Overwhelmed! Best beaches for day trips from Orlando?

[GEM]

We will be in the Orlando area for two weeks in June. We would like to spend several days exploring some of the nearby beaches. We are looking for beaches that we can do just as a day trip, but we don't mind driving an hour and a half or so. Can you guys reccomend any place? We would like a couple of natural, quiet beaches and a couple of more enertaining places as well - some variety. We're just sort of overwhelmed and not sure where to look. Thanks!

 

[spiceycat]

Atlantic Side - there is Daytona Beach, Ormond Beach

on the Gulf Side - there is Clearwater Beach, St Peterburg

 

[popy]

Coco is close ,free parking and bath houses, the beach is great.
Try it I think you will like it.

 

[taxypooh]

Gulf side, Clearwater Beach is real nice-go to Pier 60 at sunset
and there are lots of buskers and general merriment. along with the
legendary "green flash".....

Atlantic side, St Augustine Beach is woth a drive just to visit
St. Augustine (they are separate towns like Cocoa and Cocoa Beach)-
lots of history presented in a fun way-fairly crowded weekends
though-the drive is about 90-110 minutes

 

[DisneySurfGirl]

St Pete's Beach is my fave. They have loads of nice beach-side bars and grills as well as loads of watersports. I usually stay there for a week to recover from WDW but it's only an hour/ hour and a half from Orlando so would be cool for a day trip too.

 

[Rhonda922]

My DH loves going down by Cocoa Beach so that we can go on the Sun Cruz (its a gambling boat that goes out for a few hours). Is there anything like that near any of the other beaches?