A weekend trip to Daytona Beach

A weekend trip to Daytona Beach – The World Famous Beach. A complete guide to explore the metropolitan with your little one. Read on and thank me later.

Hope everyone is enjoying this Holiday season. Sandy And I took off from our work last week and spent time with Little R. And we also went for our first vacation with Little R, or should I say as our first vacation after our wedlock. Yes, It might sound ridiculous but then, this is our first trip, thanks to the pandemic.

We wanted to visit a nearby place as this will be the first stay outside home for Little R and also wanted a beach. Daytona Beach met all our needs. And I badly wanted a vacation. It’s not an ideal vacation I longed for with Mommy duties around but it was a good time off from household chores and I needed it the most to re-energize my soul.

Daytona Beach:

Daytona Beach also known as “The World’s Famous Beach” is a metropolitan in Central Florida. It’s famous as “World’s center for Racing” and is home of NASCAR. And it’s just 1 hour and 30 minutes away from Jax. Whatever may be your needs for a perfect vacation, Daytona has all of it – White sandy beaches, scenic drives, racing, best dining spots and escape from the hustle bustle of the world. What else do you need to have a perfect family time?

We decided to visit Daytona beach and experiment with Little R. I should say I am a little skeptical as to how his sleep patterns would be without his crib. But, he surprised me. In fact, Kids always do that right. He was pleasant throughout our trip, ate at restaurants on his own, smiled at strangers, played in the sand and slept on time. He never missed his naps, though it was a cat-nap in the car. What do you expect from an infant? He cooperated well and he enjoyed the vacation to the fullest.

It was a two day trip and we booked our stay in Daytona Beach Resort as the beach is accessible from the resort. I wanted a small kitchen during our stay. If you have followed me, you will know that I always prefer AirBnB for my vacations, so I get to meet people, soak in the tub, cook my own meals and feel at home. With Little R, I wanted the beach nearby so he can spend his mornings on the beach. He is an early riser. Hence, we opted for DBR.

I packed eggs, bread, porridge mixes and a few pans to cook for R. I made breakfast for him and for the rest of the meals, he tried everything that we had. He surely got his taste buds from mine.

We started around late afternoon on December 24 and reached Daytona Beach at 5PM. Being Christmas time, the whole area was lit with Christmas lights and our first spot to check out was Magic of Lights in the International Speedway.

Magic of Lights – Daytona International Speedway

As Little R enjoys music and lights, we wanted to check this place as our first spot. That’s an additional perk in visiting a place during festive season – You get to see Christmas lights everywhere. Magic of Lights – is a drive-thru attraction which runs throughout the festive season from Nov 19 to Jan 1. The International speedway was lit by lights choreographed to music with different themes as part of the holiday tradition. It was a spectacular 30-minute drive through the holiday wonderland.

We had fun identifying the objects lit, driving through the lighted hallway and contented to see giggles on little one’s face! The entire drive took around 45 minutes with heavy traffic but it’s really worth every penny you spent for it. You can buy tickets online but then, we bought at the facility and they are kind enough to offer a free Christmas lighted garland to the little one. He treasures it now.

After a short drive across the town, we returned back to our room to munch on the Pizza and Garlic Bread delivered by GrubHub for our dinner.

Daytona Beach Drive:

Little R is an early riser. Hence we decided to visit the beach in the morning and watch the sunrise. The mornings are slow-paced with chilly vibes and there seems to be no rush for life. That’s the best thing I like about beaches. Very few breakfast places were open and we grabbed ours from the Beach Bucket. It’s a little paradise near to the ocean with plenty of options, mainly frequented by locals and a nice spot to relax and unwind.

After our breakfast, we headed to the beach – Sandy white beach. The best thing about Daytona Beach is that you can drive your car on the beach stand for a small fee of $20/day. That sounded fun to us and we drove along the 23-mile stretch. You can park your car along the way and chill-out at the beach. This is the only place where we drove on the beach. You can pack your drinks, food and games; drive on the beach, park on your favorite spot and hang out for the whole day.

We parked our car somewhere along the drive. The beach is so vast that it was never overcrowded. The beach was frequented by Herring Gulls. The water was warm but then, be prepared for the occasional splashes by the waves. Little R loves beaches and loves to play in the water. We spent our morning on the beach – playing in the water, chasing birds and some sand play too until it’s time for his first nap.We started back to our room once he became drowsy and he fell asleep in the car. Tada, First Nap done!

Ormond Scenic Loop:

After our lunch, we decided to check out the Ormond Scenic Loop. It was too hot in the afternoon and a drive along the scenic route felt like a great escape. The Ormond Scenic Loop is a 30+ mile double loop of roadways traversing some of the most beautiful and diverse natural scenery remaining in all of coastal central Florida. There is ready access to the Atlantic Ocean, State, County & City parks, vistas of rivers, creeks and marshes, barrier island dunes and beach, and historic dwellings as well as museums and historic public buildings. All public roads are accessible without any tolls. The loop has many entrances but we took the one in Tomoko State Park.

It was a quiet drive through the greenery and along the coast. I highly recommend this drive if you love nature. You can witness canopies created by trees over the road, marshlands and also birds. We watched pelicans, Blue Herons, White Herons, Osprey and Gulls. It’s definitely on my list for birding. The drive takes you through Tomoko State park, Bulow Creek State Park and North Peninsula State park. You can easily spend an entire day on the drive – walk along the trails, watch birds, swim in the Atlantic Ocean, Surf and if you are lucky enough you can watch dolphins swimming near the shores during the month of December. There are various spots for beach access. We stopped at Ormond beach for an hour and then headed back to Daytona.

Daytona Beach Boardwalk

Another favorite thing to do at the beach is Boardwalk. We spent our evening on the Boardwalk. The Boardwalk had many attractions for people of all ages – karting, skating rink, crazy rides, souvenir shops, great local restaurants, bars, gaming spots and ice cream stands. We wandered along the boardwalk and walked until we were tired.

Next day, we spent our morning on the beach and then, we headed to New Smryna beach.

New Smryna Beach

We had heard so much about the Boardwalk in the New Smyrna Sand Dunes Park and we wanted to visit. It was a 30 minutes drive from Daytona beach. Smyrna Dunes Park is a 184 acre inlet park located along the southern shoreline of Ponce de Leon Inlet. The boardwalk is really cool stuff to do – there are multiple scenic overlooks, you can walk inside the ocean, watch for Manatees and watch Dolphins during calving season. The entire trail is 2 miles and winds through the dunes.

We walked around the trail and we saw a few Gopher Tortoises on our way. Little R experienced butterflies.

Daytona International Speedway Tours

We, then, headed back to Daytona International Speedway and took their tours for a fee of $15. The tours are done in Open trams and you can access the MotorSports Hall of Fame. If you are into racing, then you can ride the race car on the track and experience the adrenaline rush. And there are ride along tours too, where you can be in the passenger seat and experience the thrill with a professional. Sandy wanted to drive on the track but he couldn’t due to time restrictions. But then, he gave me a hint for his next Birthday gift though.

After our tour, we headed back to Jax. Daytona Beach has a lot to offer apart from the places we visited like Dolphin Tours, Wildlife Photography Tours, Whale and Manatees tours and family activities like Karting, surfing, Kayak and Paddle board tours. We really wanted to avoid the crowd until he is vaccinated for the COVID. Hence, we carefully structured our vacation as Kids friendly and enjoyed with proper social distance.

Whatever may be your preference, Daytona Beach has a lot to offer and I am sure, you will fall in love with slow paced life here with white sandy beaches. Daytona Beach being our first family vacation has surely scored a favorite spot in our heart and life.