Map of Sanibel

Browse by what it is

Each of these opens the attractions directory filtered to that type — a plain link, so it works without JavaScript and can be bookmarked.

• Beaches8
• Nature preserves3
• Trails3
• Wildlife spots3
• Historic sites2
• Landmarks2
• Neighbourhoods2
• Entertainment1
• Museum1
• Park1
• Shopping1
• Water feature1

Getting to Sanibel

• Southwest Florida International AirportRSW

  25 mi · about 45 min by road

  The airport to book, and one of the easier arrivals in Florida: the islands sit around twenty-five road miles southwest of the terminal, and the run out Daniels Parkway and down Summerlin Road takes about three-quarters of an hour outside the February crush. Rental counters are in a garage across from the terminal. Take the car — almost nobody regrets having one for the first day and the last, even on an island where you will barely use it in between.

• Punta Gorda AirportPGD

  55 mi · about 85 min by road

  Fifty-five miles north and worth a look when the low-cost fare gap is wide. It is a small terminal with a narrow route map, mostly leisure cities, and the drive south on I-75 and across to Summerlin Road adds the better part of an hour over an RSW arrival. Rental inventory there is thinner and sells out earlier in season, so book the car at the same time as the flight rather than afterwards.

• Sanibel Causeway (SR-867)

  The only road on, and a toll crossing. Three spans and two man-made islands carry Summerlin Road across San Carlos Bay from Punta Rassa to Point Ybel. The toll is charged in one direction only — travelling to the islands — and is cheaper with a transponder than by plate. The crossing was torn apart by Ian in 2022 and permanently rebuilt by May 2025 with elevated approaches and granite armour stone. Work on the causeway islands themselves has continued in phases, so what is open to park on there changes.

• Summerlin Road (SR-869)

  The approach everything uses, running southwest from Fort Myers through McGregor and out to Punta Rassa. It is ordinary suburban arterial for most of its length and then abruptly becomes the causeway. The pinch point is the last two miles before the toll, which stack up on winter Saturday mornings and again in the hour after a good sunset. If you are heading for a refuge opening or a pre-dawn low tide, leave the mainland earlier than the map suggests.

• Sanibel-Captiva Road and the Blind Pass Bridge

  The onward road. Sanibel-Captiva Road — San-Cap to everyone here — leaves Periwinkle Way near Tarpon Bay Road and runs northwest the length of the island, past the refuge entrance and Bowman's Beach, to the short bridge over Blind Pass. Cross it and you are on Captiva, which is a different island with a different feel and no through road beyond the village. The bridge is also the western end of the shared-use path network.

• McCarthy's Marina, Captiva

  The islands' passenger gateway to the ones with no road at all. Scheduled and charter boats run from Captiva out into Pine Island Sound to Cayo Costa, Cabbage Key, Useppa Island and Boca Grande, which is how most visitors reach the outer shelling beaches. Departures are seasonal and weather-dependent and the boats fill in season; book ahead rather than turning up at the dock, and check the day's schedule directly with the operator.

• Sanibel Marina

  The island's own working marina, near the eastern end off Periwinkle Way, and the departure point for a good share of the fishing guides, shelling runs and sightseeing boats based on Sanibel itself. Useful to know if you would rather not drive the length of the island to Captiva for a boat. The city boat ramp nearby is a separate facility with its own daily fee and its own permit rules at weekends and on holidays.

Distances and drive times are typical, not promised — see today's conditions before you plan a tight connection.