Captiva and Sanibel Island Shelling Tips

The beaches of Sanibel and Captiva are known for shelling, consistently ranking at the top of the best shelling beaches in the United States. Finding seashells on either island is as easy as walking onto the beach. Here are some helpful tips to get the most out of your Captiva or Sanibel Island shelling experience.

Remember, live shelling is illegal. If you see a small creature inside the shell, it’s considered to be alive. If the shell you find is alive, gently place it back where you found it. If you aren’t sure, leave it be.

Captiva and Sanibel Island Shelling Tips

Like most things in life, searching for the best seashells on Sanibel and Captiva is all about being in the right place at the right time.

Timing Is Everything

Layered Sea Shells on Sanibel Island, Fla.

Knowing when to look for seashells is extremely important. Yes, you can easily find shells on both islands any time of day, but shelling at the right time is likely to yield the best shells.

Low Tide: Each high tide brings in a new batch of shells, which stay on or near shore when the tide recedes. Looking at low tide will provide you with the best chance of finding a high number of perfect shells. There are two low tides a day, morning and evening. The latter is considered optimal shelling. Consult the tide schedule <link> each day for the optimum shelling time. Some vacation rentals and resorts even provide a tide chart at check-in.

Early Morning: As noted, the morning low tide is the best for shelling. If you’ve ever been on the Sanibel or Captiva beach in the morning, you’ve likely seen the shell enthusiasts walking the beach each morning doing the “Sanibel Stoop” (hunched over, walking along the beach looking for shells).

Moon Phases: If your trip overlaps a full moon or new moon, you’re in luck. The gravitational pull of the moon is at its peak during a full moon and new moon, meaning large tidal ranges.

Weather Events: Massive storms or strong waves caused by high winds will push even more shells onto the shore. We saw this first-hand in 2020; the day after heavy winds and incredible waves, piles of shells stretched almost to the dunes.

Location, Location, Location

As barrier islands, Sanibel and Captiva are well-positioned as seashell depositories. The ocean current carries the shells to the San-Cap area where they await your discovery.

Search near the waterline and find the shells before they come to shore.

Watch for small sandbars that form at low tide just offshore, then search the tidal pool that forms between the sandbar and the shore. There are several sandbars on Captiva between South Seas Island Resort’s south border and Wightman Lane that seem to pop up every time we’re there.

Every so often on both islands, you’ll come across a massive section of shells. If it’s low tide, you can search these piles for the best of the best shells.

Try not to look where others are searching. If someone else is already searching in an area, chances are they’ve already found the best shells. There will be plenty of other open spots to search for your own seashell treasure.

Other Shelling Tips

The when and where are extremely important, but other factors come into play, depending on what type of shells you’re looking for and how many shells you want to take home.

Searching for Sand Dollars

Finding a whole sand dollar is the Captiva and Sanibel Island shelling equivalent of winning with a scratch-off lottery ticket.

The best place to look for sand dollars is in the water, a few feet from shore. Dig your feet into the sand and slowly shuffle your feet along the sea bottom. You may be lucky enough to kick up a sand dollar.

You can also look for circular impressions in the sand, just below the waterline. If you see a circular outline in the sand, gently scoop up the sand surrounding the circle. Chances are, you’ll pull up a sand dollar.

If you’re looking for a lot of sand dollars, and I mean A LOT, you’ll want to take the cruise to Cayo Costa Island. We found dozens upon dozens of sand dollars during our half-day cruise in 2020.

Shelling Gear

The bare minimum you need for shelling is your hands and pockets in which to place the shells. If you’re going to be out shelling for a while, you’ll likely want a shell scoop and either a bucket or a mesh shelling bag to carry all your shells. Thankfully, these are easy to come by on Sanibel and Captiva. Several stores across both islands sell these and other beach-related items.

Beach Stuff, located on Captiva Drive between Wightman and Lakia Lanes, has plenty of gear for you.

Displaying Your Shells

Many beach-side resorts offer shell washing stations and places to take photos of all your shells. For many, that’s the end of their shelling experience and their hauls are discarded before the flight home.

We like to bring ours home; we can’t think of a more special souvenir. Several rooms in our home have seashell jars. These are easy to make. We fill clear glass jars with a variety of shells, seal the jar and place it on a shelf.

Beach Stuff on Captiva Island has smaller jars for shells available for purchase.