With the warm weather of spring and summer emerging, people will be flocking to Gulf Coast beaches with the essentials: sunscreen, bathing suits and towels. Many will also have alcoholic beverages, from fizzy hard seltzers to ice-cold beer, clinking in beach bags.

But rules surrounding the consumption of alcohol at white sand beaches across the Gulf Coast, including those in Mississippi, Alabama and the Florida panhandle, vary. Some allow vacationers and spring breakers who are 21 years or older to drink, though forbid glass containers, while others fully prohibit alcoholic beverages.

Perhaps you, like many other Louisianans — college students anticipating spring break and employees in desperate need of a vacation — are preparing for a beach getaway.

Here's a list of popular beaches in Mississippi, Alabama and the Florida panhandle that allow and do not allow alcoholic beverages.

Mississippi

According to government officials , glass containers are not allowed on the beaches of Harrison County , where Biloxi, Gulfport, Long Beach and Pass Christian are located. But its official website does not say that alcoholic beverages are prohibited.

Beaches in Hancock County , including those in Waveland and Bay St. Louis, allow vacationers to bring alcoholic beverages, though glass containers are not allowed, its chamber of commerce says.

Beachgoers hang out on the shores of the Bay St. Louis beach.

For beaches in Jackson County , home to Ocean Springs and Pascagoula, its rules on alcohol vary. Mississippi's tourism website does not explicitly say that people can't bring alcohol to Front and East Beaches in Ocean Springs, but it does warn of glass containers being prohibited. As for Pascagoula, its parks and recreation department states that no alcohol can be sold or consumed on city property without a permit.

Alabama

A resort city in Baldwin County known for its blue-green water and fine white sand, Gulf Shores does not allow the consumption of alcohol on any of its beaches, according to its website .

In Orange Beach , a coastal city that is next-door neighbors Gulf Shores, alcohol is permitted, though government officials warn that glass containers are prohibited.

Located on the tip of Dauphin Island, West End Beach allows vacationers to bring their own beverages, its website says, but similar to Orange Beach, glass containers are banned.

Florida panhandle

Destin , a beach town known for its bluish-green waters and fishing opportunities, allows the consumption of alcohol, but prohibits glass containers, according to a representative on its tourism website .

Eleven months out of the year, excluding March, alcohol consumption is allowed on Panama City Beach , its website says. Glass containers are prohibited year-round.

The tourism website for Pensacola Beach states that while glass containers and public displays of drunkenness are not allowed, alcoholic beverages are OK.

Beach goers brave the cold wind and water on Pensacola Beach, Fl. Saturday, April 3, 2021.

Fort Walton , a beach city within Oskaloosa County, prohibits alcohol consumption outside of state parks, according to a vacation rentals website .

Rosemary, Grayton and Seaside beaches, all of which are a part of the scenic corridor 30A, permits alcoholic beverages and open containers, another vacation rentals website says. Glass containers are not allowed.