We are considering a trip to NSB in March. Is this particular town/area overrun with college students on spring break or are they more likely located north in the Daytona area? We have heard that NSB is a very nice area and would like to check it out.

Feel free to comment on any other area along the coast - I saw Cocoa Beach was not so popular with the spring break crowd.

We have never been to the Daytona area during spring break so I don't
really know how crowded it will be.
We do love Cocoa Beach. The beach
there is great for walking and there
are many great seafood restaurants.
We stayed at The Resort on Cocoa Beach-all the condos are two bedroom-two bath. When we stayed in
Daytona Beach we stayed at the Ocean
Walk.

I hope I don't alienate someone by my opinionated remarks, but this is really feel about Volusia County Beaches. New Smyrna Beach is better than Daytona, but I find those cars driving on the beach very annoying. It's almost like trying to relax lying in the street!

A little further up the coast, just north of Palm Coast and maybe 45 minutes north of Daytona Beach, you will find a small and very quiet beach: Crescent Beach. IMO Crescent Beach is more restful and not overrun with spring breakers. Yes, they do permit beach driving, but the beach is more isolated and not nearly as wide as Daytona and New Smyrna Beaches. Hence, no traffic while you are trying to relax.

An added bonus is that you are 15-20 minutes from the historic district of St. Augustine!

Just a couple notes:

The first week of March is "Bike Week" in Daytona, and extends to surrounding area. 1000's of motorcyclist from all over the U.S.(mainly east coast)

Very well behaved and safe.

Hotels are booked year in advance.

New Smynra Beach has car show....think it is the first weekend of each month.

circa2 makes a good point about Bike Week (2/29/08-3/9/08). How could I ever forget?

There is one more think about Volusia County beaches (e.g. Daytona & New Smyrna Beaches) that you will NEVER hear from the Convention and Visitors Bureaus. There is a slightly elevated risk of being attacked by a shark than beaches to the north or to the south. The reason is that these waters attract a lot of small bait fish, which, in turn, attract the sharks to feed upon them. Every year, in Central Florida, the TV stations have a story or two of some swimmer or surfer who was attacked by a shark. Nothing fatal results, but usually a bite requiring stitches to close the wound. I don't think the threat is high but it is true and may be a consideration.

For the past several years Daytona has poo-pooed the spring breakers because they don't spend a lot of money. There is not a lot of spillover to New Smyrna, which has a reputation as more of a family beach.

Thanks for all the replies. We still have to make plans and decide where and if we want to go.

I've been using websites recommended on this site for condo rentals and have come across a few that look very nice in NSB. What does anyone know about Sandpiper, Hacienda Del Sol or Minorca?

Thanks.

Bike Week -
Since this is a new concept for me, could someone give me just a little more information about. Sounds like it involved lots of motorcycles and noise and eating at restaurants is probably not an option. Other than that I know nothing about it.

If we end up going to a condo in NSB that week, would it really interfere that much? Still might pick another week based on replies.

Kate-
I am from the Daytona area. Bike week is a very lively and very crowded time. While most of the action is concentrated in the Main Street area of Daytona, you will likely see spillover into Ormond and New Smyrna. If you are looking for relaxation, I would recommend against going during this week because it will be very crowded and loud. Plus, if you are driving down there, you will encounter traffic on the interstate.

You can read all about Bike Week here:

http://www.daytonachamber.com/bwhome.html

I would suggest not heading to that area during Bike Week, unless you are bringing your motorcycle.

I went to school in DeLand about 20 miles west of NSB, and of course hung out in Daytona...didn't want to be with all the old people in NSB. Now my family goes there every year (we are the old people now) but my two daughters 24 & 27 also go with us and love it. So, it's not an area that attracts the kids...also, there is a lot of cheap dives in Daytona...very few in NSB. Also, not the amount of bars, strip joints, etc., that attract the college aged.

We rent a condo from The Sunrise (you can check it out at www.sunrisecondominium.com ). They are south of the cut-off where driving on the beach stops, so there is no traffic to worry about. We've been going there for 17 years and already have our unit reserved for next summer.

Lots of great local places for fresh seafood, fishing, etc. And, if you want to hit the big tourist traps...the Space Center, Disney, Daytona, etc., none are that far a drive to visit.

Good prediction by Orlando Vic =D>
2 surfers bitten by sharks on 2 consecutive days, last week of April.

Unfortunately, one more shark bite victim this morning at New Smyrna Beach.

It was the 11th shark bite this year in Volusia County.

http://tinyurl.com/697cug

All of the shark attacks happened near jetties ... channels are great hunting grounds for sharks, and the turbid water makes it tough for them to distinguish fish from swimmer.