florida beaches

[NYRICHIE]

we would like to take one day and go to the
beach. any recomendations? we are going in oct
staying at por.

[harperwi]

The two main choices you'll get as recommendations are Cocoa Beach (ocean side) and Clearwater Beach (gulf side).

Here are what I consider to be the pros and cons (I love them both, so you'll have to decide for yourself):

Cocoa Beach (pro):
Slightly shorter drive than Clearwater
It's actually the OCEAN, not just the Gulf.
Exciting strong wave action.

Cocoa Beach (con):
Sand is coarse and "grey"
Shells are very hard to find, except in pieces
Water can be COLD

Clearwater Beach (pro):
Water is crystal clear blue (hence the name)
Sand is white and soft
Shells much easier to find intact
Water is warm(er) and calm(er)

Clearwater Beach (con):
You can't actually say you've seen the ocean
Drive is farther from Orlando
Beach (IMHO) is harder to get to than Cocoa Beach

I anxiously await others' opinions about these two. I'm sure you'll get plenty! [img]smile.gif[/img]

Jon

[DisneyTeen]

Coco Beach is the first one that comes to mind, you have Ron Jon's and its a beach. There is also Daytona beach, where you can drive you car on the beach. Those are the only beaches that i have been too.

[DisneyDog]

We stayed in Cocoa Beach a few years back, since we were going to a shuttle launch. We ended up leaving Cocoa a day early because we were so miserable there. It's kind of a honky tonk town, not a lot to do there, the beach is difficult to walk on (too many shells), and the only thing we found decent to do there was the Ron Jon Surf Shop. I must say, even if you aren't into surfing (I'm not), that store is really, really cool. It's huge, and it's open 24 hours a day.

We live in Naples, on the Gulf. If you don't care about waves, and want to swim and relax, the Gulf is the way to go.

[padisneylover]

Hi,
I would suggest Daytona Beach. It is only about an hour from the park and there is all kinds of things to do there. It is a nice wide clean beach and has a nice pier there as well with amusements on it. There are numerous restraunts close to the beach and it is fun to drive your car on the beach if you have never done so.

[Tavel]

I'm a bit biased since I used to live on the Gulf, but the beaches on the east coast, particular Daytona just aren't to my liking. They just aren't as pretty as those on the west coast. While the driving on the beach seems interesting at first, it's like being on the beach next to a street. I guess it's what you're used to. My DH, having grown up in NY, doesn't mind the Fla., east coast beaches, but I was spoiled with yearly vacations to the Fla. west coast (inc. Clearwater where my grandmother lived). Right now, I'm living in a giant beach (the desert!) ... although there's no water in sight! Sigh.

[Swedish Cath]

We visited Cocoa Beach while we were in WDW in May. I was rather disappointed in the beach because it was really dirty. But my boyfriend and daughter really enjoyed playing in the big waves.

It was also very windy that day but I don't know if it is always windy.

I wish we had gone to clearwater instead.

[Katzateer]

Near KSC and the Disney cruiseline port-Jetty State Park. It is very clean and nice.

On the Gulf side Caladesi Island is the BEST place to go. The ferry to go to the island is located on Honeymoon Island. Shells, nice beach. The first one leaves at 9 or 10 am and you can stay at the island up to 3 hours. We have been there 3 times and love it.

[harperwi]

Near KSC and the Disney cruiseline port-Jetty State Park. It is very clean and nice.

On the Gulf side Caladesi Island is the BEST place to go.

Where are each of these located? How far are they from WDW? I've been to Clearwater three times and Cocoa Beach twice, and I'd definitely be interested in exploring something new, but we have fairly limited time.

Thanks,
Jon

[Katzateer]

I can't remember exactly what the location is for Jetty State Park but if you have directions for Disney Cruise lines the park is right next to the parking lot for the people going on the cruise.

As for Caladesi Island we always have to look at the map since all the towns are tiny. If you get through Tampa to the coast and go north to Dunedin it is close to the turn off to Honeymoon Island (look for HWY 60 on a Florida map). We always get lost going to Caladesi (Tampa is hard for us to get around in.) It will probably take about 2 hours from WDW to get to the parking lot on Honeymoon Island to get ferry tickets to Caladesi. We try to leave WDW area around 7am to get to the ferry in plenty of time. Tampa morning traffic is horrible!!!!!!!!!!!! That allows us time to grab stuff to eat. You can bring a picnic. We sure to bring water bottles.
You will love this island.

After leaving the island we found a seafood resturant in Dunedin called Jessie's Seafood that is very good and we always go in with sand all over us and in shorts. The food has been great each time (we are starving after 3 hours on the island). Then we drive back to WDW and get to swim and cool off. It is certainly an all day trip (at least for us).

[Altair]

I agree with Katzateer, if you can find the time, Caladesi Island State Park is well worth the trip.
No crowds, hiking trails and a great beach. This is a no frills beach. If you are looking for all the frills, then Clearwater Beach may be more to your liking. [img]graemlins/clappy.gif[/img]

[Sportster]

Personally, I would choose the gulf coast beaches, even though the drive is farther. I was disappointed with Daytona. To me, it seemed no different than the New Jersey beaches, which we're not too far from. I guess I was hoping for something cleaner and more exotic.