Thousands of beachgoers braved stifling heat and humidity Friday some setting up before dawn to cheer on the Blue Angels for their first full homecoming dress rehearsal in three years.
The consensus on the beach Friday? Things finally feel back to normal after a difficult year of pandemic disruptions including the cancellation of the Blue’s show last year and the Pensacola Bay Bridge’s nine-month closure.
Early traffic counts approached what they were in 2019, bars and restaurants were happily overrun, and the Blue Angels put on a stellar performance over the emerald waters reminding the crowd why they’re hometown favorites.
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Blue Angels Pensacola Beach Air Show schedule
Thursday
Friday
Friday is the Pensacola Beach Air Show dress rehearsal, with the aerobatic acts beginning just after 11 a.m. and the Blue Angels overhead at 2 p.m.
Saturday
Parking? Plan ahead to avoid traffic
It can be difficult to find parking anywhere on the beach after early morning. The parking lot at Casino Beach has about 1,000 spaces. In previous years, the Casino Beach lot has filled before 7 a.m. both Friday and Saturday. Additional public parking is available at Park East and at Park West.
If you’re parking along other roads, be warned not to park in the sand. Every year, cars get stuck in the sand and have to be towed out, officials said.
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Six months after being damaged by Hurricane Sally and just days before they were to be placed back into service, Pensacola’s ferries will remain docked for now.
Scheduled to resume this weekend, the service has been put on hold once again. Joe Asebedo, the general manager of Pensacola Bay Cruises, says they’re awaiting the last piece of the puzzle – Coast Guard approval.
“We’ve gone through all the safety inspections; through all the safety system inspections, seaworthiness inspections that the Coast Guard has done,” Asebedo said. “Those have all passed; the crew has been tested, those have passed. We’re ready to go but it’s really been just a small amount of paperwork that’s taken a little bit longer than anticipated.”