Marineland

The Town of Marineland was designated as the first Remarkable Coastal Place in July 2000. The Town has approximately 6-12 people and consists of 160 acres. 90 acres are owned by Flagler County and the Town of Marineland jointly, 50 acres are owned by Marine Park of Flagler (which includes Marineland Ocean Resorts property containing the historic Oceanarium built in 1937), and 20 acres are owned by the University of Florida Whitney Laboratory. Over half of the Town’s land functions as a River to Sea preserve purchased with Florida Community Trust (FCT) funds. Although the site is rather small for a town, Marineland is, nevertheless, a town — with less than 20 voters.  Currently, Marineland is undergoing a remarkable renaissance as a historic site devoted to ecotourism.

The 90-acre River to Sea Preserve at Marineland offers access to the river and to the ocean and its beaches. One of the main features of the River to Sea Preserve at Marineland, located just south of the Marineland Oceanarium, is the 2000 feet of oceanfront and dune scrub (two hotels were removed and the dunes are being restored). This will provide the visitor with access to the many saltwater beach activities including an opportunity to explore Florida's longest strand of coquina rock outcroppings. Across from the beachfront, the preserve contains some scrub communities and a maritime hammock. This area of the preserve offers you the opportunity to hike through the hammock and also provides access to the Matanzas River and its estuary. Provisions will be made for picnicking, hiking, parking, and nature observation.

On the northern border of the corridor, both sides of the roadway are part of the preserve. At this narrowest point in the corridor, you may see the open expanse of the Matanzas River and the Intracoastal Waterway (ICW) to the west, while the coquina rock beach is visible just over a short dune to the east. The preserve management plan indicates that this area will provide parking and a future canoe launch site on the riverside. Meanwhile many who visit the beach or wish to bird watch use the area for parking. This is also the northern end of the 20-mile separated bicycle/pedestrian path. The path begins at the River to Sea Preserve and parallels A1A to the Volusia County line. There are several connector bike trails including bike paths to Palm Coast over the Hammock Dunes Bridge and connections to State Road 100 as well as a bike path along Jungle Hut Road which connects the rider with the beachfront park.