Biloxi, MS

Biloxi's working waterfront remains visible at city-owned docks. The Commercial Docking Facility provides 51 berths for the local shrimping and oyster fleet, and in shrimp season some crews sell their catch directly from the dock. On Back Bay, the Sherman V. Canaan facility has another 32 berths for shrimp boats. Recreational use occupies the same shoreline system: Point Cadet Marina has 241 berths plus charters, rentals, and tours, while city piers and launches provide places to fish or put a boat into Biloxi Bay, Back Bay, the Tchoutacabouffa River, and nearby coastal water. Those facilities make seafood, fishing, and boating part of ordinary public access along the city's coast.

Keesler Air Force Base gives the city a second population that is easy to feel but absent from a resident count. The 81st Training Wing trains more than 28,000 students annually and has an average daily student load above 2,700. Biloxi's July 2025 population estimate was 48,516, and Census data for 2020 through 2024 counted 4,851 veterans, placed owner occupancy at 50.1 percent, and measured a 21.3-minute mean trip to work. Tourism is also substantial: accommodation and food-service sales reached $1.47 billion in 2022. Transportation options broadened in August 2025 when Amtrak restored Gulf Coast passenger service.

The 2026 Mardi Gras Service timetable gives Biloxi two daily round trips in each direction between New Orleans and Mobile, and its platform is across the street from the Biloxi Transit Center, where Coast Transit routes connect Gulfport, Ocean Springs, D'Iberville, and several Biloxi corridors. Coastal access also brings recurring preparation. Harrison County uses three hurricane evacuation zones, and the city's annual guidance asks households to know their route, consider flood insurance, and be ready to travel inland. In Biloxi, the harbor, base, visitor economy, renewed rail link, and storm plan all belong to present-day life.