Gulf Shores Joins Sedona, Hanalei on National List of America’s Most Laid-Back Towns

GULF SHORES, Ala. — Gulf Shores has landed on a new national list of the most laid-back towns in the United States, with a travel ranking praising the Alabama beach town for its white sand, its parks and the unhurried pace that has long drawn visitors to the coast. The honor puts the city alongside places such as Sedona, Arizona, and Hanalei, Hawaii.

The recently published ranking of “the United States’s nine most laid back towns” picked destinations where travelers can slow down, and Gulf Shores was one of only two Southern towns to make the cut.

“Shifting seasons have a way of stirring up a craving for quiet rest and slower days,” the ranking states. “Across the US, some small towns answer that call with forest trails and open shorelines, while others offer classic main streets perfect for a wander.”

Why Gulf Shores made the most laid-back towns list

The ranking singled out Gulf Shores for the coastal scenery it offers both residents and visitors and for the many ways to spend time outdoors. Two public lands drew particular praise: Gulf State Park and the Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge.

“Gulf Shores sits on the Gulf of Mexico, where miles of sugar-white sand make for slow beach days,” the ranking states. “Its best-known attraction, the 6,000-acre Gulf State Park, has 2.5 miles of beach, several lakes open for kayaking, a fishing pier, picnic areas, campsites, and about 28 miles of paved trails through coastal habitats.”

It went on to highlight the wildlife refuge west of town.

“The Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge, also in Gulf Shores, protects around 7,000 acres of coastal ecosystems for birds and other wildlife,” the ranking states. “Its Pine Beach Trail, a 4-mile out-and-back, passes sand dunes, scrub habitat, and maritime forest, with views of the Gulf and wildlife such as sea turtles and snowy plovers.”

For a relaxing afternoon indoors, the ranking also pointed travelers to the Beach Club Resort & Spa, noting its on-site restaurants, sauna and steam rooms, fitness center, pools and beach access.

The company Gulf Shores keeps

The other eight towns named on the list span the country, from the Pacific Northwest to the Upper Midwest and the Atlantic coast:

• Cannon Beach, Oregon
• Brevard, North Carolina
• Chincoteague, Virginia
• Hanalei, Hawaii
• Sedona, Arizona
• Two Harbors, Minnesota
• Ojai, California
• Decorah, Iowa

Brevard, in the mountains of western North Carolina, was the other Southern town on the list. Gulf Shores stood out as the only stop on the Gulf of Mexico.

Gulf State Park: the centerpiece

Gulf State Park, owned by the state of Alabama and managed by the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources’ State Parks Division, stretches across a large swath of land between Gulf Shores and Orange Beach. Its beachfront runs along the Gulf, and behind the dunes lie freshwater lakes, including Lake Shelby, where visitors paddle kayaks and canoes.

The park’s paved trail network, known as the Hugh S. Branyon Backcountry Trail, winds through pine forests, wetlands and dune habitat and is popular with walkers, runners and cyclists. The park also has a large campground, cabins and cottages, a nature center and the Gulf State Park Pier, a long concrete pier that reaches out into the Gulf and is one of the best-known fishing spots on the Alabama coast.

Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge

West of Gulf Shores along the Fort Morgan peninsula, the Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge protects beach, dune, marsh and maritime forest habitat. Managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the refuge was established in 1980. Its name comes from the French for “safe harbor.”

The refuge is an important stop for migrating songbirds in spring and fall, when birders gather along the coast to watch birds resting after crossing the Gulf. Its beaches provide nesting habitat for sea turtles, and the refuge is home to the endangered Alabama beach mouse. The Pine Beach Trail, highlighted in the ranking, is one of the refuge’s most popular hikes because it ends at the Gulf.

Visitors to the refuge are asked to stay on marked trails, respect closed nesting areas and leave wildlife undisturbed.

A beach town built for slowing down

Gulf Shores, incorporated in 1958, is a city of roughly 15,000 residents in south Baldwin County whose population swells with visitors in peak season. Together with neighboring Orange Beach and Fort Morgan, it makes up Alabama’s Gulf Coast beach communities, a region that welcomes millions of visitors each year.

Much of the area’s appeal lines up with the ranking’s theme. Beyond the parks, visitors can fish from piers and charter boats, paddle in Little Lagoon and the area’s bays, ride bikes on trails and quiet streets, and watch sunsets over the water. The city’s public beach at the end of Highway 59 serves as a gathering spot, while restaurants serving Gulf seafood line the beach road.

Fall and winter also bring a quieter rhythm to the coast, with milder temperatures and smaller crowds, a season that fits the ranking’s focus on rest and slower days. Snowbirds from northern states often spend part of the winter in the area.

What the recognition means

National travel lists like this one are a regular source of publicity for Alabama’s beach towns, and local tourism officials often point to such mentions as they market the coast to visitors from around the country. Recognition as a relaxed, nature-focused destination reinforces the image Gulf Shores and its neighbors have worked to build around their parks, beaches and outdoor recreation.

Plan a laid-back visit

• Gulf State Park: Beaches, lakes, paddling, a fishing pier, picnic areas, camping and about 28 miles of paved trails. A day-use fee may apply at some areas.
• Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge: About 7,000 acres of protected coastal habitat; the Pine Beach Trail is a 4-mile out-and-back hike to the Gulf.
• Beach Club Resort & Spa: Restaurants, spa amenities, pools and beach access, as noted in the ranking.
• Best for: Beach days, birding, kayaking, biking and fishing.

Whether it is a stroll on the sand, a paddle on a quiet lake or a hike through dunes and maritime forest, the ranking’s message for travelers was simple: Gulf Shores is a good place to take it easy.