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Fernandina Beach, Florida✦

Beach horseback riding on Amelia Island

Kelly Seahorse Ranch, which ran beach rides inside Amelia Island State Park for years, closed more than a year ago and its owners have retired. Rides on the sand are still running.

Checked and updated by a person who lives here. 4 listings on this page.

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Worth knowing before you book

The two beach-ride operators we have checked both leave from Peters Point Road on the island's south end, from different lots. The age limit usually decides which one a family books. One takes riders from age 6, the other from 13. A day ride is $125 a person at either.

The season decides which rides run at all. Amelia Island Beach Rides, formerly Happy Trails, runs its sunrise and sunset rides from November to May only, so through the summer there is one sunrise ride on this island and one sunset ride.

Both outfits have changed hands in the last few years, so the reviews you read mostly describe the previous owners. The sunrise ride currently goes at 7:30am every day except Tuesday. Book it off the calendar rather than the website, because the operator's own pages contradict each other about whether it runs at all between May and October.

  1. Amelia Island Beach Rides

    Tours·Amelia Island

    Beach horseback rides on Tennessee Walking Horses, leaving from 9600 Peters Point Rd, which is a different lot from the other beach operator. UNDER NEW OWNERSHIP: Amelia Island Beach Rides acquired Happy Trails Walking Horses recently and is now the operating business, so the two names are one outfit and the older reviews you will find online describe the previous owner. The current owner is a US Navy veteran who has been running beach rides on this island for more than four and a half years. What they actually sell, off their booking system on 2026-08-14: the Beach Ride at $125 a rider for an hour; the Sunrise Beach Ride and the Sunset Beach Ride at $175 a rider for an hour, BOTH LISTED AS AVAILABLE NOVEMBER TO MAY ONLY, so in summer they are not running; a Private Beach Ride from $1,000, which they market for proposals, engagements and anniversaries; and the Pumpkin Hill Trail Ride at $250 a rider for two hours, which is a woodland trail ride rather than a beach ride. Gift certificates too. All rides are 13 and up. THE RULES ARE STRICT AND THEY ARE ENFORCED AT THE LOT, which is the thing worth knowing before booking rather than after: riders must be at least 13 AND at least four feet tall to reach the stirrups, anyone under 16 must have their legal guardian riding with them, and the 240 pound limit is not waived for anyone. Riders mount and dismount themselves, with a step provided, and must be able to sit up and steer. Closed-toe shoes only, so no sandals, flip-flops, crocs or water shoes. Helmets are provided and must be worn. A waiver is signed on the day and a guardian signs for under-18s. Nothing loose or flapping goes on the horse: no backpacks, purses or handheld water bottles, though a fanny pack or small cross-body pouch is fine. Arrive fifteen minutes early, earlier for a group. AND THE PART THAT COSTS MONEY: if a rider turns up not meeting the criteria, or the booking understated somebody's weight or age, that rider is turned away with no refund and no credit. Source: their own eligibility page, checked 2026-08-14.

    9600 Peters Point Rd, Fernandina Beach, FL 32034·(904) 557-3126

    Listed from their own site

  2. Amelia Island Horseback Riding

    Tours·Amelia Island

    Beach horseback rides leaving from Peters Point Beachfront Park, 4600 Peters Point Rd. The oldest beach riding outfit on the island: founded in 1993 by Debbie Manser and now run by a family who took it on to carry on what she started, so it has been putting people on the sand here for over thirty years. Reviews older than the handover describe the previous owner. Rides run about 60 minutes and take riders from age 6 to 96, with a weight limit of 270 pounds and no previous riding experience needed. They run sunrise rides (Daybreak), sunset rides (Golden Hour), day rides, private and special-occasion rides including proposals, and lessons. Booking is online, and they do not ride in unsafe weather: a weather cancellation is rescheduled or the deposit refunded. Rates as booked on 2026-08-14: day rides between 9am and 5pm are $125 a person, the Daybreak sunrise ride and the Golden Hour sunset ride are $175 a person, and a private ride is $1,000 for five riders or $1,200 for six. Their own site does not publish these; they come off the booking system. SUNRISE RIDES, CHECKED AGAINST THE LIVE BOOKING CALENDAR: Daybreak rides are running at 7:30am every day except TUESDAY, right through turtle nesting season. Their own site is inconsistent about this, so do not go by it: one page says sunrise rides start at 7am from May to October and another says they are unavailable across those same months. Neither matches the calendar you actually book from. Spots are limited, often two to four per morning. SUNSET RIDES, CHECKED AGAINST THE SAME CALENDAR ON 2026-08-16: Golden Hour rides go at 6:30pm through August and September, step to 6pm in October, then 5pm in November, and stay at 5pm to the end of the calendar year. The time moves in seasonal steps rather than tracking the sunset night by night, so it is not something to work out from a sunset table. Monday 31 August is the one blank date in the near weeks. Saturdays fill first: three Saturdays running were already on a waitlist while the weekdays either side still had two to four places. ONE BUSINESS, TWO MAP PINS: 'The R and R Horse Ranch LLC' in Yulee is the same operator, not a second one. Same phone, same website, and their booking email is an R and R address. The Yulee pin is the farm where the horses are kept rather than a place a customer goes; rides leave from Peters Point. Do not list it separately.

