Tell me about Long Beach, MS

[My3kiddos]

We are thinking about visiting New Orleans this summer, but would like to spend a few days at the beach too. Can anyone tell me if Long Beach, MS would be a good place to visit? If not can you tell me a beach within 2-3 hours of New Orleans that would be a good place to go?

 

[JustCallMeMommy]

I grew up on the MS Gulf Coast and was even there this weekend, and while I love the Coast more than anyplace in the world (except maybe Disney), I would recommend either taking the boat out to Ship Island from Gulfport or driving over to Gulf Shores, AL. The barrier islands off the coast of MS keep the big waves from coming in, so you don't have the beautiful blue/green water. If you are just looking to build sand castles and get some sun, the MS Gulf Coast is fine, but it isn't the best for swimming and enjoying the water.

 

[luvsJack]

Love the MS Gulfcoast and in fact taking dd and some friends down tomorrow, but it is strictly "play on the beach" kind of fun. They take a beach ball or volley ball and other games and just have fun hanging out in the sand. The water isn't "bad" its just not as pretty as it is further down the coastline nor as deep and like the pp said, no waves to play in.

If you don't want to drive as far as Gulf Shores, take the boat out to Ship Island. Its beautiful out there.

 

[RobertLC]

I live in Long Beach, MS.

If you do want to just sit on a beach and get some sand, there are some decent beaches.

You can even get in the water if you want, it never gets much above waist or chest level (depending on the tide) for several hundred yards out.

The MS Gulf Coast has the longest man-made beach in the world, I think, at 26 miles.

It's true that due to the barrier island effect, you won't get the huge waves of other beaches and the water is not blue/green. That's due to all the local estuaries that are on the Coast that provide the breeding habitat for our shrimp and other marine life. The water in the estuaries contains lots of leaves and other decomposing plant matter, which in turn makes the water slightly dark and brown.

But there's nothing wrong with the water, it's like steeped tea. I and my family go in it in the summer and we're all fine, no mutations or disease.

If you have any questions, just ask me!