Daytona Beach The ocean-front metropolitan area in central east Florida stretching 23 miles (37km) along white sand beaches south from Ormond Beach is known as Daytona Beach, America's favorite family beach holiday destination. Greater Daytona encompasses the towns of Holly Hill, South Daytona, Port Orange, Ponce Inlet, Daytona Beach Shores and all of Volusia and Flagler Counties, all of which are dedicated to making the area an unequaled vacationers paradise. Without moving from the sands at Daytona Beach you can surf, jet ski, go boating, parasailing, feast on hot dogs and cotton
candy, go fishing, bicycling, fly a kite and even take a drive in a hired beach buggy. Daytona's hard-packed sands have provided fun for speedsters ever since the early years of the 20th century when daredevils like Sir Malcolm Campbell set and broke records on the beach. Today beach-cruising is still permitted along an 18-mile (29km) section of the beach during daylight, but the speed limit is a strict 10 miles per hour (16km/h): speeding is reserved for the world-famous Daytona International Speedway where the annual Daytona 500 Nascar race is held. With so much to do on the beach, it is difficult to find time to move off it, but those who do are greeted with numerous recreational facilities and attractions in the string of towns along the intracoastal waterway and on the mainland. From archaeological sites to mini-golf, museums to haunted houses, and planetariums to chocolate factories there is never a dull moment in Daytona Beach. Best of all, Daytona Beach is within easy day-trip distance of Orlando with its thrilling Walt Disney World, Sea World, Universal Studios and Epcot Center, to name only a few of the city's world-famous attractions. Also just an hour's drive away is the Kennedy Space Center. Little wonder that this versatile vacation hub receives an estimated eight million visitors a year.
Cocoa Beach Center of Florida's 'Space Coast' around Cape Canaveral, Cocoa Beach has become one of the Sunshine State's prime resorts, boasting the top attraction of the Kennedy Space Center and close proximity to Orlando's major theme park attractions 46 miles (74km) away. Sited on a six-mile (10km) long barrier island, nestled between the Atlantic Ocean and the Banana River Lagoon, Cocoa Beach offers the chance to watch a space launch from the beach or ride the waves on which several surfing champions have cut their teeth. The town has a large permanent population made up largely of retirees, but this more than doubles during peak season when the local hotels, motels, timeshares and condominium rentals are filled with holidaymakers and sightseers. The quintessential beach town, Cocoa Beach has an oceanfront running the entire length of its city limits, fronted by numerous dining spots, shops and cafes. There is also an historic pier, stretching 840ft (256m) into the ocean, lined with restaurants, boutiques and souvenir shops and providing for good fishing. A few minutes away is man-made Port Canaveral, port of call for numerous cruise liners, where there are also operators offering day sails, casino cruises and deep-sea fishing charters. Cocoa Beach is connected to Port Canaveral and various stops in-between by the Beach Trolley service.
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