    4600 Peters Point Rd, Fernandina Beach, FL 32034·(904) 753-1701

    Listed from their own site

Horse-drawn, not horseback

If it is the horses rather than the riding, there is a carriage downtown.

  1. Jeffers Carriages

    Tours·Downtown Fernandina

    Horse-drawn carriage rides departing from Front & Centre Streets.

    Front & Centre Streets, Fernandina Beach·(904) 738-1519

    Listed from available sources · checked 2026-07-12

Lessons, not rides

If it is learning to ride rather than a beach ride, there is a farm in Yulee that teaches, from age 3.

  1. Belle Haven Equestrian

    Lessons·Yulee

    Family-run equestrian farm on Chester Road in Yulee offering horsemanship programs and riding instruction rather than trail or beach rides. Teaches ages 3 and up on a competency-based curriculum, from the Pony Pals introductory program through beginner and beginner-intermediate lessons. Also breeds and sells horses (AQHA, APHA, Cob and Gypsy Vanner) and AKC Pembroke Welsh Corgis, and makes custom Western show apparel and handwoven saddle pads. No phone is published; they take inquiries by email and through the forms on their site, answered weekdays 9am to 5pm. Approved for Step Up For Students funding.

    Chester Rd, Yulee, FL 32097·bellehavenequestrian@gmail.com

    Listed from their own site · checked 2026-07-28

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Common questions

Can I bring my own horse to the beach?
Yes. Amelia Island State Park is one of the few beaches in Florida where you can ride your own horse, and the upper parking lot has room for trailers. Call the ranger station on 904-251-2320 first, because daily capacity limits can apply. Nassau County ordinance 23 1/2-21 requires a manure catch bag, and manure must not be left on the beach or put in the ocean. You may be asked to show proof of a negative Coggins test for each horse.
What happened to Kelly Seahorse Ranch?
It closed more than a year ago and the owners retired. It ran beach rides inside Amelia Island State Park for years and was the only licensed beach horse operation in Florida, which is why people still search for it. Its Google listing is still up. The two operators below are still running rides.
What time is the sunrise ride, and does it run in summer?
In summer there is one, and it is Amelia Island Horseback Riding's Daybreak ride, booking at 7:30am every day except Tuesday right through turtle nesting season. Their own website contradicts itself on this, with one page saying 7am from May to October and another saying the ride is unavailable those months, so go by the booking calendar or ring them. Amelia Island Beach Rides, the outfit that was Happy Trails, runs sunrise and sunset rides too, but only from November to May.
Is there a sunset horseback ride, and what time does it go?
Yes, and the time steps down as the year goes on. Checked against Amelia Island Horseback Riding's live booking calendar on 2026-08-16, the Golden Hour ride goes at 6:30pm through August and September, 6pm in October, then 5pm in November and on to the end of the year. It is $175 a person, the same as their Daybreak sunrise ride. Saturdays are the ones that fill: three Saturdays running were already on a waitlist while the weekdays either side still had two to four places, so book a Saturday well ahead and expect midweek to be easier. Monday 31 August is the one date with no ride on it. Amelia Island Beach Rides lists a Sunset Beach Ride at the same price, but both its sunrise and its sunset rides are November to May only, so through the summer there is one sunset ride on this island rather than two.
Is there anywhere to ride that is not the beach?
Amelia Island Beach Rides runs the Pumpkin Hill Trail Ride, $250 a rider for two hours through woodland rather than along the sand, ages 13 and up. Everything else on this page is a beach ride.
What does a beach ride cost?
The same at both: $125 a person for a day ride and $175 for the sunrise or sunset ride. Amelia Island Horseback Riding charges $1,000 for a private ride for five or $1,200 for six; Amelia Island Beach Rides charges from $1,000 for a private ride. Rates checked 2026-08-14.
How old do you have to be, and is there a weight limit?
Amelia Island Horseback Riding takes riders from age 6 to 96 with a 270 pound limit. Amelia Island Beach Rides takes riders 13 and up, who must also be at least four feet tall to reach the stirrups, with a 240 pound limit, and anyone under 16 needs their legal guardian riding alongside them. No previous riding experience is needed at either. The age limit is usually the thing that decides which one a family books.
What gets you turned away at the lot?
Worth reading before you book rather than after. Amelia Island Beach Rides enforces its criteria on arrival, and if a rider does not meet them, or the booking understated someone's weight or age, that rider is turned away with no refund and no credit. Closed-toe shoes only at both, so no sandals, flip-flops, crocs or water shoes. Helmets are provided and must be worn. Nothing loose goes on the horse: no backpacks, purses or handheld water bottles, though a fanny pack is fine. Arrive fifteen minutes early, earlier if you are a group.

The rest of the island guide

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