Crab Island after Oct. 31: what changes when the vendor season ends

Crab Island‘s licensed vendor season ended Oct. 31. Under Okaloosa County Ordinance 20-03, anyone selling from a commercial boat or floating structure at the sandbar north of East Pass needs a county license that covers March 1 through Oct. 31, plus an authorization from the National Park Service, according to the county code as checked Nov. 1, 2026. The rules that protect boaters don’t take the winter off: the buoyed emergency corridor, the ban on roping off water and Florida’s boating laws apply every day of the year.

Crab Island sits in Gulf Islands National Seashore waters over state-owned submerged land, so Okaloosa County and the National Park Service both regulate commercial activity there. Here is what the off-season means for anyone taking a boat out of Destin or Fort Walton Beach between now and spring.

Who can sell at Crab Island, and when?

A vendor needs two permissions: the Okaloosa County license and a National Park Service authorization. The county license period written into Ordinance 20-03 runs from March 1 to Oct. 31. The ordinance as adopted also sets monthly county fees: $400 for a commercial vessel, $1,500 for a floating structure under 1,500 square feet and $2,000 for a structure of 1,500 square feet or more.

A legal vendor shows the owner’s name and phone number in letters at least 3 inches high on both sides. Commercial boats under 21 feet, and floating structures with an engine, need propeller guards.

Which Crab Island rules apply all year?

These parts of the county code don’t depend on the vendor season:

• The emergency corridor. A 40-foot-wide lane marked with buoys, set no more than 100 feet apart and carrying signs, runs between 30°23’45″N 86°31’10″W and 30°23’48″N 86°31’25″W. No boat, craft or object may be in it; only emergency vessels. Entering it, or not leaving when told, is a second-degree misdemeanor (Ordinance 15-14).
• The water stays open. No one may rope off or fence part of the area to keep the public out, except the space right under a vendor’s own structure (Ordinance 20-03).
• No overnight structures. From sunset to sunrise, floating structures such as bars, platforms and commercial inflatables must be at a marina, a permitted mooring field or a dock on commercially zoned land (Ordinances 18-19 and 20-03).
• Shuttles stay with you. A shuttle or water taxi must pick up passengers at a permitted commercial facility and stay at Crab Island while its customers are there; drop-and-leave service is banned. Shuttles over 20 feet must have a toilet (Ordinance 20-03).

Can you drink at Crab Island in the off-season?

The county bans selling or handing out alcohol from commercial boats and floating structures in the Crab Island area, including to other boats (Ordinance 20-03). The ordinance lists exceptions, among them drinking on a boat you rented when the rental is the only commercial activity.

Florida law doesn’t change with the season. The operator of a boat is presumed impaired at a blood alcohol level of .08, and for anyone under 21 operating a boat the limit is .02, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

What else changes for boaters this time of year?

Daylight saving time ended Nov. 1, so sunset now comes about an hour earlier on the clock than it did in October. That matters for jet skis: Florida bans riding from a half hour after sunset to a half hour before sunrise, and everyone aboard or being towed must wear a non-inflatable life jacket (FWC).

Families out on the sandbar over Thanksgiving should know the life jacket rule for small children: a child under 6 must wear a Coast Guard-approved life jacket on a boat under 26 feet whenever it is underway, which means any time it isn’t anchored, moored, tied to shore or aground (FWC).

What are the no-wake rules near Crab Island?

Two nearby zones catch boaters heading to and from the sandbar:

What are the fines?

Breaking the Crab Island rules is a civil fine of up to $500. A second violation within 12 months is a second-degree misdemeanor, each day counts as a separate violation, and the county can revoke a vendor’s license (Ordinance 20-03).

Where can I check the rules?

The full text is in the Okaloosa County Code of Ordinances; the ordinances described here are 15-14, 18-19, 19-06, 20-03 and 96-11, as adopted. Later amendments may change details, so check the code before planning a business at the sandbar. State boating rules are on the FWC boating regulations page. In an emergency on the water, call 911.

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