Metal Detecting on Florida's South Florida & the Keys
17 locations · 4 allowed · 9 limited · 3 prohibited · 1 permit required
Rules last verified: · Florida statewide rules
Palm Beach down to Key West is where the rules get strict and local. Miami-Dade and Broward County parks carry outright bans or tight limits, Everglades National Park forbids even carrying a detector, and many municipal beaches post their own ordinances. Haulover needs a county permit, Palm Beach County parks only allow it on oceanfront beach parks outside turtle season, Key West makes you register finds as archaeological, and Dry Tortugas and Biscayne are national parks (prohibited). Hollywood, Delray and the open Palm Beach sand are still open — but this is the region where you call ahead every time.
Beaches and parks on the South Florida / Keys
- ✅ Palm Beach County Beaches Allowed · Palm Beach County
Open public beach sand: leave areas as found — no holes or disturbance. CAVEAT: in Palm Beach COUNTY PARKS (Carlin, Jupiter Beach, Juno Beac… - 🟠 Fort Lauderdale / Broward County Parks Limited · Broward County
No ordinance bans detecting, but digging/disturbing ground is prohibited in Broward County parks (Code §25½-3(b)); the City of Fort Lauderda… - 🟠 Miami Beach / Greater Miami Limited · Miami-Dade County
Allowed on open Miami Beach city public sand (no ordinance bans it); NOT in the protected dunes (Ord. 2021-4434); Miami-Dade County beach-pa… - 🔴 Everglades National Park Prohibited · Collier / Miami-Dade County
Federal NPS land — possessing or using a metal detector is prohibited (36 CFR 2.1(a)(7)); only a unit broken down and packed to prevent use … - ✅ Florida Keys Allowed · Monroe County
Monroe County permits beach detecting; respect posted/private areas - 🟠 Jupiter Beach, Juno Beach & Carlin Park (Palm Beach County parks) Limited · Palm Beach County
Palm Beach County Code Sec. 21-20(b): metal detecting is prohibited in county parks EXCEPT at oceanfront beach parks between the dune and th… - 🟠 John D. MacArthur Beach State Park Limited · Palm Beach County
Coastal state park: detecting only in a park-manager-designated beach zone between toe of dune and high-water line; never in the water; mana… - 🟠 Hugh Taylor Birch State Park Limited · Broward County
Coastal state park: detecting only in a manager-designated dry-sand zone (toe of dune to high-water line), not submerged; 50+ year-old finds… - 🟠 Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park Limited · Miami-Dade County
Coastal state park: detecting only where the park manager designates between the dune toe and high-water line; no submerged detecting; histo… - 🟠 Boca Raton city beaches (Spanish River, Red Reef, South Beach Park) Limited · Palm Beach County
City code does not mention metal detectors, but Sec. 11-6(4) bars excavations 'by tool, equipment or other means' on park lands (which inclu… - ✅ Delray Beach Municipal Beach Allowed · Palm Beach County
Delray Beach Code Ch. 101 (Parks, Beaches and Recreation) has no metal-detecting or digging prohibition; general rules: dawn–dusk hours, obe… - ✅ Hollywood Beach Allowed · Broward County
Hollywood Code Ch. 99 (Municipal Beach) lists prohibited beach activities in detail and metal detecting and digging are not among them. No a… - 🟡 Haulover Park Permit required · Miami-Dade County
Miami-Dade Parks Rule 8(e) (Code §26-1): no person shall make any excavation by tool or 'utilize metal detectors' on county park land unless… - 🟠 Bahia Honda State Park Limited · Monroe County
Coastal state park: detecting only in a manager-designated beach zone (dune toe to high-water line), never submerged; park may refuse; 50+ y… - 🟠 Key West city beaches (Smathers Beach) Limited · Monroe County
Key West code does not ban detectors, but all city land including submerged land is a designated archaeological area: anyone using a metal d… - 🔴 Dry Tortugas National Park Prohibited · Monroe County
Federal NPS land — possessing or using a metal detector, magnetometer or other metal-detecting device is prohibited (36 CFR 2.1(a)(7)). No b… - 🔴 Biscayne National Park Prohibited · Miami-Dade County
Federal NPS land — possessing or using a metal detector is prohibited anywhere in the park, including Elliott and Boca Chita keys and park w…
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Other Florida regions
Panhandle · First Coast · Daytona / Space Coast · Treasure Coast · Gulf Coast · Central Florida
See also: Florida metal detecting laws · federal rules