2 Best Sights in Northeast Coast, Florida

At the southern tip of the barrier island that includes Daytona Beach is the sleepy town of Ponce Inlet, with a small marina, a few bars, and casual seafood restaurants. Boardwalks traverse delicate dunes and provide easy access to the beach, although storms have caused serious erosion. Marking this spot is the bright-red, century-old Ponce de León Inlet Light Station, a National Historic Monument and museum, the tallest lighthouse in the state and the third tallest in the country. Climb to the top of the 175-foot lighthouse tower for a bird's-eye view of Ponce Inlet.

It's unusual to find a lighthouse tucked into a residential neighborhood. This 1874 version replaced an earlier one built when the city was founded in 1565. Although its beacon no longer guides ships, it does draw thousands of visitors each year, in part because it has a reputation for being haunted.

The visitor center has a museum featuring an exhibit called Wrecked, which displays artifacts from an 1872 British loyalist shipwreck discovered off the shores of St. Augustine. You can also see exhibits on the U.S. Coast Guard, historic boatbuilding, maritime archaeology, and the life of a lighthouse keeper—whose work involved far more than light housekeeping.

You have to climb 219 steps to reach the top, 140 feet up, but the wonderful view and fresh ocean breeze are well worth it. Children must be at least 44 inches tall to make the ascent. The museum also conducts evening Dark of the Moon Paranormal tours ($25) and one-hour Lighthouse Keeper's tours ($19.95) for a history lesson and behind-the-scenes look at the keeper's role.