine high-rises.
Moreover, there are numerous hotels, from those on the beach to those along Highway 59 or otherwise off the beach. And don't forget Gulf State Park, which has cabins, campsites, and a Hilton Hotel.
All together there are thousands of rooms and suites available for a few days, a week or longer stays.
For a complete list, visit Gulf Shores and Orange Beach Tourism.
Restaurants
From fast food restaurants to seafood shacks to elegant dining, there is a wide variety and hundreds of places to eat.
Gulf Shores and Orange Beach Tourism has a complete list.
On the Gulf State Park Pier
Attractions
See our pages for day trips and destinations for more information. Gulf Shores and Orange Beach Tourism has a list as well.
Gulf State Park
Lying between Gulf Shores and Orange Beach in Alabama is the 6,150-acre Alabama Gulf State Park. The park, which is divided by Alabama 182, includes a pier, a lodge, cabins and cottages, a nature center with live animals, and campgrounds. Since the 1940s, the park has offered relatively low-cost accommodations, but the lodge was irreparably damaged by Category 3 Hurricane Ivan in 2004. The lodge remained closed until the state raised funds and partnered with Hilton Hotels to rebuild it, allowing the new facility to open in the Spring of 2018.
The lodge, operated by Hilton Hotels, has a rather bland exterior – an architectural design that has a touch of Cold War Soviet design. Nevertheless, it offers guestrooms and suites and for its guests there are a fitness center, infinity pool, business center, tennis courts, and playgrounds for the kids. Its best feature is its location directly on the beach that overlooks the Gulf of Mexico.
Other indoor accommodations at the park include 2- and 3-bedroom cottages and simple cabins with multiple beds, located on the northern shore of the freshwater Shelby Lake across Highway 182 from the beach. There are 20 cabins and 11 cottages. You have to call (251) 948-7275 or (800) 252-7275 for cabin reservations and (251) 923-3900 for cottage reservations. For cabin and cottage guests, there is a swimming pool.
For those wanting a more adventurous accommodation, there are 11 primitive campsites, and 3 existing tents for rent at Outpost Campsites located at the head of the Cotton Bayou Trail. You have to walk to the campsites along a 1.5 mile-long trail. There are 496 RV pads at the campsite as well, with complete service hookups. Pets are allowed at the campsites and there is a dog park on the southern shore of Lake Shelby. A bit of humor, to my mind, is the sign at the small-dog section of the park that reads: “Don’t feed the alligators.” What do alligators find tasty? Yep. Small dogs.
The park provides 3 miles of sandy beaches for folks wanting to lay in the sun or bath in the surf, as well as picnic shelters on the shore of Shelby Lake. You can rent chairs and umbrellas, paddleboards, Segways, and bicycles, or go Geocaching or parasailing.
The park offers several restaurants, a concession stand on the beach, and a bar and grill at the pier.
There is a 25-mile paved path for hiking and biking, the Hugh S. Branyon Backcountry Trail. And there is an extensive dune restoration project, so keep off the sand dunes.
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A lemur at the Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo.
A baboon at the zoo.
Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo
Joey Ward of Gulf Shores opened the zoo as a private business under the name Zooland Animal Park in 1989. In 1991, the Ward family created a foundation to support the zoo and it became the Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo. In 2004, Hurricane Ivan headed toward the Gulf Coast, and zoo workers moved 282 of the animals to Zoo Director Patti Hall’s home in Elberta, Alabama. Twelve-foot flooding significantly damaged the zoo facility. Hundreds of trees were downed. And wind damaged many of the cages. As the staff was rebuilding the zoo, it was hit again by storms. It was 2005, and hurricanes Dennis and Katrina slammed into the park and evacuations were again required. Hall videotaped the evacuation in 2004, and Planet World cable channel gave the zoo its own reality TV show, “The Little Zoo that Could.”
It was a hit and resulted in more financial aid coming into the zoo for rebuilding. Clyde Weir and his daughter Andrea donated 25 acres for a new location. Consequently, the zoo moved to higher ground off Highway 59 across the Intracoastal Waterway. New facilities, amusement park rides, a gourmet restaurant, shopping, and other attractions were added. The zoo has over 500 exotic animals and reptiles, including lions, giraffes and tigers.
This is a great attraction for young children. The zoo offers up-close encounters with some of the animals for an extra charge, and a panning for gems activity. Resident at the zoo are brown femurs, grey wolfs, a pair of Bengal tigers, Bolivian squirrel monkeys, Serval cats from Africa, a black African leopard, a grey crowned crane, a sometimes noisy male African lion, among other animals, including farm animals such as billy goats and cows.
Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo
Hours: 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. Daily (Closed Thanksgiving, Christmas, & New Year's Day)
Entry Fee: $19.95 Adults • $16.95 Seniors • $14.95 Kids 3-12, Under 2 is free.
Address: 20499 Oak Road East, Gulf Shores, AL 36542
Phone number: 251-256-7008
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Diving the Alabama Gulf Coast
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Natural reefs are scarce and very deep on the Gulf Coast. So to enhance diving and fishing opportunities, the Alabama Marine Resources Division’s Artificial Reefs program and other organizations have sunk thousands of abandoned cars, out-of-commission ships, military tanks, bridges, and and other structures to create artificially what nature would have otherwise provided for scuba divers, snorkelers, and fishermen.
The total amount allocated by the state for artificial reefs is $11.8 million, money that has come from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. “Once that funding is exhausted,” Craig Newton, Alabama Marine Resources Division coordinator for the artificial reefs program, was quoted in an article published in the Florence, Ala., Courier-Journal in 2017, "we’ll have a much more connected ecosystem. We’ll have artificial reefs within the 9-mile state waters boundary” both offshore and inshore.
The state estimates there are about 10,000 artificial reef structures along the Alabama shoreline, many of them unpublished and about 10 percent of them available for public diving. This is the largest artificial reef system in the United States and it provides habitat for thousands of fish, including red fish, grouper, flounder, and trigger fish. Reef structures sink from six feet to over 120 feet deep. The shallower ones are at Pavilion, Romar Beach, and Alabama Point and are about 500 feet off shore and about 15 feet deep.
Public scuba diving spots include:
Wallace Reef, Sparkman Reef, and Allen Reef off Orange Beach are Liberty ships, 480 feet long and 75- to 80-feet wide. At Wallace, depth is 90-100 feet. At Sparkman, depth is about 95 feet. Allen Reef is about 90 feet deep. Visibility, if good, is about 50 feet. You will need to reach the areas by boat. Fish are numerous around the reefs.
Atlantis, Road Bed, and Rome are reefs made from old bridges. They are off Perdido Pass. The Rome site looks like Roman columns. Depth is 90 to 120 feet. A boat is needed to reach them. Great sites for advanced divers and photographers because there are numerous fish species, including some subtropical fish such as angel fish.
Also off Perdido Pass are three tugboats sunk in about 70 to 80 feet of water. The tugs are about 65 feet long and sit 14 to 18 feet off shore, so a boat will be needed.
Natural bottom sites include Dutch Banks, which is 160-feet long in 65 to 90 feet of water; and Tysler Grounds, which is good for spearfishing. Both are about 20 miles out of Perdido Pass.
CSX Boxcars, directly south of Gulf Shores.
Poseidon’s Playground is 3 miles off the Orange Beach, Alabama, coast. It contains three Greek mythological statues -- Poseidon, Apollo and Venus -- and a table-like, grouper reef topped with marine life ornamental images.
The Lulu is a 271-foot sunken coastal freighter, which is about 17 miles south of Orange Beach, near the New Venture. It is in 115 feet of water. Shallower dives of 60 feet can reach the wheel house. The cargo deck is about 90 feet down. A large U.S. flag is still attached and waves underwater.
The Fairfield New Venture is a sunken 250-foot surveying vessel about 20 miles south of Orange Beach. It is sunk in 120 feet of water. The wheel house can be reached in about 60 feet of water.
The USS Oriskany is a sunken aircraft carrier in about 120 feet of water. It is 20 miles south of Orange Beach. This dive is only available to those with advanced open water certification and at least 20 dives.
Beach dives are available at Alabama Point Bridge, Alabama Point Sea Wall, Alabama Point Jetties, and Whiskey Ship Wreck, which is a 200-foot-long wreck in 15 to 20 feet of water. These are shallow enough to give views to snorkelers, about 15 feet deep. Visibility is 25 to 50 feet.
Water temperatures vary from 87 degrees in the summer to 55 degrees in the winter.
Dive Shops
Down Under Dive Shop, 1129 Gulf Shores Parkway, Gulf Shores, Ala., 36542. 251-968-3483. info@downunderdiveshop.com
Gary’s Gulf Divers, 27844 Canal Road, Orange Beach, Ala., 36561. 251-716-0151. algulfdiver@gmail.com
High Pressure Dive Shop, 24377 Highway 59, Robertsdale, Ala., 36567. 251-721-9111. info@hpds.com
Gulf Coast Divers, 1284 Hutson Drive, Mobile, Ala. 251-342-2970. gulfcoastdivers@cs.com
Pleasure Island Divers, 27200 Perdido Beach Boulevard, Orange Beach. 251-263-5557.
