The one thing I love about my job with Tampa with Kids is that it forces me to go new places. Daytona was one of those new places. The east coast of Florida is mostly unexplored territory for me. After my trip, I think that is going to change. Daytona is an easy 2.5 hour drive from Tampa. It is a getaway that offers something for everyone in the family. Here are some of my personal favorites in and around the "Most Famous Beach".
Base Camp @ the Hilton Daytona Beach:This
was a great central location for the weekend! It is located on the only
traffic
tree beach in Daytona Beach.A spa for mom and dad and a kid's camp for the junior make being
together and time apart possible.
D-Dawg's Kidzone! The kid's camp offers a ping-pong table, Wii
gaming
systems, movies, crafts and lots of kid fun.I am
very picky about hotel kid camps and have a standing
rule with my kids that they can bail out at any time just by calling me.During our stay the call never
came and they wanted to go back every night of our stay.
The Hyde Park
Steak House on property is a great night out for the grown ups!It
was great to have a glass of wine and relax a little
after the long day.(Funny thing,
being a west coast girl, as we looked out over the ocean enjoying our
meal I
kept waiting for the sunset.)They feature
panoramic windows views, overlooking a gorgeous
white sand beach and the Atlantic Ocean. The Daytona Hyde Park is
beautiful classic steakhouse design, which also offers a casual outdoor
dining terrace & bar.... A very popular place to "people watch",
listen to concerts at the famed Boardwalk Band Shell, experience the
warm salt-air breeze, and enjoy a beverage.
Adjacent
to the Hilton is Ocean Walk Village, a six-story complex that
offers
retail
shops, restaurants and a movie theater.Those
afternoon showers Florida is famous for don't
have to ruin the fun. One rainy afternoon we saw a movie at Ocean Walk
Movie 10
while the storm blew over.If your
family loves the movie Forest Gump you "gotta" eat at Bubba Gump Shrimp
Company.The wait staff quizzes you on your Gump
Knowledge while you dine.I
am proud to say my family and I did not miss one question.We love our Gump!
Dayton
Beach Hilton Resort & Ocean Walk Village Website
100
North Atlantic Ave.Daytona
Beach FL 32118
(386) 254-8200
Dad gets in on the fun!With most of
Florida's attractions
geared towards what the kids want to do The Daytona 500 Experience and
Richard
Petty Driving Experience is one that lets Dad have some fun too.The Richard Petty Driving
Experience lets you ride shotgun in a real racecar with a professional
driver.Speeds of up to 190 miles
per hour will have Dad smiling like a little kid.The
Daytona 500 Experience has racecar stimulator that the
whole family can enjoy, a 3-D IMAX film that explains the sport of
racing,
interactive displays that explain the history of racing and the men
behind the
sport.I am not car racing fan and
didn't know much about the sport before my visit.My
time at the Daytona International Speedway afforded me a
whole new respect for what goes into the sport of NASCAR.
Boardwalk & Cars on the beach!I've
never been to a beach before that allows cars to drive on the beach.You can rent golf carts or four
wheelers if you like.This
is great if you have lots of stuff.Pull the car up and open the hatch and all your stuff is at your
fingertips.The speed limit
is 10 miles per hours so no more racing on the beach.$5
a day allows you access to the beach the whole day.My
kids loved this!Behind the Hilton is a
boardwalk.This part of the Daytona Beach reminds
me of California.Street performers,
a Band Shell, a pier with a sky lift chairs all add to the seaside beach
charm.
Ponce De Leon Inlet Light Station.Climb
the steps of one of the tallest lighthouses in the nation.The tower is 175 feet up but once there
you will be amazed by the magnificent views of the Florida coastline and
the
Halifax River.The museum also
features exhibits on the history of the lighthouse and the area and
allows
visitors to walk through the buildings that once served as the home and
workstations of the lighthouse keeper and their family.One
story about a little boy and his
dog that managed to get stuck on the concrete platform right below the
tower is
heartwarming.
Ponce de Leon Inlet Light Station
4931 S. Peninsula Drive
Ponce Inlet, FL 32127
(386) 7961-1821
Daytona Lagoon:Right next to our hotel
was Daytona
Lagoon and we had planned for an afternoon of fun.As
happens with kids sometimes meltdowns happen and you have
to abandon ship and return to the hotel room for nice nap also known as
mission
attitude adjustment hour.We did
not get to try this great looking park but it looked like fun and my
kids want
to go back to Daytona just for this.Here is what there website says:
"Daytona Lagoon offers hours of fun-filled
excitement for
the entire family in a safe, well-maintained atmosphere.With attractions to suit anyone's
tastes, there is truly something for everyone. Daytona Lagoon boasts the
most
attraction activities in Daytona Beach with The Lagoon Waterpark,
Go-Karts,
Miniature Golf, Laser Tag, HUGE Arcade, Carousel, Rock Wall and The
Phoenix
Extreme Swing."
De Leon State Park:In between Orlando and
Dayton Beach
just a little off of I-4 is De Leon State Park.I've
heard about this place and always wanted to go
here.We had a blast.In
the park next to the spring is a
large wood cabin that serves as the Old Spanish Sugar Mill Restaurant.In the middle of your table is
griddle.They bring you a pitcher
of pancake batter and your make your own pancakes.My
kids went nuts!Everybody got to make his or
her own.Once you pour the batter you can
sprinkle in any filling of your choice.Sam picked M&M's, Jake chocolate chips, and I picked
blueberries.The boys thought this was the
coolest
thing!After eating more pancakes
than we should of we took swim in the spring right out side of the
restaurant's
door.The water was should I
say a refreshing 72 degrees or maybe I'll just say down right cold.But the day we went it was 90 plus
degrees so it cooled us off quickly.We rented tubes for $5 and spent a lazy afternoon floating around
the
spring.You can rent a canoe,
kayak or paddleboat and explore the river.
De Leon State Park
601 Ponce De Leon Blvd.
De Leon Springs, FL 32130
(386) 985-4212
City of Casadega: It
seems to me that all kids around the age of 10 are obsessed with ghost,
aliens
and Bigfoot.I went to this town
about 15 years ago and it seems like it has actually gotten smaller.It consists of a hotel and a
bookstore.We were told to go to
the bookstore.In the back of the
store is a dry erase board with name of spiritualist that are available
for
readings.Pick one and call.We
picked Harry. I warned my son before
we went in that we didn't know this guy and this was just for
entertainment and
not for life direction.For $25.00
for a mini reading he gave my son some insight into his past and the spirit
guides who surround him.My ten
year old loved it.And Harry was
great with him.And I got a cool
mom award for letting him do this.While we were in Casadega the Ghost pros were they're documenting
or
trying to document the existence of ghost at the Hotel.It
was fun to meet them and they were
very nice and explained what they do to the kids.Sam
wants to go back and stay in room number 10 which is
suppose to have the ghost of a little boy.
