Grant Park Beach is the Lake Michigan swimming beach at the south end of Grant Park, a Milwaukee County Parks property of roughly 380 acres in South Milwaukee. The county acquired the first land here in 1910, making Grant Park one of the oldest parks in the system. The beach sits in a small cove just north of where Oak Creek runs into the lake, with wooded bluffs behind it and the South Milwaukee Yacht Club next door. The stone beach pavilion went up in 1937. It sat mostly empty for more than a decade, and since 2016 it has housed Ferch's Beachside Grille, the seasonal concession.

From South Milwaukee, take Oak Creek Parkway east toward the lake and follow the narrow road that drops downhill to the shore. It's easy to miss if you aren't looking for it. Parking is free in the lots at the bottom of the hill, a few steps from the sand. The county's listed address for the beach is 100 Oak Creek Parkway, and the park office uses 100 E. Hawthorne Ave. Milwaukee County Transit buses stop along 5th Avenue, about half a mile west, if you'd rather not drive.

The beach is soft sand, combed weekly in summer, and it faces open Lake Michigan with nothing between you and the far shore. There is no roped swim area and no lifeguard. Milwaukee County posts that patrons swim at their own risk. Lake Michigan stays cold here well into July, and offshore winds can push warm surface water out and bring much colder water up within a day. Waves build fast when the wind comes from the north or east, and water moving along the old jetties on this shore can form strong currents when the surf is up. Children have had to be pulled from the water at this beach, so keep kids within reach.

There's no fee to use the beach or park. Beach access hours are 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Pets are not allowed on the sand except service animals. Restrooms and drinking water are next to the pavilion. The South Milwaukee Health Department tests the water for E. coli from June through September and posts advisory or closure signs at the beach when counts run high. Results also go to the Wisconsin beach health website. Bacteria counts usually climb after heavy rain, when Oak Creek and storm runoff flush into the cove, so check the status first if it has stormed in the last day or two.

Ferch's sells frozen custard, burgers and drinks in season and rents lounge chairs, umbrellas and beach volleyball courts. Volley Life runs adult leagues on the sand courts from May through August. The beach also has a children's play area. Up the hill, the park has an 18-hole golf course, picnic areas, a segment of the Oak Leaf Trail, and the Seven Bridges Trail, a National Recreation Trail of wooden footbridges and stone stairs that winds through ravines at the north end of the park.