Lanier Park is a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers day-use park on the south end of Lake Sidney Lanier, just north of Buford Dam. The Corps' Mobile District runs it as one of its fee parks on the reservoir, and its main draw for swimmers is a small designated swim beach tucked into a cove on the park's east side, with picnic tables and grills spread through the pines behind it. The lake is the big Chattahoochee River impoundment north of Atlanta, and this end of it sits close to Buford, Sugar Hill and Suwanee.

The park entrance is at 1360 Buford Dam Road in Buford. From Georgia 400, take exit 14, head east on Highway 20, turn left on Sanders Road and then right on Buford Dam Road; after crossing the dam, turn left at the Lanier Park sign. From I-85, take exit 111 and follow Lawrenceville-Suwanee Road north about 10 miles to Buford Dam Road, turn right, then left at the sign. Lanier Park Road leads past the fee kiosk to several paved lots, and the lots nearest the water put you within a short walk of the sand. Parking is first come, first served, and the lots fill early on hot summer weekends.

The swim area is a short stretch of sand on a sheltered cove, much calmer than the open lake where boat wakes roll in. Lake Lanier is a deep reservoir, so the bottom shelves off from sandy shallows into much deeper water, and swimmers should stay inside the marked area. There are no lifeguards at any Corps beach on Lanier, so swimming is entirely at your own risk and children need an adult watching them. Surface water is typically in the 80s (F) by midsummer and cool again by October. The Corps lists day-use park hours as 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily, and some parks close fully or partly in winter.

Lanier Park is not free. The Corps fee schedule lists $8 per vehicle and $3 per pedestrian or cyclist, with the same $8 charged to launch a boat. Payment is made at a card-only kiosk, and a USACE annual day-use pass ($40) is honored. Shelter reservations through Recreation.gov do not cover the day-use fee. Pets, alcohol and fireworks are prohibited in the park, as are amplified music and P.A. systems.

Lake Lanier has a long record of drownings, almost all of them outside designated swim areas or from boats, so the cove is the place to swim and the open water is not. Lake levels rise and fall with drought and dam releases, which can widen or shrink the beach from year to year. The Corps has closed Lanier parks for staffing shortfalls and during federal shutdowns, so check current status before a long drive.

Beyond the beach, the park has a boat ramp, restrooms, a reservable group shelter with lake views, and access to the Laurel Ridge Trail, a 3.5-mile loop that links the parks around Buford Dam and looks out over both the lake and the Chattahoochee River below the dam. Buford Dam Park, with its own swim beach and playground, is next door.