penel523

We've reserved a room at the Doubletree in Indialantic--has anyone stayed there? Is there a better place to stay in that stretch of the east coast?

We'll be there three nights and will plan to go to Cape Canaveral as well as the nearby wildlife refuge. We'd welcome suggestions for dining and other activities.
Thanks.

hpeabody

If you are interested, many people like to tour the Kennedy Space Center. As for eating, my favorite of all is Dixie Crossroads in Titusville. Yummmy rock shrimp As far as hotel, I have always stayed in Cocoa Beach.

I am a space shuttle program worker and have travelled to that region on many occasion.

nlg

We stayed in the Indialantic area several years ago and my only complaint
was the rocks in the water. The were
very slippery and hard to walk in. You
will need to wear watershoes while in the water. Last year we stayed in Cocoa
Beach and the beach and water there were
much better. We stayed at the Resort on
Cocoa Beach. There was a Hilton right next to the Resort and it looked nice also. There are a lot restaurants in the
Cocoa Beach area.

hop_along

I am boycotting the Dixie Crossroads. On my one visit there, it was very crowded (as usual, I suppose) and I was told the wait for a table would be 15 to 20 minutes. That sounded reasonable, but an hour later we still had not been seated and we made the mistake of hanging around all that time assuming that any moment our time would come. ...Never again. Such deception cannot be tolerated or forgiven.

happytotravel

I am in Melbourne Beach now, and I always wonder why it is never very crowded. It is lovely here, not very many tourists, beach and river access. I don't really care for the stretch of road that the Doubletree is on. It has a nice beach, its just not my favorite area. I prefer to be just a little south, but hotel choice is more limited. Maybe try the Tuckaway shores, but I have no idea what the rooms are like.

For restaurants in Melbourne beach itself there is D'Johns an upscale eatery in a cute little house, Andiamo, upscale italian, Island Fish Grill, highly recommended, City Tropics-Casual, Bizzarro -New york Pizza, Cold Stone for ice cream

You can day trip to Vero Beach for lunch in an ocean view restaurant, and then browse in upscale shops.

You could drive down to Sebastion inlet State park. Maybe rent a boat for the day. The Indian river is full of Manatees, dolphins, fish and birds. It is very serene, uncrowded, and beautiful.

Check the papers when you get here, there is usually something going on like an art show or festival. One year we saw the Russian Ballet. You just never know whats going on.

My parents have a vacation home here,so I can't suggest a place to stay, but it is really a nice area. My friends that have visisted here, call it paradise.

321go

I believe that the Doubletree is one of the hotels that has been completely renovated since the 2004 hurricanes. Can someone else who's in the south beaches verify that?

Island Fish Grill is excellent, don't miss it. For a quick eats, very casual kind of place try LongDoggers.

Activities? You can go kayaking in the Cocoa Beach thousand islands area, head down to Sebastian inlet for beachcombing, birding, canoeing, boat tours, etc. On the mainland, Brevard Zoo is good and there's shopping at either Cocoa Village (SR 520 and Brevard Ave) or Downtown Melbourne (SR 192 and Strawbridge).

RedRock

While you are visiting the Merritt Island Wildlife Refuge make the time to visit the Canaveral National Seashore just down the road..

http://www.stillnature.com/MerrittIs...ifeRefuge.html

http://www.nps.gov/cana/

penel523

We'd like to stay at a Hilton-family hotel, simply because we'll earn points that we can ultimately use for a free night somewhere.

There's a "Hilton Cocoa Beach Oceanfront," and I wonder if that's the one nlg was referring to. Do you think that's a better location? We were put off by some comments in the forum that were critical of Cocoa Beach.

nlg

Yes, the Hilton Cocoa Beach Oceanfront,
is the one next to the Resort on Cocoa
Beach. We really liked the Cocoa Beach
area. The beach is great for walking
and you can watch the surfers and cruise
ships. We are going back to Cocoa Beach
next month.

raghuram41

I was in Indialantic for 2 years and Double Tree was 5 minutes walking distance from my home. I haven't stayed there, but its busy hotel. There are no rocks on Indialantic Beach or Melbourne Beach. Its very nice place. You can try Dos Amigos on A1A. Its very nice place to dine also, If you like Sea Food, try Captian J's in Cocoa Beach.

KSP is 1 day trip and its very nice. thats a must to do attraction. Brevard Zoo is nice place, they have Kayaking Trip.

rascat

If by Cape Canaveral, you mean the Kennedy Space Center, then Indialantic puts you farther away than Cocoa Beach.

There's nothing wrong with Cocoa Beach. I go there myself to enjoy several of the restaurants there (such as Slow-n-Low, the Heidelberg, Roberto's, and Grills at the Port), and to walk the beach. But the forum gets several posters looking for "white sand, clear water, tropical island get-aways" within driving distance of Orlando, and that doesn't describe Cocoa Beach.

But, if you are looking for a hotel on the beach, within a reasonable driving distance from the space center, then Cocoa Beach would certainly fit the bill.

You also need to be aware of the fact that you cannot enter the wildlife refuge through the restricted areas of Kennedy Space Center. If you enter from the south, you will follow the signs for the visitors center, then exit via the NASA Causeway (S.R. 405) towards Titusville. From there, you would take U.S. 1 north through Titusville, and take S.R. 406 back east to enter the wildlife refuge. To get back to Indialantic, or Cocoa Beach, you would need to back track, or take I-95 south.

If you are interested in the Space program, then KSC will probably take care of one full day, especially if you take the bus tour. There is also a small space museum and a park with memorials in Titusville, on tbe way to the wildlife refuge. On your other day, the suggestion for Cocoa Village (for shopping) and Sebastian Inlet are good.

321go

The Hilton in Cocoa Beach is quite nice. It's located next to a park and is back from A1A (the main drag through town), so it's quieter than some hotels along the beach.

Rascat is right to point out that many posters here are looking for tropical white sand beaches which can be found on the gulf coast, not central Florida's east coast.

I like Rascat's Cocoa Beach restaurant recommendations (especially Robertos!); I'dd add Simply Delicious for a great breakfast or lunch.

j_999_9

Rocks in Indialantic?

Not since the Early Pleistocene.

RedRock

If you are along the Space Coast anywhere, Indialantic, Cocoa/Beach there is no need to travel all the way west to I95 just take the A1A or US-1. A good map would be useful. As was noted remember you cannot drive thru the K/Space Center.