Family beach near Orlando (Daytona Beach, New Smyrna Beach: hotel, trip , house)

[TrishP7]

Can anyone suggest the closest beach to Orlando, other than Cocoa beach, that is very clean and family oriented? Are there festivals/carnivals nearby?

[pianogal]

Originally Posted by TrishP7

Can anyone suggest the closest beach to Orlando, other than Cocoa beach, that is very clean and family oriented? Are there festivals/carnivals nearby?

My very favorite beach is New Smyrna. It is not highly commercialized - very quiet - just a small town and beautiful. DH and I enjoy staying at the Riverview - a restored Victorian home by the river. The owners are wonderful and helpful and there is a great restaurant with live music nightly right next door. Their website is Untitled Document

For carnivals, you would have to go to Daytona Beach. They don't have an amusement park per se on the beach, but do have a boardwalk area with a chair lift over the ocean, etc. You can get an idea from this website....

Pictures from Daytona Beach, Florida. Beach, Boardwalk and Main Street Photos

We live in south east Orlando and it takes slightly less than an hour to get to New Smyrna (417 to 415 to 44) and about an hour to get to Daytona via 417 to I4.
Enjoy!

[rholborn]

i agree, i love New Smyrna Beach it's my favorite! And pianogal is right, the carnivals are at daytona beach. At the North end of NSB right before the coast guard station is a beautiful park with boardwalks for walking, and you can bring your dogs to play. The view is gorgeous of the Ponce Inlet Lighthouse across the intercoastal.

[cmj_fla]

I saw on the news last night that New Smyrna is swarming with sharks right now. A young boy was bitten yesterday and the overview of the area showed a bunch of em'! Great beach, just be a little more cautious right now.

[DailyJournalist]

Originally Posted by cmj_fla

I saw on the news last night that New Smyrna is swarming with sharks right now. A young boy was bitten yesterday and the overview of the area showed a bunch of em'! Great beach, just be a little more cautious right now.

New Smyrna is the shark bite capital of the world.

UnderwaterTimes | Sharks, Surfers and New Smyrna: A Biting Tale at the 'Shark Bite Capital of the World'

[pianogal]

Originally Posted by cmj_fla

I saw on the news last night that New Smyrna is swarming with sharks right now. A young boy was bitten yesterday and the overview of the area showed a bunch of em'! Great beach, just be a little more cautious right now.

This is true. I don't know why, but sharks do seem to like the waters there. We used to spend a week there every summer at a friend's beach house when our son was small. One summer, he and his dad were playing in the water - only about knee high and DH saw a small shark swim between him and our son! That was the end of swimming in the ocean for that day. They went to the pool! LOL
But the next day they were back. Just be watchful. I still swim in the ocean....love it...but enjoy the springs even more! Try to take a day and enjoy Florida's beautiful springs while you're here. You can swim, tube, canoe, snorkel, etc. They're wonderful! I would suggest Blue Springs as the closest to Orlando. You can do all the activities names above plus there is a great boardwalk to take you on a beautiful trail along the river through the forest to the spring head and you can tube back to the swimming area. There's also a nice picnic area. Kids love it.

[TrishP7]

Wow..no Smyrna Beach for us!! Thats too bad, after reading the first few posts, I was about to get ready to plan my day for tomorrow. Think I'll try Daytona..thanks guys!

[right-here-i-say]

Other than getting bit by a shark, New Smyrna beach is great for families.

[BILLDEESE]

I've been going to New Smyrna Beach for 40 years and have never been bitten by a shark. Make sure you swim near one of the many Lifeguard towers and you'll be fine. It is worth the trip and you will like it much more than Daytona Beach.