Gulf Region

The Gulf Region wraps around the southwestern corner of Alabama, anchored by Mobile Bay and the state’s narrow stretch of Gulf coast. The terrain shifts as you move inland — white-sand beaches and barrier-island marshes along the coast, pine flatwoods through the middle counties, and the Mobile-Tensaw Delta where the Alabama and Tombigbee rivers meet just north of Mobile. Mobile County holds Mobile and Dauphin Island; Baldwin County carries the major beach destinations at Gulf Shores, Orange Beach, Foley, Fairhope, and Daphne. Clarke, Conecuh, Escambia, Monroe, and Washington counties extend the region inland, with anchor towns at Bay Minette, Brewton, Monroeville, and Saint Stephens. Gulf State Park, Gulf Islands National Seashore, and Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge handle the coastal public lands. Most trips split between beach and city. The Baldwin County coast carries family-beach traffic; Mobile handles a working port city’s worth of museums, history, and Mardi Gras (the country’s oldest); and the Mobile-Tensaw Delta supports kayaking, birding, and swamp tours.