Florida’s Gulf coast
Golf cart life, a few blocks from the beach
Can you drive a golf cart on Anna Maria Island? On Siesta Key? Across the bridge? The answer changes at every city line, and most of what rental companies say is about LSVs, not golf carts. This site keeps the two apart and tells you where each one is legal.
Beach towns
Two verdicts per town: plain golf cart, and tagged LSV.
Manatee County
Anna Maria Island
Three cities, three rule sets. Visitors can only drive tagged LSVs; untagged golf carts are legal only in Holmes Beach and only for registered residents.
Plain golf cartLimitedLSV (tagged)YesSarasota County
Siesta Key
Unincorporated Sarasota County. Tagged LSVs are legal on roads posted 35 mph or less; the bridges and the 40 mph stretch of Midnight Pass Road are off-limits. No roads found for untagged carts.
Plain golf cartNot confirmedLSV (tagged)YesManatee and Sarasota Counties
Longboat Key
Gulf of Mexico Drive (SR 789) is a 45 mph state road for most of its length, which shuts out golf carts and most LSV travel. Only the north-end 35 mph stretch is LSV-legal.
Plain golf cartNot confirmedLSV (tagged)LimitedSarasota County
Venice
Venice's 25 mph island grid suits LSVs. Whether the City has designated any street for untagged golf carts could not be confirmed, so treat plain carts as not permitted until it does.
Plain golf cartNot confirmedLSV (tagged)YesSarasota and Charlotte counties
Englewood and Manasota Key
Manasota Key straddles Sarasota and Charlotte counties. We found no golf cart designation on either side, so a tagged LSV on roads posted 35 mph or less is the practical answer.
Plain golf cartNot confirmedLSV (tagged)YesLee and Charlotte counties
Boca Grande
Cart life here runs on the 6.5-mile bike path and the village streets, but the path permission is a community rule, and Lee County posted no-golf-cart signs on some stretches in 2024.
Plain golf cartLimitedLSV (tagged)YesLee County
Sanibel and Captiva
Sanibel allows tagged LSVs on its roads posted 35 mph or less and bans carts from the shared-use path. Captiva has a real Lee County ordinance with designated segments and rental-sticker rules.
Plain golf cartLimitedLSV (tagged)YesPinellas County
St. Pete Beach area
St. Pete Beach has let registered golf carts on most city streets since 2013. Treasure Island and Gulfport could not be verified. LSVs are legal on roads posted 35 mph or less.
Plain golf cartLimitedLSV (tagged)YesPinellas County
Dunedin and Clearwater
Dunedin runs a mapped golf cart zone with signed crossings, a child lap-belt rule and no carts on the Pinellas Trail. Clearwater regulates for-hire LSVs on the beach, not private golf carts.
Plain golf cartLimitedLSV (tagged)Yes
Home base, inland
Not a beach town. Where this site is written from.
Guides
The law, salt-air care, storm season, gear, renting and buying.
- The law
Golf Cart vs. LSV in Florida: What the Law Actually Says (2026)
Plain-English walkthrough of the Florida statutes: definitions, where each vehicle may go, who may drive, equipment, registration, and what local governments can change.
- Renting
Renting a Golf Cart (Really an LSV) on Florida's Gulf Coast: Rates, Rules, Insurance
What rental companies require, what it costs by town as of October 2026, and the rules you, not the company, get ticketed for.
- Care
Salt Air vs. Your Golf Cart: A Gulf Coast Maintenance Routine
Why salt spray and humidity eat frames, fasteners, terminals and controllers, and the monthly routine (wash, rinse, protect, water, torque, inflate) that stops it.
- Storm season
Golf Cart Hurricane Prep: Before the Storm, During, and the Saltwater-After
Checklist for June to November: charge, raise, disconnect, cover, and above all never charge or drive a cart that has been in saltwater.
- Gear
Beach Golf Cart Setup: Coolers, Rod Holders, Lights, Lifts and the Kid-Seat Rules
What matters on a cart near the water, plus the legal lines on lighting, lifts, rear-facing seats and child restraints.
- Buying
Buying a Used Golf Cart Near the Beach: Spotting Salt Damage Before You Pay
Inspection checklist tuned for Gulf coast carts: frame, battery tray, wiring, controller, plus the paperwork difference between a golf cart and an LSV.
Three things worth knowing before you read further
- A golf cart and an LSV are different vehicles in Florida law. A golf cart cannot go faster than 20 mph, has no tag and may only use roads a city or county has designated for it. An LSV does 20 to 25 mph, carries a tag, title and insurance, and may use any road posted 35 mph or less unless the local government bans it. The full explainer.
- The old "14 years old" rule is gone. Since 1 October 2023, a golf cart driver under 18 needs a learner's permit or driver license, and a driver 18 or over needs government photo ID. Many websites and printed handbooks still show the old rule.
- Bridges are almost always off-limits. The bridges to the barrier islands are state roads. Golf carts may not use them, and LSVs may only use them where the posted limit is 35 mph or less, which on this coast is rare.