How to find the best parking on Anna Maria Island and explore beaches on the cheap
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Snowbirds on the Suncoast
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One thing visitors quickly discover about Anna Maria Island is traffic can sometimes be heavy, and finding parking can be challenging.
Well, that may be a bit of an understatement.
Here are some hints for getting around the island, and where to look for parking.
For starters, Manatee County Area Transit (MCAT) offers a free trolley on Anna Maria Island that operates 365 days a year, with departures every 20 minutes from 6 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.
There are two trolleys working the island at the same time. One is northbound and the other is southbound.
The northbound trolley departs Coquina Beach and has stops at Gulf Drive/Bridge Street, Gulf Drive/27th Street, Manatee County Public Beach, and Marina Drive/Gulf Drive, before arriving at the Anna Maria City Pier.
The southbound trolley departs from the Anna Mara City Pier and has stops at Gulf Drive/78th Street, Island Shopping Center, Manatee County Public Beach, Gulf Drive/27th Street, and Gulf Drive/Bridge Street before arriving at Coquina Beach.
Bus transportation to Longboat Key from Coquina Beach is available for 75 cents.
Getting to Anna Maria Island
Both Manatee Avenue and Cortez Road connect mainland Manatee County to Anna Maria Island. Beachgoers can either drive or take the bus. Unlike the free island trolley, there is a fee for riding the MCAT bus.
The Cortez Road bus (route six) delivers passengers to Coquina Beach, while the Manatee Avenue bus (route three) delivers passengers to Manatee County Public Beach. For a complete list of MCAT bus routes and stops, visit mymanatee.com and click on departments and MCAT.
Visitors may also soon see the arrival of a new option. The long-discussed water taxi service between downtown Bradenton and Palmetto and Anna Maria Island could possibly start as soon as April. Manatee County government has been in talks with island cities and water taxi operators to get the service started.
Bradenton Beach City Pier is one of the proposed destinations, with the extension of the floating dock and more boat slips being added to accommodate the addition of water taxi service.
Where to park on AMI
Free parking is available at:
▪ Anna Maria Bayfront Park, 310 North Bay Blvd., Anna Maria, near the Anna Maria City Pier. The park is open sunrise to midnight, unless otherwise posted or allowed by special permit. What you will find there are beautiful views of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge and Egmont Key, and a variety of amenities, including benches, grills, a pavilion, picnic tables, a playground, recycle containers, a restroom (closed nightly at 9 p.m.), a shower and trash receptacles.
▪ Coquina Beach, 2650 Gulf Drive, Bradenton Beach. The park is open sunrise to midnight, unless otherwise posted or allowed by special permit. Amenities include benches, bike racks, changing cabanas, concessions at Coquina Beach Cafe’, games tables, gift shop, grills, multi-purpose paved trail, five pavilions, picnic tables, playgrounds, recycle container, restrooms (closed nightly at 9 p.m.), outside shower, trash receptacles, a trolley stop, volleyball, water fountains and beach wheelchairs, available on a first-come, first-served basis.
▪ Manatee County Public Beach, 4000 State Road 64 and Gulf Drive, Holmes Beach. The park is open from sunrise to midnight, unless otherwise posted or allowed by special permits. Amenities include benches, bike racks, changing cabanas, concessions at Anna Maria Island Beach Cafe’, gift shop, grills, picnic tables, recycle container, restrooms (closed nightly at 9 p.m.), showers with foot wash, trash receptacles, a trolley stop, volleyball, water fountains and beach wheelchairs, available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Other free parking is available throughout the island, but beachgoers should avoid areas clearly marked as no-parking to avoid being towed or a parking ticket.
In 2020, the City of Holmes Beach removed more than 500 on-street parking spaces in residential neighborhoods to protect homeowners in the area.
This story was originally published March 2, 2022 at 5:50 AM.
