Padre Island National Seashore is home to the Kemp’s ridley sea turtle. Each summer, the park holds public hatchling releases, which are announced on the park’s Facebook page.
Padre Island National Seashore joins national parks across the U.S. in waiving fees for three days in honor of President’s Day weekend Feb. 14-16.
In addition to the President’s Day weekend, the National Park Service is waiving entrance fees on the following days:
• April 18 and 19 — National Park week
• August 25 — National Park Service’s 99th birthday
• Sept. 26 — National Public Lands Day
• Nov. 11 — Veterans Day
The seashore includes 70 miles of protected coastline, dunes, prairies and wind tidal flats teeming with life. Kemp’s ridley sea turtles nest their hatchlings on the island each spring and summer. Some 380 bird species have been spotted making the area their home. The park separates the Gulf of Mexico from the Laguna Madre, one of the few hyper saline lagoons in the world.
The park is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. The Malaquite Visitor Center is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. everyday but Christmas. pavilion showers and restrooms are open around the clock, except when being cleaned from 7-9 a.m.
Park amenities include a gift shop, windsurfing and overnight camp sites, which are distributed on a first come, first serve basis. No reservations.
The park is located southeast of Corpus Christi on Park Road 22, about 10 miles south of the JFK causeway to Padre Island.
