I'll get to the beach in a few paragraphs, so feel free to skip down.
General information for international members: Haulover Beach is near Miami, in south Florida, on the eastern (Atlantic Ocean) side of Florida.
I flew to Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International Airport (FLL) which is about 16 miles north of Haulover Beach. Miami International Airport (MIA) is about the same distance, but southwest of Haulover Beach. I chose Fort Lauderdale because I found a ridiculously low fare (on American Airlines.) I found Fort Lauderdale airport very convenient and efficient. I've never been to Miami airport, but it might be an equally good choice. Some fares might be more competitive to Fort Lauderdale because Southwest Airlines operates there.
I had never been south of Fort Lauderdale along the coastline before, and was shocked at how built-up it is. The coastline is an almost-continuous wall of high-rise condos and hotels. Strange to say, there wasn't much traffic along A1A, the coastal route, so I think most of the condos are owned by northerners who occupy their condos for only a few weeks of the year. Other owners are retired people who don't drive much. A lot of units may be vacant because Florida was hit hard by the 2008-2009 real estate collapse.
The was one break in the wall of highrises: Golden Beach is a town of one square kilometer (according to Wikipedia) of mansions. (Wikipedia notes that the town has an abnormally large police force for its size, most of which is dedicated to speed control along the main road.)
Then more highrises. Eventually there is a major gap in the wall of highrises, and that is Haulover Park. The beach is on the east (ocean) side of A1A, but parking is on the west side of A1A.
My visit was on a weekday, and the main parking lot entrance was closed. Entry was through the Boat Launch entry a little further south. Parking was a bargain at $6 with in-and-out privileges. (I saw a sign leaning behind the parking attendant booth that said something like "No free re-entry today" so you might not get that deal on weekends.
The parking lot was huge, filled with a lot of BMWs and other luxury cars, and one Ducati bike. There is a short walk on a beautiful boardwalk through the natural wetlands leading to the pedestrian underpass under A1A.
The beach is huge. I arrived mid-morning on a perfect day. I should have arrived earlier, because it was already very warm. I chose a spot closer to the water than anyone else. I guessed the other people were just scared of waves, but a few minutes later a huge Caterpillar bulldozer drove along the edge of the beach, missing my toes. A few minutes later a small helicopter buzzed the beach, and I thought it was going to be a very noisy day at the beach. But after that, it was quiet and peaceful, with just the wonderful sound of the waves until the bulldozer returned a couple of hours later.
Being close to the water you're on display to all the people in swimsuits walking along the shore to the textile beach to the south. They seemed totally cool about walking by nude people. Many of the walkers in swimsuits were in their teens and twenties, and maybe if they see young naturists, they'll give naturism a try.
Shortly after I arrived, a couple of very hot babes (they looked like sisters) set up their mats near me and stripped down completely nude. They spent a lot of time applying sunscreen and taking sexy pictures of each other. That was entertaining for me, but they attracted a steady stream of obese 70 year-old men with excessive back hair, strolling by to ogle them.
At least half of people on the beach were elderly, grossly overweight, men. Feel free to flame me for not upholding the value of body acceptance, but when people are naked, you really notice how seriously obese they are. We are a very obese nation, and if you gain 2 pounds (1kg) a year for fifty years, you're 100 pounds overweight, and overdue for a coronary. If I ever get over 130 pounds, I'm giving up chocolate bars!
Not all the naturists on the beach were elderly. There were some families with young children, some couples and gay men of various ages.
I went into the water several times up to my waist, but found it a bit cool. Others were swimming. By early afternoon, I found the air temperature too hot and the sun too intense, so I left around 1:30 pm. (The high temperature was 86 Fahrenheit / 30 Celsius.)
I had not brought any sort of towel or mat in the morning, and was happy to just lie on the sand. The problem I discovered is that the sunscreen I had used (Water Babies aerosol) is like contact cement and I was coated in sand stucco.
To the consternation (or delight) of the people waiting, I stood in the outdoor shower (which was pleasantly luke-warm and had a strong spray) for over ten minutes trying to wash the sand off my back. It just wouldn't come off. Finally I gave up.
I went back to the hotel and had a long, hot shower which did eventually de-sand me.
I talked the housekeeper into giving me several extra towels and took them to the beach to lie on when I returned. That avoided the sand-glue problem.
To my surprise, the air temperature dropped rather quickly and the wind picked up. By 4pm I was cold. I left around 5pm.
I'm going to do a "Compare and Contrast" essay in the Polls section comparing the Haulover sand beach to Austin, Texas' limestone rock beach. You'll be able to vote on which you prefer.