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coastal place guide

Andy Bowie Park

A researched visitor guide to Andy Bowie Park and its access, setting and practical considerations.

  • Official name: Andy Bowie Park; also "Andy Bowie County Park" and, in county documents, "Andy Bowie Park (Beach Access 2)" / "Cameron County Beach Access No. 2".
  • Jurisdiction / operator: Cameron County Parks & Recreation.
  • Location: 7300 Park Road 100 N. (the Park Space Agreement writes it as 7300 N. Padre Blvd; the June 2026 release as 7300 State Park Road 100), South Padre Island, TX 78597, directly across Park Road 100 from the South Padre Island Convention Centre — the county's plan says the county land "also includes the Convention Center" and the sand flats on the Laguna side. Office phone 956-761-3704.
  • How to reach it: paved; entrance off Park Road 100 through a toll booth. No sand driving.
  • Parking: about 301 paved public spaces including designated accessible spaces (county plan). The city's parking guide separately counts 123 spaces in a county lot just north of the park's "Exit No 2" (see Numbering below).
  • Fees / hours / seasonality (as of 2026-09-02): same per-vehicle beach user fee as Isla Blanca — $12 day / $30 bus / $30 30-day / $100 annual, veterans $5 / $12.50 / $50 — until 2026-09-30; a new schedule takes effect 2026-10-01 (KRGV: $15 daily, other passes unchanged; county amounts not yet published). Pedestrians and cyclists free. Gate hours 8 a.m.–7 p.m. until Labor Day and 8 a.m.–6 p.m. after; office hours the same.
  • Amenities: two restrooms with showers (renovated 2025–26), rinse stations, two elevated plaza pavilions (new, north and south ends) with picnic tables and lighting, two concession buildings (renovated), playground, Park Ranger Station and first-aid center, nature trail, seasonal lifeguards/Beach Patrol, a new pedestrian beach walkway with rinse stations at the south end, and a roughly 400-ft-wide dune field crossed by two pedestrian paths. The 2018 county master plan lists the park at 225.81 acres. Bike racks: not published.
  • Vehicles on sand: No — "not a beach vehicular accessible point" (county plan); the plan adds that for many users the absence of cars is the park's draw.
  • Camping: RV park only (no beach camping). The 2018 plan counted 18 RV sites with an expansion to as many as 70 planned; the current count is not published. Rates (Park Space Agreement, April 2025): standard site $45 winter / $60 summer / $40 off-peak daily, $550 / $625 / $550 monthly; no cable; utility deposits $100 monthly / $15 weekly. Summer 2026 reservations (July 1–Sept 30) opened online 2026-06-15; winter 2026–27 reservations include Andy Bowie. The RV schedule also changes 2026-10-01 (Resolution 2026R08125). Reservations via app.fireflyreservations.com (CameronCountyAndyBowiePark).
  • Rules specific to this spot: county park rules (Park Space Agreement) apply in the RV area; on the beach, no glass, no littering, no driving on dunes; heed lifeguards and flag signage.
  • Hazards: not published by the county for this park; county closure notices (March 2026) cite high tides and "undrivable" conditions at the vehicular accesses farther north, not here.
  • Nearest food / water: the park's two concession buildings; rinse stations.
  • 2025–2026 works: the Andy Bowie Park Improvements Project — new plaza pavilions, restroom/bathhouse and concession renovations, office and Ranger Station upgrades, parking overlay, south-end walkway with rinse stations — cost about $6.9 million ($4.2M ARPA, $2M SpaceX, $662K county certificates of obligation) and was marked with a ribbon cutting on 2026-06-26; the original pavilion dated from the park's 1994 construction. A change order of $239,550 was on the 2026-07-28 agenda. On 2026-08-18 the court considered naming the native-plant area at the Convention Center "The Laguna Madre Bird Sanctuary at Andy Bowie Park". A GLO CEPRA beach-nourishment project covering Andy Bowie and Isla Blanca is in the funding stage (2026-07-21 agenda).
  • Relationship to the city's north end: see "Numbering: county vs city" — the sources disagree on whether the park is inside or just outside the city limits.

Check before you go

Road, beach, tide and park conditions can change quickly. Follow posted signs and verify current local-government notices before a long drive or any beach-driving plan.