Topsail Hill Preserve State Park Santa Rosa Beach FL

by Marc Bennett
Updated: January 6, 2023
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Topsail Hill Preserve State Park on the Emerald Coast, is one of the most desirable Florida state parks to visit and camp. It is probably our most favorite white sandy beach in the country. We stayed here a few years ago for a couple of days and were excited for a longer return visit this past winter. Here, we share a review of our experience, with advice, tips, and more.

Topsail Hill Preserve Location

Topsail Hill Preserve State Park and related Gregory E. Moore RV Resort are located near Destin FL and Santa Rosa Beach. Santa Rosa beach is in the panhandle of Florida right on the gulf coast. It is a highly popular tourist destination. The park is located at 7525 W County Hwy 30A. Hwy 30A is a beautiful oceanside road and has a wide bike path along most of it. Access to the area is very easy for RVs

The park and resort are beautiful, and the surrounding area is very nice as well. It is a convenient location with a Publix grocery store and restaurants less than 10 minutes away. There are outlet malls, and upscale shopping and many more restaurants in nearby Destin as well.

Area Attractions

Santa Rosa beach, Destin, and the towns along 30A are all very popular tourist destinations. There are a number of RV parks in the area, and it seemed that a very large percentage of the luxury homes, apartments, and hotels in the area were vacation rentals. The beaches in the area are among the nicest white sand beaches we have experienced in any of our travels.

There are great restaurants and plenty of shopping nearby. The Blue Angels practice in Pensacola which is a bit over an hour away, and there is an excellent air museum in that area as well. Both of which can be visited for no fee on certain days.

For movie fans, the movie The Truman Show was filmed in nearby Seaside. Seaside is about 20-40 minutes from the campground depending on traffic, and is a very scenic little town. RVers might also appreciate that there is a courtyard area that had 6-8 vintage airstreams set up as food vendors or other small shops.

Amenities and Activities

Topsail Hill Preserve has a store, bathhouses, canoe and bicycle rentals, fishing areas, a clubhouse, swimming pool, an amphitheater and shuffleboard. The campground does have a 24 hour coin operated laundry room that costs $1.50 to wash, and $1.50 to dry. There is also a tram to transport campground visitors and day visitors to the beach area.

The beach is a gorgeous quartz white sand with crystal clear water. Water has a slightly green color from a distance which I suppose is why it is called the emerald coast. The sand is natural to the area, not imported like some beaches.

There are many hiking and biking trails within the park, and a tram service to take you to the beach if you would prefer. With immediate access to the bike trails on 30A, this is a pretty great area for biking.

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Mail / Packages

Being a state park, we are pretty sure you cannot receive any mail or packages here. You will want to have it shipped to a nearby post office or UPS store. We had some items shipped to the nearby UPS store and to the post office during our stay.

WIFI / Cable

We use our own data with AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile. AT&T had five bars of LTE, Verizon had 2 bars, and T-Mobile had 1 bar. So, signal varied significantly by carrier, but all were able to connect.

RV Sites at Topsail Hill Preserve and Campground

All the internal roads are paved asphalt surface in very good condition. Most are wide enough for RVs to comfortably navigate. The park is mostly big rig friendly and we estimate that about half of the RVs at the resort were 40’ in length or larger. Most of the sites are gravel surface, level and in excellent condition.

Sites feel private as most are separated from the neighboring site with lush natural vegetation. There are wonderful ponderosa pine trees and palms and more stereotypical Florida vegetation at ground level. Being a state park, nearly all visitors are tourists, not extended stay visitors.

Topsail Hill Reserve has about 158 RV sites, 16 cabins, 18 bungalows, and 22 tent sites in this campground, The cabins and bungalows are quite large compared to others we see in campgrounds. The majority of the RV sites would accommodate RVs greater than 40’ in length, but some sites are less than 30 feet in length. There are about 19 pull through sites, with the remaining all back in.

More about the RV sites

The site spacing is above average for what we have seen in other parks. They feel roomy and private with all the natural trees and greenery between sites. Most are gravel, some are concrete pads. Some of the sites back to small fishing lakes and are called lake front sites. I believe all sites are 30/50amp with full hookup.

There is a welcome center/office/ranger station at the entry with two RV lanes for check ins. Beyond the office there is a very large parking lot for day visitors that also makes a great place to disconnect tow vehicles.

PROS

Beautiful state park with lush greenery at site, but quick access to beach
Convenient location for any shopping you need and restaurants
Quiet peaceful park, and mostly not crowded in the area

CONS

Beach and town can get a little crowded during spring break or other peak times
Can be difficult to get a reservation during peak season

Rates at Topsail Hill Preserve State Park

During our stay, RV sites were $42/night + tax. Tent sites are $24 + tax. Bungalow and Cabin prices vary depending on the season. Rates are $100-$130 per night + tax August through January, and $120 – $145 February – July. Check out time for RV sites is 1pm, and check in as after 3pm. Cabins and bungalow checkout is 11am and check in after 4pm. The campground sometimes allows check in before 3pm if the site is available. Check their website for current rates.

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Summary

Topsail Hill Preserve is one of the nicest state parks we have visited in our travels. We have friends who camp host here year after year because they love it so much. The campground is excellent, and the beaches are wonderful. It is a great place to get away to. Staff were all excellent and prices are reasonable for how nice it is, assuming you can get a reservation.

About our stay at Topsail Hill Preserve State Park

We first visited this resort a few years ago, but our most recent visit was in April of 2019. The weather was mostly very nice with daytime highs in the 70s and night time lows in the 50s and a few days of rain. We had a great time here and would definitely come back to visit again.

Contact Information

To find out more or to make a reservation, contact:

Topsail Hill State Park:
Address: 7525 W County Hwy 30A, Santa Rosa Beach, FL 32459
Phone: 850-267-8330

Website: https://www.reserveamerica.com/explore/topsail-hill-preserve-state-park/FL/281250/overview

Editorial Disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any RV park, campground, or RV resort, and have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.