Private Tour

South Padre Island Sandcastling Experience

Overview

Available languages

English

Spanish

1 hour

Mobile ticket

This is a 1 or 2-hour South Padre beach activity that you and your group will never forget. This is an informative, hands-on sand-castling activity that will help you have more fun on the beach than ever before. Equipment is provided and available for use for the duration of your stay on South Padre Island.

Additional Info

Public transportation options are available nearby

Not recommended for travelers with spinal injuries

Suitable for all physical fitness levels

Children under the age of 8 must be accompanied and assisted by an adult

Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

What‘s Included

Use of equipment for duration of your stay on South Padre Island

Gratuities

tools are free to use, but may be purchased at a discount

Food and drinks

Hotel pickup and drop-off

Transportation to/from attractions

What To Expect

Sandy Feet Sandcastle Services

A qualified instructor will meet you at beach access #16, located at 4400 Gulf Blvd., South Padre Island, Texas. There you will learn a series of techniques for building and carving a better sandcastle. This is hands-on instruction, and in 1 hour you will have a completed (or mostly completed) sand castle, perfect for a family photo op.

1 hour • Admission Not Applicable

Options

Sandcastles for Everyone

Learn how to make sand stand using your bare hands, and how to carve using common tools. At Public Beach access #16.
Duration: 1 hour: Our highly-qualified sandcastle instructors will throw as much hands-on fun at you as you can absorb in one hour's time.

Serious Sandcastling

Duration: 2 hours: This lesson can last anywhere from 1.5 - 2 hrs.
Serious Sandcastling : For adults and big kids. We will build and carve a completed castle that will make a worthy backdrop for a photo op.

Reviews

4.82

78 reviews

Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor

The Good, the Bad, the Ugly
Venture56528264394,
Oct 23, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
4.00
We picked a good time to go (October 6-10) as it was not busy with a lot of tourists. Going to break this review down into 2 parts: HOTEL: We stayed at the Holiday Inn Resort. We had a 3rd floor room in the the back building that faced the water. The hotel is dated. We could walk out and go right to the beach. There was a nice wooden walk from the hotel to the beach. Every night (yes every night) the fire alarm went off. The first night it happened I looked out our room door and did not see any guests coming out of their rooms to evacuate so I called the Front Desk. The manager on duty told me they weren't sure what the issue was but were trying to find out. I asked if we should evacuate the room and his response was "That's up to you". Since he was not concened we decided to not evacuate. After about 15 minutes of the alarm went off. Again, this happened every evening we were there. When I asked the front desk the next morning about it they said that due to the heat and high humidity it was impacting the alarm system. I do want to compliment all the staff that we interacted with. They were friendly and helpful. Every afternoon there was refreshment just inside the front doors. SIGHTSEEING/RESTAURANTS: We highly recommend you stop in at Lobo Del Mar Cafe. It became our go to place for drinks and food in the afternoon. Padre Island Brewing Co. had great home brews and good food. All the restaurants we went to had good food and service. We determined that we had too many places to try and too little time. We definitely recommend you check out the Sea Turtle Inc. Go when they are feeding. Forgot to mention that you should go to the Visitor's Info Center. They were very helpful and had a lot of brochures.
Sand Castle Lessons
nathanhZ3314LL,
Oct 18, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
We had a great time and learned a cool new skill. The instructor was awesome. He was on time, funny, and very knowledgeable. I would recommend this to anyone.
Building success
Matthew B,
Jul 27, 2025
- Review from Viator
5.00
José’ was great. Fantastic step by step process and basic principles of sand building. Our group had a great experience and would recommend it to anyone. There is bending, standing and getting water into buckets through out the hour. Great for adults and older kids. Get onboard and start your sand building experience.
Best Sandcastle Experience on South Padre Island
53cassiem,
Jun 28, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
The best sandcastle lesson experience in South Padre Island. I took a lesson when I was a child with my family. Now as an adult almost 15 years later I had to do another one on our weekend getaway. I was surprised that the art of sand castling and the techniques evolved and are better for nesting sea turtles and more accessible for more people to do! Our instructor Jose was fantastic. He demonstrated the techniques corrected our mistakes and was very patient and helped us make an incredible sand castle. We learned that there is not failure, you just rebuild and that you use the force (gravity) to build sand castles. A great way to spend a day on the beach!
Our sandcastler was...
Kelly F,
Jun 13, 2025
- Review from Viator
5.00
Our sandcastler was extremely knowledgeable and taught us a lot. Very fun. The kids enjoyed it although it got a bit hot after hour one. Not his fault. Great experience!
The Perfect Location for Family Fun!
Pioneer637670,
Jun 12, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
This condo is located at the perfect location if you want to walk to bars & family fun. Gravity Park is directly across the parking lot where you can enjoy and/or watch the fun from one of your 3 x balconies. Being in the pool over looking the bay while thr kids fished, was priceless! The gated front door is great and made us feel safe at night. On weekends, the DJ next door @ Coconut Jacks will provide music to vibe to that can be heard outside the property. This condo was set up with 3 x bathrooms and "bedrooms" as the family room had 2 couches, 1 with a sofa bed. We could've used some baking pans but other than that, it had what we needed. Bring your charcoal, fishing pole, cooler... and enjoy the beautiful location! 😎
I’ve always wanted to learn how to do this!!!!
Lynn M,
Jun 2, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
Jose was great. Fun, easy to learn from and very patient! We were delighted with our results and can’t wait to be at the beach next year with the grands and show them some new tricks.
Wonderful Family Activity
Laura P,
Apr 14, 2025
- Review from Viator
5.00
Jose was the best instructor! He was so patient, kind, funny, informative, and a wealth of knowledge. We were traveling with our 18 & 20 year old and they both had a blast building the sandcastle together as a family with Jose. It was a memorable experience! I highly encourage the 2-hour build if you have teenagers!
Fun family activity
Traceydriessen,
Apr 5, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
One of thr highlights of the trip for sure! Sandy was amazing and even kind enough to borrow us some tools to continue our building after the session. Fun family time & skills that we get to keep for life!
Blown away
Denise Z,
Apr 2, 2025
- Review from Viator
5.00
Lucinda knew all of the tricks to constructing and sculpting an incredible fortress. Her tips and tools were so helpful. The details we could add with simple implements were amazing! We all loved this class but the wind gusts and sand blasts made it almost impossible to continue. We were sad we couldn't add to what we began. If conditions improve, we'll go back and try again. Lucinda said she would jtry to oin us if we let her know when we are going. She was patient and so knowledgeable. She has set 3 Guinness book records!