Compo Beach, Westport

Compo Beach is Westport's main town beach: a 29-acre park at 60 Compo Beach Road with a long sand beach on Long Island Sound, a short drive west of Sherwood Island State Park. From May 1 to September 30, cars without a Westport emblem pay a daily fee of $45 on weekdays and $70 on weekends and holidays, and only 125 daily passes are sold each day. Sherwood Island next door is free for Connecticut cars, which makes it the easier choice for most visitors.

Compo Beach vs Sherwood Island

• Who runs it: Compo is a Town of Westport beach; Sherwood Island is a Connecticut state park run by DEEP.
• Parking: Compo needs a Westport emblem or a $45–$70 daily fee in season. Sherwood Island is free for any car with Connecticut plates and $15–$22 for out-of-state cars (parking).
• Hours: Compo is open 4 a.m. to 10 p.m. in season; Sherwood Island 8 a.m. to sunset all year (hours).
• Lifeguards: Compo has town lifeguards from Memorial Day to Labor Day.
• Alcohol: allowed only in Compo's South Beach picnic area; banned at Sherwood Island.
• Dogs: banned at Compo April 1 to September 30; at Sherwood Island, April 15 to September 30 (dogs).
• Feel: Compo is a lively town beach with a playground, concession and marina; Sherwood Island is bigger, with a salt marsh, Nature Center, woods and the 9/11 memorial.

Parking and Admission

Westport admits cars to its beaches with a Parks and Recreation beach parking emblem or by paying a daily fee, available only at Compo and Burying Hill. At Compo the daily fee is $45 on weekdays and $70 on weekends and holidays (sales tax included), charged from May 1 to September 30, and the town limits Compo daily passes to 125 a day — on a hot weekend they can be gone early. For 2026, the town's emblem page says non-resident season emblems are sold out. The town can close a beach when parking runs out or for safety, and Compo closes to cars at 4 p.m. on the night of the annual town fireworks, except for vehicles with special fireworks tickets.

The beach is open year-round; outside May 1 to September 30 there is no daily parking fee.

Hours and Services

• Beach: May 1 – September 30, 4 a.m. to 10 p.m.; all cars must leave by midnight.
• Soundview lot: May 1 – September 30, 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.
• Restrooms (South and East Beach): 7:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m., May 1 – September 30.
• Food concession: May 1 – November 1, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. (dates and times may vary).
• Playground: sunrise to sunset.
• Pavilion: for public use; it cannot be reserved for private parties.
• Bathhouse lockers: seasonal, through Westport Parks and Recreation, (203) 341-5152.
• Also on site: a boardwalk, two sand volleyball courts, a large wooden playscape, a softball field, a multi-purpose field, two lighted basketball courts, a skate park and the Ned Dimes Marina.
• Accessibility: Mobi Mats on the main beach and South Beach, four accessible picnic pads on South Beach, a floating beach wheelchair (with an adult) and two wheelchairs at the entrance gate.

Swimming

Lifeguards are on duty at Compo from Memorial Day to Labor Day, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., except as posted. Swim only between the red and white buoys. South Beach has no lifeguards — swim at your own risk there. Children using a personal flotation device must have an adult with them in the water.

Rules

• No glass bottles or containers.
• Alcohol only in the South Beach picnic area; beer containers over one litre are prohibited.
• No smoking or vaping on town beaches, fields, playgrounds or their lots.
• No amplified music without a permit.
• No animals April 1 to September 30, including the lots, lawns and water, with narrow exceptions (leashed dogs going to boats at Ned Dimes Marina, and dogs in vehicles at the Soundview lot at set times). From October 1 to March 30, leashed dogs are allowed in designated areas.
• Watercraft may not launch from or land on the beach between April 15 and November 1, except in the designated South Beach sailing area.

Which Should You Choose?

If you have Connecticut plates and want space, nature and free parking, choose Sherwood Island. If you live in Westport, hold an emblem, or want lifeguards, a playground and a town-beach scene, choose Compo. For the full picture, see Westport beaches compared.