If you are not familiar with the park, it has 2 separate entrances (north entrance and south entrance) that are a couple miles apart and are not on the same road. Once you pay your $6 entrance fee per vehicle at either entrance, you are able to go to the other entrance at no charge. If you are planning to tube the river, it is located at the south entrance. This knowledge will save you precious time. Having said that, it is always best to get there as close to 8am as possible as it fills up very fast on weekends. If you are not able to get into the south entrance to tube, the north entrance is where the headspring is located. In my opinion the north entrance is the much better option simply to swim in the cool water. While the headspring can get a little crowded, blue hole spring is only a 15 minute walk from the headspring through the boardwalk. Blue hole spring is amazing. Unfortunately, you will need to be a very strong swimmer or have a floatation device since the water is deep.
We went Saturday July 23rd and we left Jacksonville at 5am to get there by 7am. There were hardly any people there. We went from the midpoint to the end. By the time we got back to the parking lot to go for a 2nd run it was almost 9am and it was PACKED! Unfortunately they don’t post if the north entrance is open. You won’t know until you get there.
You need to be there early, like 7 or 8 to get in line.
Google it they have a scale as to when it is busiest. You have to be there no later then 230pm.
When I went July 29th they said they reached 3000 before noon but the place is huge it's a great place to go my family loves it we're going to try to make it once a year tradition
Is it's not before eight, your doomed...
This time of the year on weekends
If it's hot and no rain is forecast by noon. When I was last there they were past capacity at 2.
Every time we've gone, we haven't arrived until between 11am to 1pm. We've never been turned away and it has never been too crazy. This includes both weekdays and weekend's, as well as holiday's.
Almost as soon as they open..
It really doesn't per say. Unlike the other places, it doesn't close the spring holes at sunset. It closes them at around 5. However, they do allow you to come in even after they've shut down the spring hole areas etc. Some people stay to hang out at the picnic tables/etc. As with all of the springs, it is best practice to arrive early. In my situation we packed in 5 holes across FL in 2 days. This was July 4th weekend. It worked out. I'm very glad we did it this way. It was exhausting but fun.
3000 people are allowed in. I would get there before 10am on weekend fill fast. North entrance closed for tubing & swimming for 10 years, ( prolly will never reopen)
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