Hey Florida travelers! Chrissa here, and Cocoa Beach is probably one of
the closest beaches to Orlando which makes it one of the most popular ones to choose.
If you're adding a cocoa beach day to your Florida vacation,
I'm gonna go over a few of the top places that you won't want to miss. Let's get into it!
Cocoa Beach is just over an hour away from the major attractions in Orlando,
making it one of the easiest beaches to get to - which is a perfect choice for many families.
One of the first places that I wanted to tell you about while you're here , is Ron Jon's Surf
Shop. Not only is this one of the coolest surf shops that iIve ever been into, but it's also
the largest surf shop in the world with 52,000 square feet of shopping space. Truly,
this shop has everything that you could ever want in a Florida lifestyle shopping spree, such as,
custom surfboards, bathing suits, clothing, and every kind of souvenir imaginable. Plus,
if you forgot any of your beach essentials such as beach chairs, surfboards, paddle boards, or
even beach bikes they offer a water sports store just across the street where you can rent all of
these items and more. Next up on my list is the Florida Key Lime Pie Company. If you're a fan of
key lime pie like I am then you'll definitely want to swing by this shop. This shop is just beautiful
and instantly transports you to the Florida Keys - with its wonderful painted walls and the fish
painted on the floor to give you the feeling of almost walking on a water. It is almost just as
much of a draw as their key lime pie. In 2018, the Florida Key Lime Pie Company captured the world
record by making the largest key lime pie in the world which measured 12.25 feet in diameter. But
this store serves so much more than just key lime pie. They also offer everything from saltwater
taffy, homemade ice cream, tropical fruit wines, and a number of different sauces. If you're
looking to get a taste of Florida while you're at Cocoa Beach, you'll want to stop by the Florida
Key Lime Pie store. Just a short drive from the Florida Key Lime Pie store is my next destination
the Dinosaur Store. The Dinosaur Store museum houses an amazing collection of fossils artifacts
and minerals that you can find all housed under one roof. But it's much more than just a store,
it also houses a museum and adventure zone the museum upstairs was so much larger than what
i was expecting, and it was room after room of minerals and fossils, and the dawn of man, and
their new exhibit the terror bird - which just so happened to be found in Florida. But the museum
doesn't end there. If you go up one more floor, you'll be able to walk through rooms featuring
ancient cultures that included Egypt, China and Mesoamerica. If you want to take a closer look at
the Dinosaur Store, I'll actually be featuring this store in more detail in a future episode.
Next up on my list is the Cocoa Beach Pier. This historic pier has been a part of the
Cocoa Beach coastline for over 50 years and stretches 800 feet into the Atlantic Ocean.
One of the great things about visiting the Cocoa Beach Pier is that it has a number of different
restaurants and bars to choose from as you enjoy the beautiful views from either side of the pier.
This pier has four bars and five restaurants on property which makes it a convenient place to
enjoy the sun if you like having great restaurant choices within a short walking distance from
where you're enjoying the beach they do also offer a number of different beach amenities
such as umbrellas, and cabanas, if you want to rent a bit of shade while you're there.
The parking here is a bit expensive costing twenty dollars for the day, but if you do get there early
enough you are able to snag one of the limited street parking spots available which is pay by
meter and a lot cheaper if you are planning on just being there for maybe an hour or so.
One thing that i do want you to be aware of though is that the cocoa beach pier is owned by Westgate
Resorts and they do have a sales person stationed right up front. The next step is the Kennedy Space
Center, and the Kennedy Space Center is just a short 30 minute drive from the rest of Cocoa Beach
and one of my favorite attractions in Central Florida. If you have any kids that love space,
then you'll definitely want to consider adding Kennedy Space Center to your Cocoa Beach day trip.
The cost enter Kennedy Space Center is 57 for adults and 47 dollars for kids age 3 to
11. The Kennedy Space Center is organized into mission zones and regardless of if
you want to explore the historic history of space exploration or if you want to check
out the current and ongoing missions, you can get up close and personal with a number of different
spacecrafts and artifacts. The mission areas include the rocket garden, the Apollo center,
race to the moon, a journey to mars, as well as my absolute favorite mission area hands down which is
the space shuttle Atlantis. The whole presentation of Atlantis is just beautifully done and it's
worth checking out. There are so many other areas, so tune in next week as I'll go over the Kennedy
Space Center more in detail. By the way if you're wondering what other beaches are within a region
Central Florida - make sure to check out my video of the top places to see in Clearwater. It's a
beautiful beach on the west side of Florida and one of my absolute personal favorites. Well until
next time everyone, I hope you have an amazing day, and go out and enjoy some Florida sunshine!