Best Family-Friendly Beaches in Stuart, Florida

Located in the city of Stuart, Stuart Beach is a small, narrow, and gorgeous beach that is situated at the southern end of Hutchinson Island. Stuart Beach has a reef system that is home to more than 500 marine creatures making it a popular destination for swimming, diving, and snorkeling. Stuart Beach is backed by the Elliott Museum and the Florida Oceanographic Coastal Center and is filled with locals and families, especially because of its small waves and low tides. 

Located approximately one-and-a-half mile south of the Florida Oceanographic Coastal Center, Fletcher Beach is a beige-sand beach with some rocky portions. This beach is situated on a barrier island named South Hutchinson Island. The rocky portions in Fletcher Beach are composed of limestone. Coastal vegetation is present near this beach. 

Located near the southern end of South Hutchinson Island, Bathtub Reef Beach - also known as Bathtub Beach - is a popular curve-shaped beach with soft light brown sand. Many kinds of plants are present around this beach including dune grasses, sea oats, and palm trees. A reef named Bathtub Reef is present in the water near this beach. This reef has many small holes and tubes which are created by a sea worm named the sabellariid sea worm.  Bathtub Reef Beach gets its name from the calm and shallow bathtub-like water present near the beach during low tide in summers - this water condition occurs due to Bathtub Reef preventing the formation of aquatic waves and currents.  This beach has also been featured in the National Geographic magazine.  This beach frequently faces immense erosion during seasonal storms, which greatly reduces its size. 

Located near the city of Stuart, Santa Lucea Beach - also sometimes known as Santa Lucia Beach - is a five-acre beige-sand beach with some rocky portions and a few patches of flora. The rocky portions in Santa Lucea Beach are composed of limestone. 

Located in South Hutchinson Island, Virginia Forrest Beach is a light-brown sand beach with nearby dense coastal vegetation. This beach has a wonderful backdrop of oceanfront homes.