10 Things to Do on Tybee Island

Tybee packs a lot into three miles. You've got a working lighthouse, a fishing pier, calm river beaches and open-ocean ones, dolphins offshore, and Civil War history a few minutes back toward Savannah — all close enough that you're never driving far.

Here are ten things worth doing, ordered roughly from can't-miss to worth-the-drive, with honest notes on each. Most are a short walk or a five-minute drive from the pier area where we are.

1. Climb the Tybee Island Light Station

Start here. Georgia's oldest lighthouse — lit since 1736, the current tower since 1867 — rewards 178 steps with a 360-degree view of the whole island and the mouth of the Savannah River. One ticket covers the tower, the restored keepers' cottages, and the museum across the street. Climb early to beat the heat and the crowds. We wrote a full guide to the lighthouse if you want the details.

2. Have a proper beach day

The obvious one, done three ways. The south-end strand by the pier is the classic Tybee beach day — wide sand, the pavilion, restaurants in walking distance. North Beach, below the lighthouse, is quieter, with the best tide pools and shelling. The Back River, on the southwest tip, is calm and shallow — the pick for little kids and for sunset. Parking is metered and fills up, so walking from a central base is the move.

3. Take a dolphin tour

Bottlenose dolphins live in these waters year-round, and sightings on a tour are close to guaranteed. Boats run from the back river and the Lazaretto Creek marina; the late-afternoon runs past the lighthouse and Fort Pulaski catch the best light. Book the golden-hour trip ahead — it sells out. See our things to do page for the operators we recommend.

4. Tour Fort Pulaski National Monument

Ten minutes back toward Savannah on Cockspur Island, this Civil War-era brick fort is where rifled cannon first proved that masonry forts were obsolete, in 1862 — you can still see the shell damage. It's a slow, quiet couple of hours of history and marsh trails. Bring water, and plan a low-tide walk on the nature trail if you can.

5. Hunt for shark teeth

Tybee's shell beds are surprisingly rich in fossilized shark teeth — small, black, triangular, and often thousands of years old. North Beach at low tide is the spot. A guided fossil-hunt tour will teach you what to look for and usually sends everyone home with a pocketful and a megalodon story. Great with kids.

6. Visit the Marine Science Center

Right by the pier, the Tybee Island Marine Science Center is a small, hands-on aquarium and education center — touch tanks, local sea life, sea-turtle programs, and guided beach walks. It's the perfect rainy-hour backup and a genuinely good hour with kids on a clear day too.

7. Rent a golf cart

Tybee runs on golf carts in season, and renting one is the local-est way to see the island — easy parking, short hops, and a breeze the whole way. Reserve ahead in summer; the fleets go fast. It turns "getting around" into part of the fun.

8. Get on the water by kayak or SUP

Beyond the beach, the marsh and the back river are their own world. Kayak and stand-up-paddleboard outfitters rent gear and run guided tours through the creeks and out toward Little Tybee — an undeveloped barrier island bigger than Tybee itself, reachable only by boat. Calm water, birds, dolphins, and not another building in sight.

9. Watch the sunset on the Back River

Free, and the best half-hour on the island. The southwest tip faces west across the sound, so the sun drops over the water and the marsh instead of behind the buildings. Bring a drink, walk out at low tide, and let the day end. Locals plan dinner around it.

10. Day-trip into Savannah

When you want the city, it's 20 to 30 minutes west: squares under live oaks and Spanish moss, River Street along the water, and some of the best food in the South. A sunset dinner downtown after a beach day is an easy, memorable cap to a Tybee trip — just give it its own block of time rather than squeezing it into an afternoon.

Honorable mentions

A few more worth knowing about: the Tybee Pier and Pavilion for fishing and people-watching at the south end; Little Tybee for the truly off-the-grid paddle; and the island's festivals — the Beach Bum Parade in May (a rolling water fight down Butler) and the Pirate Fest in October — if your dates line up.

Planning your days

The trick to Tybee is that almost none of it is far, so you can be loose about the order — but a little grouping helps. Cluster the north-end stops: the lighthouse, North Beach shelling, and the Marine Science Center are all within a few minutes of each other. Save the water for when conditions are right — a calm morning for kayaking the marsh, a late afternoon for the golden-hour dolphin tour, low tide for the shark-teeth beds. And treat Savannah and Fort Pulaski as their own outings, since they're back toward the mainland; pair them on the day you head in or out rather than driving back and forth.

Mornings are for the beach and the outdoor stuff, before the heat and the crowds build; afternoons are for the indoor and on-the-water options, when a summer storm is most likely to roll through. Do that, and a three-mile island turns into a full, unhurried few days.

How we chose

These are the things we actually send guests to, weighted toward what's close, genuinely good, and easy to reach without a long drive. We left off a couple of well-known spots that are either too seasonal to count on or don't hold up to the hype. For the full rundown with live ratings and the operators' phone numbers, see our things to do page — and if you're hungry between stops, the dining list ranks the nearby restaurants closest to farthest.

The short version

Climb the lighthouse, spend real time on the beach, get on the water at least once, and give Savannah an evening. Base yourself central and walkable, and none of it is far.

When you're ready to plan the trip, we're a five-minute walk from the sand with a saltwater pool and free parking — check availability and bring the dog.