Cocoa Beach and surrounding area

[signtalker]

Has anybody been, and if so whats it like?

We picked this over Daytona as weve heard its not that great(noisy,dirty etc etc ).

We would also like to explore the area abit as well, as we are there for the day and like to move about abit, so whats the beach and area like, any tips, any must do's??

Jules

 

[kevin harrison]

Cocoa Beach is lovely. I can't recomend it highly enough. It's not as popular with foreign holidaymakers as it isn't as well known, which means it always less crowded.

I rented a surf board there last time, for the first time in my life and had a great time. The waves are huge.

 

[snookhams]

I am sorry to say that our experience is totally different to Kevin Harrison, we disliked Cocoa Beach and vowed never to return , there is nothing to do other than sit on the beach or round your hotel pool, and unfortuatley our hotel was invaded by a whole hord of Harley Davidson bikers there for a convention that had no consideration for other guest, roaring up and down the pathways directly outside the rooms day and night.

 

[Aceman88888]

Went to Cocoa Beach back in 1999 for our last 2 days of holiday.

Overall very dissapointing

Stayed at a Day's Inn which the brochure said was in Cocoa Beach but was infact 20 minutes drive away. Hotel was very poor, rooms (non smoking) smelt of 20 years of cuban cigar abuse. Huge cockroach greeted us on the room window and carpet in rooms was 'sticky'. Never again!!. Obviously such standards in Orlando would not be accepted as they are more in the limelight.

Cocoa beach was just a strip of motels, tacky gift shops and a few diverse restaurants but as said above, very limited.

The sea breeze can be very nice in cooling you down but beware, the chances of sunburn & sunstroke are surprisingly high as you do not appreciate the power of the sun in the breeze. I nicely topped up my tan but was a little red upon returning for a couple of days.

If I go anywhere near there this year it will only be if we bother going to Kennedy Space centre and leave early.

Overall I would say avoid and go to the other coast instead..... much more civilised!!!!

 

[JANNYANS]

I agree with aceman stick to the west coast much nicer.I wasn't impressed with cocoa beach at all

 

[JohnnySharp]

Went to Cocoa Beach a few years ago, not impressed.

The beach itself is pretty average and there is not a whole lot to do either, people visit to go to the Ron Jon's Surf Shop.

The beaches on the West Coast , particularly Clearwater are much better.

 

[floridalol]

Had a week at Cocoa in 1991 - beach was average, poor choice of restaurants. Ron Jon's Surf Shop was the only + element that we enjoyed. Try it for a day trip but stick to the west coast if you want a week on the beach.

 

[Red-Snapper]

Did'nt like it much.

The Gulf coast is much better.


I think you might be getting the picture by now ...

 

[Shuttle Fan]

We like Cocoa Beach and have stayed there a couple of times. If there's a shuttle or rocket launch it's sometimes better to book a room and stay in case of delays etc., or combine it with a trip to KSC.

Whilst I agree the beach is no where near as lovely as the Gulf, its very different and the waves are great fun.

A good hotel to stay at is the Courtyard by Marriott. The only problem we have found with Cocoa is that everywhere seems to shut at about 10pm at night.

Theres a good amusement centre called Traxx near the port, next to the Radisson hotel with an arcade, mini golf, soft ball, and go cart track.

 

[signtalker]

thanks for all the replies.

Weve decided to hit Sarasota beach instead, more to do, and it gets better reviews.

Jules