Park is no longer FREE to park & homeless people have taken over the covered picnic tables, as well…read moreas the newly built access. They sleep under the wooden steps & ramp. Area is now infested with "sand fleas" AKA crabs, not the kind you eat. If local police would patrol this park like they used to & county would spray for fleas then it could return to its former glory. Until then, you will see homeless people crawling out from under the access & picnic tables then urinating in the bushes before they cross the road to 7-11 each morning. BEWARE: Do not let your children dig in the sand, they will be eaten by the sand fleas.

Nice beach in Ponce Inlet in btw Daytona Beach and New Smyrna Beach…read more Free Parking Shower 3 Clean single bathrooms About 10 stairs down to beach. The stairs to beach don't work for us because of the beach wagon. Only stairs no ramp. Wish we can stay here.

Interesting history here. I can't go somewhere without checking out some of the sites. There's not…read morea ton of things to do in Daytona but when I saw 'Lighthouse Park', I knew we had to go. One of the workers in the gift shop gave us an intro when we bought our tickets. You should definitely start across the street at the hotel/museum. That hotel/house has history all its own aside from the lighthouse. The family that lived there and ran it. I loved the house and it seems to have stayed in great condition after hundreds of years. In the hotel/house, you start with a short movie in the side room and then you can tour the house at your leisure. The house has multiple items displayed from over the years. There are also boards with a bit of history as you make your way through. Outside of the hotel/house is a relaxing area by the water. You could relax there or it'd be a perfect place for a wedding or special occasion. Once finished there, you can make your way back across the street to the lighthouse. On the lighthouse side, there are other buildings where people that took care of the place stayed. There's also a small storybook trail. It's not long at all but it has these storyboards around it talking about this cat named Nelly. That's all fun and stuff... but at the end of the trail, you see a little cat graveyard with cats that have been on the property over the years. When we walked up and I noticed Nelly was already buried! THE HORRRRRRRRRRORRRRRRR! On to the lighthouse; You can climb up to the top of the lighthouse. I think there is a sign that mentions 222 steps or something. It gets very steep near the top. Great exercise and it made me forget all about the cat graveyard. It's a cool place. I was intrigued by the Cincinnati Reds connection too. Other notables: Across the street is a restaurant and ice cream place. I don't think those two spots are related to the lighthouse itself but it's nice that they're there. We tried out both and they weren't bad at all. We didn't venture further down the road but we were told more restaurants/locations are further down. If you like history or inlets or just lighthouses, check out this place if you're in the area.

I visited the beach here one afternoon. It costs $10 to get in, so come prepared for that…read more There are bathroom facilities and outdoor showers, which I appreciate, though the bathrooms are pretty gnarly, so I'd avoid those if you can help it. The beach itself was pretty small, and it was crowded. The water wasn't too rough. There were a lot of kids and families, so clearly a good place for the kids to swim. My favorite part were all of the dogs. There were so many puppers on the beach! Overall, I'll give it a 3. It was fine, but I wouldn't go out of my way to go here for a beach day.

Had an amazing day out in the boat just hanging out on the island ! We launched from Cassen Park in…read moreOrmond and had a nice ride out. Waterways weren't too congested today , saw a lot of dolphin which is always nice

I got my toes in the water, ass in the sand Not a worry in…read morethe world, a cold beer in my hand Life is good today. (Zak must have been thinking of this place when he wrote those lyrics) The ultimate sand island in the middle of Ponce Inlet where the water is warm and clear and the drinks are ice cold. This piece of paradise appears at low tide and provides the perfect venue to drop anchor and jump in the water. There's never a shortage of boats, music and sunshine. This would be the reason you own a boat if you live in NSB cause that's the only way to get to this party. When the tide starts rushing in it's time to go and the island sinks below the surface and nothing but great memories remain. You should be jealous LOL :-)

for $20 dollars a day - you can hit up 27th avenue park & flagler for all day parking & i believe…read morethere are more!! we had an absolute blast here for a beach day for just a 45 minute drive. flagler will have more of a restaurant bar feel on the beach & 27th avenue was less crowded but had a nice playground for kiddo (just note there is construction currently going on - so just a tad bit of an eyesore) the cars driving on the beach are a little nuance for me but as someone that will probably take that up one day for the family too - i get the convenience of it. all in all it is a lovely beach to frequent & we can't wait to try some more restaurants in the area!!

New Smyrna Beach Florida is the Sharkbite capital of the world…read moreYou're able to drive and park on the beach must have your windows down and drive 10 mph Easily accessible from street parking as well as they have multiple access points along the coast New Smyrna Beach has very clean beaches. The water is pretty good as well. The toll booth people are super friendly and give you lots of advice. Sometimes it's hard to find a local place to eat. Sunrise is our best at the beach. They're very beautiful.

