New Smyrna Beach recommendations?

[Scoutdog]

Will be in New Smyrna Beach all next week. Anyone have any recommendations?

Thanks in advance, you guys always come through!

 

[dr_nigel_c]

Wow, haven't been to New Smyrna since I was a teen, was always nice and quiet.

You might be able to find a good deal with Ocean Vacation Rentals -- they've got units at various places.

Good luck, and have fun!

 

[K'smom]

I found a place on VRBO dot com and there are lots of places to rent on the beach for @ 135 a night. (including maid service)We're staying at Haceinda del Sol I if you get by there. Actually, if you could ck it out for me and let me know if there is still construction going on I'd be quite grateful. Ocean Properties seems like they are great to work with so far. They're building is located right on the main thoroughfare in New Sm. You might call them and see what they have directly. She told me that if the construction wasn't done and I didn't like the place we have that she'd easily upgrade me since it was the low season. (?)
Are you planning on seeing the shuttle launch? We've never been there so we are going a little blindly---planning on cking out the Daytona Speedway, a Sea Turtle rehab place, hopefully finding some manatees for my kids to see in the wild and get some relax time in the pool and of course hunt for sea shells. Someone mentioned that if you take a flashlight on the beach at night you might find some ghost crabs. Don't know about it, but it sounds fun for my kiddos.
We thought we'd ck out the Nat'l Canaveral Sea shore and do some hiking too. Let me know what you find!
Julianne

 

[DVCTiff]

We were there for a wedding a couple of years ago. It's very cute with some nice restaurants and shopping. We totally got eaten by sand fleas so make sure you have some repellent on!

 

[K'smom]

I'm from the midwest (chicago area) Do you recommend OFF? This doesn't sound fun at all. Were they bad at night and day time too? What time of yr did you go? Thanks for the heads up!

 

[Scoutdog]

We just got here in NSB. We had already booked thru VRBO to stay at nice complex called Minorca. I was looking more for things to do, places to eat, ideas but I should have clarified that.

We were planning on the shuttle launch, but last I saw several weeks ago it had been postponed. I'll check again... yep, it moved to May 31+ bummer

 

[swkmom]

We go there almost every year. The Ponce de Leon lighthouse is fun, it's not just the lighthouse, there are little buildings around it that are museums, it is near Daytona about 15 minutes away. There is also a small but free aquarium and turtle rescue there, I cannot remember the name of it but it's pretty neat. What my family calls the red sand beach but is actually called turtle mound is a state park there, pretty good shells and the sand is red, there is a small admission fee. We also enjoy going to the boardwalk in Daytona, it's only a 20 minute drive. If you like pizza and good greek salad then Stavros is a good place to go it's inland but not a far drive maybe 10 minutes. Hope you have fun!

 

[Seahunt]

If you love shrimp, you can take the water taxi from NSB over to the 10th Annual Shrimpfest (April 19 & 20th) at the Inlet Harbor restaurant in Ponce Inlet - yum

http://www.watertaxi-nsb.com/

http://www.inletharbor.com/welcome.html

 

[swkmom]

Here is the link for the aquarium I could not think of the name of, it is called the marine discovery center. http://www.marinediscoverycenter.org/

 

[K'smom]

Is there an entrance fee? Are all the little buildings museums?
Should I be worried about sand fleas? Never heard of them but since someone on the boards here mentioned it, I'm wondering. Turtle Mound sounds great--we'll be cking that out!!
Thanks again!! Any other info will be greatly appreciated. We'll be there on Sunday. How is the traffic? Anything I should know about?
K's mom

 

[swkmom]

There is a fee for the lighthouse. You pay in the gift shop and they give you a bracelet, it's not very much though. Here is the link http://www.ponceinlet.org/ it says that adults are $5 and kids under 11 are $1.50. Almost all the small buildings surrounding it are little museums my kids love going there. I've never had a problem w/ sand fleas but we are usually there in July or August. I do sometimes have problems w/ mosquitos. Also, here is a link that tells you where turtle mound is located and how to get there but it does not say how much it is.

One other thing I forgot to mention. If you go to the last public beach entrance and pay to drive on the beach during low tide can drive to where you will see a rock jetty. During low tide you can see pools of fish swimming in the rocks and on the other side of the rocks there are shallow pools and many times have really neat ocean life in them. One time we even happened upon a group of about 15 manatees sunning themselves there (very unusual, probably a once in a lifetime thing). But it's really neat, just make sure to go during low tide and be aware of what time high tide is. Have fun!

 

[swkmom]

Sorry forgot to post the link for turtle mound, here it is http://www.newsmyrnabeach.com/resources/turtle-mound.html

 

[swkmom]

Also, sorry but about the jetty meant to say the last beach interest going into town where all the shops are. You can actually see the lighthouse in the distance from the jetty.

 

[Tinks]

If you're looking for condos I recommend the Southwind and the Sandpiper. They are at the south end where no cars are allowed on the beach.


For restaurants we like Norwood's, a seafood place that can be pricey. Also, our favorite is just a short drive north, Aunt Catfish. Soooo good and family friendly and prices are okay. Another vote for Stavros pizza, too.

 

[K'smom]

When you talk about going to the rock jetty to see marine life, can you walk it or is it too far? And I assume you're talking about New Smyrna Beach, right?
Would there be anywhere we could park and walk it--we'll have a rental car and I'm sure driving on the beach is a no-no and would void any insurance or policies. (??)
I can't wait!! My children would go nutty to see marine life in its real habitat. They love museums and sea world but have never been to the ocean before and can't wait!! Have you heard about ghost crabs at night? Someone mentioned it to me to bring a flashlight and go on the beach at night. If you know more about this, I'd love to hear it. I'm such a novice here!
Julianne (k'smom)


Thanks again for your pointers!

 

[swkmom]

The best way to get the jetty is to drive on the beach, I guess you could walk on the beach from the last drive on entrance that is near the shops but it would be a long walk. As for the ghost crabs my nieces and sister-in-law love looking for them when we're there, they always go out really late at night w/ a flashlight, so yes they are there.