Shark tooth hunting near the North Jetty.
Nokomis Beach is in Sarasota County, Florida, on the Gulf coast.
Two miles up the road from Venice Beach, Nokomis Beach offers its own free parking lot in Sarasota County, no meters required. A seasonal lifeguard, restrooms and a concession stand are on site. Caspersen Beach is about four miles south for another stop along the same fossil-hunting coast. Opened in 1954, it is Sarasota County's oldest public beach.
Today's flag, water temperature, surf, wind, UV and tide times for Nokomis Beach load on this page automatically. Conditions change through the day, so nothing on this page is a substitute for the flag flying when you arrive.
Amenity details are Coasti's own notes and can go out of date. Fees, lifeguard seasons and dog rules are set locally.
Flags run from green for low hazard to double red for water closed — see what each flag color means.
Tide predictions come from NOAA station Venice (Roberts Bay) (8725889).
Weather and marine forecasts come from the National Weather Service at Venice Municipal Airport (KVNC).
Red tide readings come from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission monitoring map.
The state's monitoring map, run by FWC, updates from samples gathered over a rolling eight-day window. Karenia brevis blooms build unevenly along the Gulf, which is why Nokomis Beach can look different from Venice Beach less than two miles south on the same day. Sarasota County sees these blooms build most often through late summer, tapering off after the fall peak. See today's statewide red tide status.
That depends on the flag and the surf, and both change through the day. Coasti shows the posted lifeguard flag when a current one exists, and estimates from surf, wind and rip-current risk when it does not. Today's answer for Nokomis Beach loads at the top of this page.
Nokomis Beach has lifeguards in season. Outside those months no flag is posted, and no flag flying does not mean the water is safe.
Parking at Nokomis Beach is free. Free lot. Fees and lot hours change, so check locally before you go.
Dogs are not allowed on the beach at Nokomis Beach. Nearby rules vary, so check locally before you go.
Yes. Nokomis Beach is one of the fossil-hunting beaches on this stretch of coast. Low tide after a windy night is the usual advice, because overnight churn turns over fresh shell beds.
More Sarasota County beaches · All beaches Coasti covers · Red tide status · What the flags mean