Reef Dive Center, 26831 Canal Road, Orange Beach, AL 36561. 251-981-1001. info@reefoba.com
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Fishing the
Alabama Gulf Coast: Inshore, in-Bay, or off shore offers lots of opportunities
The irrepressible and sporty tarpon and other, more edible but equally bountiful fish in the Gulf have turned the Gulf Coast into a popular tourist destination.
Since the late 19th century, sporting magazines extolled the wonders of the fishing in the Gulf of Mexico. Forest and Stream told readers that a fisherman can land a fish about as quickly as he sinks a hook. The lowly mullet (the cod of the Gulf) jumps through the air, seemingly for fun, and becomes a beacon promising a wealth of fish below the surface.
Indeed, the Gulf is rich in fish. Its fish biomass density and species diversification are among the highest in the world, according to biologists.
Along the Alabama Gulf Coast, commercial and tourist fishing has thrived since the early 20th century. Only 12 miles from shore occurs a drop-off from a curved underwater shelf that plummets 600 feet deep. Red snapper, grouper, shark, sheep-head, amberjack, drum, mullet, mackerel, and tuna abound; and flounder, spectacled trout, shrimp, and oysters are found closer to shore.
Captains and their charter boats are numerous, as well. There are 172 by one count. Most will book half day and full day trips, and some will provide an overnight trip that will take fishing enthusiasts further out into the Gulf of Mexico. Other captains over fishing trips into the bays and rivers that flow into the many bays. Charter boats provide fishing licenses, tackle, and bait. Cleaning of fish is provided by some and almost all will provide this service at an extra cost.
You can find charter boats at one of the many marinas. Or, you can book a charter through a handy website called Fishing Booker.
Marinas in Gulf Shores and Orange Beach
Bear Point Marina, 5749 Bay La Launch Avenue, Orange Beach. 251-987-1228.
Caribe Marina, 28101 Perdido Beach Boulevard, Orange Beach. 251-980-8410.
Flora-Bama Marina, 29603 Perdido Beach Boulevard, Orange Beach. 251-980-5222.
Orange Beach Marina, 27075 Marina Road, Orange Beach. 251-981-4207.
Sportsman Marina, 27844 Canal Road, Orange Beach. 251-981-6247.
SanRoc Cay Marina, 27267 Perdido Beach Boulevard, Orange Beach. 251-981-5423.
Zeke's Landing Marina, 26619 Perdido Beach Boulevard, Orange Beach. 251-981-4044.
For charters out of Fort Morgan, go here.
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Water Sports and Attractions
Cruises, Go Carts, Water Sports, Boat Rentals, Miniature Golf, and assorted rides
The Track Family Recreation Center, 3200 Gulf Shores Parkway (Alabama Highway 59), Gulf Shores. 251-270-0210. The park has go carts, a roller coaster, bumper boats, miniature golf, kids rides.
Beach Flight, Salt Air Aviation Center, 1215 Commerce Drive, Gulf Shores. 251-597-5999. Reservation required. This is a gyroplane that you can fly with an instructor.
Waterville USA, 906 Gulf Shores Parkway (Alabama Highway 59), Gulf Shores. 251-948-2106. Water adventure park includes water slides, a lazy river, Flowrider wave for surfing, and a wave pool. A separate children’s section has a shrimp boat village and pirates boat, and a Fun Depot that includes a carousel and train rides. The amusement park has miniature golf, go carts, roller coaster, and two escape rooms. (Both parks are available for one price.) The facility closes for the winter.
Fat Daddy’s Arcade, 24565 Perdido Beach Boulevard, Orange Beach. 251-980-1050. Offers games and pizza.
Adventure Island, 24559 Perdido Beach Boulevard., Orange Beach. 251-974-1500. Go carts, bumper boats, paddle boats, laser tag, and miniature golf around a man-made volcano.
Coyote Beach Sports, 112 East First Avenue, Gulf Shores. 251-228-2080. Scooter rentals, paddle boards, kayaks, skim boards, and bicycles.
Tacky Jacks Marina, 27206 Safe Harbor Drive, Orange Beach. 251-981-2527. Here, you’ll find parasailing, kayaks, paddle boards, and pontoon boat rentals.
Caribe Marina, 28101 Perdido Beach Boulevard, Orange Beach. 251-980-8414. Offers jet skis and boat rentals, bow fishing, dolphin cruises, and bay cruising.
The Daedalus offers sailing cruises, dolphin tours, shrimping tours, and kayak tours all from Bear Point Marina.
Happy Harbors Marina, 27212 Marina Road, Orange Beach, offers dolphin cruises, parasailing, pontoon rentals, paddle sports, jet skis, and parasailing.