Had an awesome time bringing the dogs to the dog beach! It's a nice little strip of beach with…read moreshallow water under the fishing pier. Would recommend bringing some kind of shade covering for beach area but there's a covered picnic table area by the restrooms and hoses designated for the dogs to rinse off and community dog bowls for drinking in case you forget your own. Worthy to note- walking on The pier is not permitted for dogs after 10 am because apparently it gets too hot to walk on so there's alternate sand paths, you can definitely bring a wagon to help cart your stuff, an umbrella or shade to protect you from the sun might be needed since there's no natural shady areas, it's $11 to park all day with ability to go in & out throughout the day, and they have a hose to rinse down the dogs so WOULD RECOMMEND FOR A NICE DAY OUT IN NATURE, AT THE WATER WITH THE PUPS!!

Such a fun park! We made the mistake of walking a little too far instead of stopping at the initial…read moredog beach area but that ended up giving us a really nice spaced out area for our whole family! Beautiful calm water and very pet friendly

It's a great park, safe parking. Bathrooms, outdoor shower to wash off sand. Seating. Cross the…read moreroad for immediate beach access. Came a month after hurricane Nicole hit. Everything looks very different here now. Be careful for debris in water.

Beautifully kept spot (less crowded and ppl pick up after themselves), family oriented. Free…read moreparking, clean bathrooms , outside showers to wash the sand off. Great place! Parking lot is TIGHT since Hurricane a ton of parking spots are being taken up by construction machinery. So if you want a free spot, get here EARLY!

The Pacetti Hotel and Museum opened to the public in November 2024. I'm so glad I overheard someone…read moretalking about the museum when I was visiting the Ponce Inlet Lighthouse. It is across the street from the lighthouse but be on the lookout because you may miss it as you can't see the house from the street. You can walk over from the lighthouse or drive as there is a parking lot. You enter the museum from the front of the house by the water. Stepping up on the porch and looking out over the water helps to better understand why the house was built in this location as it is a gorgeous waterfront property! Be sure to start by watching the video as it will give you some background before you take the self-guided tour. You could spend hours inside reading and checking out all the different rooms. One of the things that stood out to me the most were the gorgeous wood floors;) And something that struck me as odd were the two sets of staircases. The museum volunteer explained that the front part was the original house and the back was an addition for the hotel. They were originally two separate buildings but were combined to one. The two rooms upstairs in the front would have been the best rooms to rent as they had the most gorgeous views. The hotel was a fishing resort at one time and later hosted the Cincinnati Reds as the last owner also owned the team. If these walls could talk lol! I highly recommend checking out this museum as it is also one of the oldest structures in Florida. So much history! Your entry fee to the Ponce Inlet Lighthouse also includes entry to the museum.

I used to ride my motorcycle out to this Lighthouse just for the ride, then grab a quick bite…read morebefore heading back home. It was on the list of places to explore while in the area with Nancy. Then we finally planned a day where we could shop/play in the area and also visit the Lighthouse. It's definitely worth the stop. The Lighthouse is Florida's tallest lighthouse and is one of the best preserved in the country. The $7 Admission gets you access to the lighthouse and the museum. For $5 more you can gain access to the General Pacetti Hotel Museum. If you're a Ponce Inlet Resident, admission is free. Its 203 steps to the top of the lighthouse and once there you have a spectacular view of the Atlantic Ocean, Ponce Inlet, the Intercoastal waterway, and Daytona Beach. The museum allows visitors to explore the grounds and keeper homes. The Fresnel Lens is on exhibit which is a great way to lean how curved lenses generate powerful clear beams of light with minimal distortion. There are plenty of great photo op areas just be sure to bring the family on sunny days so you get the best outcome. All-in-all, a great experience all around and I highly recommend stopping by if you're in the area.

New Smyrna Beach has a variety of beach access parks, and this one wins for longest name. In fact,…read moreI think it may win longest name for a beach park in the history of beaches. Let's just call it Grayce Beach for short! Grayce Beach has two places to park. One is the main parking lot closest to the beach. It is $20 to park all day. There are two bathrooms and one shower. There is also a parking lot a little farther down the street that is free but requires a bit of a walk. The walk is down a nice boardwalk with some shade so it's not bad. If you have a lot of stuff to carry, the parking lot may be the way to go. The beach itself is very nice. Keep in mind that at this part of the beach cars can drive through from another access point. I didn't see a lifeguard on the day we went but our recent visit was also in the month of December (air temperature was warm but the water was cold so nobody was in the water.) Overall, a nice option to access the beach in the New Symrna Beach area!

When it comes to the New Smyrna area, it can be tough to find beachfront parking - especially the…read morefree kind! I really loved that this section of beach was connected my a myriad of boardwalks that ended along the adjacent roads, allowing visitors to parallel park and stay for as long as they needed to. It's about a 20-minute walk to the downtown area, but it's not as busy or congested with car traffic from parking along the water. The only issue I can think of would be the lack of waste disposal options or rinsing areas, but you can find those close by! There are picnic pavilions that are first come, first serve. They don't have direct beach access or views, but they are cute and good for small groups. Once you make it to the water, it's also easy to find chair and umbrella rentals. They're very clearly overpriced, but it's good to have options.