any one drive to cocoa beach from disney?

[nitsirk987]

hello,

i really didn't know what board to put this one on, but DH and I have and open day when we are down in oct and was thinking about driving to a beach for the day. I noticed that cocoa beach didn't seen too far. anyone ever been there and was it worth the trip?? if not, any other beaches to mention??

thanks alot!!!

kristin

 

[eljojo]

Friends of ours just got back from Disney and said they drove to Cocoa Beach from Disney. They said it took about an hour, and they enjoyed the change of pace. We're going to rent a car for a day and do the same in August.

 

[bjakmom]

Here's a link to another thread on Cocoa Beach - my sister is going to WDW and has a best friend in cocoa - my son and I drove over one night while at Space Camp to check out Ron jon's - the store was great. Sounds like the beaches are nice too: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?s=&postid=5797175#post5797175

 

[lsyorke]

AHHH, Ron Jons!!! As DS16 said "its the holy grail for surfers and skateboarders". Of course getting the long skate board back on the plane was a challenge!!

 

[ChisJo]

I hated Cocoa Beach. The only thing I liked about it was Ron Jon's Surf shop. The beach itself was DIRTY! Cigarette butts, garbage, and empty alcohol and beer bottles everywhere. It also seemed to be the local hang-out for the teens. I found the beach to be full of sea-weed and overall, I was so disappointed. I swore next time that I would go to a different beach because of how gross we found this beach. This was in 1999, so maybe it has been cleaned up some, but I still will never go back. As for Ron Jon's surf shop....well, maybe I will have to go back there someday!
Jo

 

[wannabee princess]

We also went to Cocoa for a day trip (I think it may have been 2000?). I wouldn't pick it as a return to spot necessarily. It wasn't horrible, but it was fairly crowded and didn't seem to be the cleanest. I think it took about an hour to get there.

 

[nitsirk987]

well it doesn't sound like a place i would want to go to if it is dirty!!! any other suggestions on beaches to go to? i would really like to see the ocean from the south, the beaches around here are not too pretty!!! alot of seaweed and nothing i would brag about!

thanks for you help!

 

[jiminy14]

You don't need to drive all the way to Cocoa Beach for Ron Jon's. There is a smaller branch of the store that recently opened in the Festival Bay mall on International Drive. You will find it on the right hand side of the road before you get to the Belz outlets. There are also Hilo Hatties, Black Market Minerals, and Steve and Barry's stores in there. Black Market Minerals is great for cheap gifts. Hilo Hatties has a lot of items you would find at the Poly but at half the price. Steve and Barry's carries College and University Logo clothing. Nothing in the store is priced over $9 including jackets.
As far as beaches, Daytona is a little more than an hour away. Disney's Vero Beach resort is about 1 1/2 hours and has a beautiful but small beach.

 

[safetymom]

I was at Cocoa Beach about 2 weeks ago and the beach was clean. We had a very nice time on the beach. We went to Ron Jons but it was just like another tourist store. There is also a Ron Jons in the Orlando airport.

No reason to avoid Cocoa Beach.

 

[BobH]

There is access to a public beach at Vero which abuts the Disney Resort - very small parking lot. There is a fairly large public park and public beach area in Downtown Vero on Route A1A about 5 miles south of the Disney Vero Resort. I am of the understanding that we are not entitled to use the DVC resort facilities (pool etc)at Vero unless we are staying there but if you haven't seen the resort you could stop for lunch and investigate the resort. Vero is about 1 hour and 20 minutes from Orlando and not a bad drive.
I have also heard that the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge area near the Kennedy Space Center is very good. May try that one myself next trip. good uck with your plans. Try this site for info: http://www.verobeach.com

 

[BobH]

If you decide Vero is a beach option here is another site:
http://vero-beach.fl.us/

Not trying to defend Massachusetts beaches here but have you ever tried Cranes Beach in Ipswich in the Crane Wildlife Refuge, Plum Island National Wildlife Refuge or the National Seashore Beaches on Cape Cod from Nauset Beach to Truro?

Good luck with your trip.

 

[deltachi8]

We went to Coco Beach last August and thought it was fine. Clean, not crowded (it was a Saturday). Really liked Ron Jon's and had a nice time.

Is it the nicest beach i have been too? No. But i thought is was just fine and only about 50 minutes from the world.

 

[hulabird]

We went to Cocoa Beach too and found it dirty and the water wasn't too great either. This year my mom suggested we try the beaches over in the Bradenton area, the beaches are super clean and only about 2 hours away. The water is the big thing, pretty blue water, not yucky green murky water like Cocoa. My mom goes to Long Boat Key and Sarasota alot and she said the beaches in that area are so much better and cleaner. In LBK you have to stay at a resort or live there, but there are beaches that are free in Braedenton and in the Sarasota vacinity. Here is a link I have been using to decide what beach to try.

We are looking at Beaches on Anna Maria Island, and Redington Shores and Treasure Island looks really cool too. Do a websearch and you will find lots of things better than Cocoa.

Beaches

 

[hulabird]

here is another site, look how cool Redington Shores looks. (scroll down and you will see it, it looks like a little seashore town and beaches are all around. I am looking forward to a visit when we are in Florida.

more beaches