Daytona Beach Itinerary ideas

Day 1- Welcome to your beachside hotel. Check-in, relax and freshen up for a casual first night dinner. Your oceanside dining experience awaits at Crabby’s Oceanside (https://crabbysoceanside.com).  You will enjoy panoramic views of Florida’s surf coast as you sip a cocktail and dine on fresh seafood or delicious mainland fare. 

As you return to your hotel, listen to the waves along the shore and then retire for a relaxing night’s sleep.  

Day 2- Following breakfast, depart your hotel and travel 23 minutes for a day of discovery at Ponce Inlet (https://www.ponce-inlet.org/) Climb aboard and set sail for a morning cruise on the Arabella (https://funcatsailing.com)  see the waterways of Ponce Inlet and New Smyrna Beach on a 50-foot catamaran and enjoy one of Florida’s most magnificent inlets. Sit back and relax as you take in scenic views as well as sightings of dolphins and other wildlife.   

Following your morning cruise, take a short walk over to Ponce Inlet Lighthouse. Walk inside the white picket fence and step back in time. You will tour one of the best preserved and most authentic historic light stations in the nation today. Visitors will agree that the Ponce Inlet Lighthouse and Museum (https://www.ponceinlet.org/Tour-The-Museum--Ways-To-See-6-25.html) offers a treasure-trove of sights, sounds, and experiences. Enjoy spectacular, 360-degree views of the Atlantic Ocean, the intracoastal waterway and more from Florida's tallest lighthouse!  

Right next door, you will find Marine Science Center (https://www.marinesciencecenter.com/)  Discover and learn about Volusia County’s rich marine life, its inhabitants and ecosystem that makes this area so unique.  

Next up, stop for Lunch at Off the Hook at Inlet Harbor (https://offthehookatinletharbor.com/). Enjoy the savory Caribbean-infused flavors that go into their famous seafood, steaks, chicken and pasta dishes. Dine on the 400-seat riverfront outdoor all-weather deck for maximum ambiance.   Followed by return to your hotel and enjoy dipping your toes in the sand.  

Day 3 – Travel to West Volusia for Breakfast Old Sugar Mill Pancake House )www.deleonspringsadventures.com/dining/)  in De Leon Springs State Park and make your own pancakes followed by an Echo Tours Boat cruise.    

Breakfast at The Old Sugar Mill Pancake House is a one-of-a-kind restaurant located inside De Leon Springs State Park. Opened in 1961, each of the restaurants' tables are equipped with a griddle. Servers bring pitchers of homemade pancake batters (both a stone-ground mixture of five different flours and an unbleached white flour). You pour them on and flip them over right at your table! Order blueberries, bananas, peanut butter, pecans, chocolate chips, apples or apple sauce to create whatever sort of pancakes you desire.   

Aboard The Fountain of Youth Boat Tour (https://fountainofyouthtours.com/), enjoy his 50-minute journey with a backdrop of the Lake Woodruff National Wildlife Refuge. The boat takes passengers on a relaxing trip filled with extraordinary close-contact experiences with local wildlife. During their tour, guests will also learn about the area’s rich 6,000-year history, the spring’s “healing waters,” how the Fountain of Youth story originated, and the animals that call it home.  

Following your visit to De Leon Springs State Park, return to your beachside hotel for an afternoon of beach activities.  

Day 4- Enjoy coffee or tea and sweet fare at Sweet Marlay’s located at 214 South Beach Street. Then walk nearby and check in for your 3 Brothers Boards (https://threebrothersboards.com) paddleboarding experience along the intercoastal waterway. 

Morning tours are best for sightseeing dolphins and manatees. After your paddleboarding experience, stroll through our newly built Riverfront Esplanade (https://www.riverfrontesplanade.com/) with botanical gardens in the heart of Daytona Beach.  Don’t miss the statue of Mary McLeod Bethune, who was an American educator, philanthropist, civil rights leader, advisor of U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt and founder of Bethune-Cookman University.   

Before dinner enjoy a tour of the Casements, the winter residence of John D. Rockefeller (www.thecasements.net).   Tonight, enjoy dinner at Rosa Villa Southern Table & Bar (http://www.rosevillarestaurant.com) Comfortable casual and drenched in southern charm, this restaurant is located in an historic late 1800’s Victorian jewel. Enjoy Chef Sylvia Kerry Herrera’s signature southern fried chicken or her award-winning shrimp and grits while sipping on a signature cocktail.   

Day 5 – Start your morning with a sunrise beach walk or yoga experience followed by lunch at one of Daytona Beach’s newest entertainment complexes, ONE DAYTONA. Then its off to the races at Daytona International Speedway. Enjoy a behind-the-scenes track tour highlighting the racing history (www.daytonainternationalspeedway.com/tours/). If your experience falls on a Friday or Saturday during the summer months, enjoy a live evening beachfront concert at our historic Daytona Beach Bandshell (https://www.daytonabandshell.com/).  

Day 6 – Explore one of our many state parks – Tomoka State Park (www.floridastateparks.org/Tomoka) – located in north Ormond Beach. Explore the park’s 2,000-plus acres maritime hammock and estuarine salt marshes. During the summer months, you can take a hike along the half-mile nature trail or drive by the salt marshes that are breeding grounds for oysters, snails, fiddler crabs, and fish. 

Catch a glimpse of wading birds and hawks that forge the marshes for meals.  At night, during the summer months, reserve a beachside table at Daytona Beach’s Hard Rock Hotel and enjoy one of their evening beachside concerts.      

Day 7 – Spread your wings and take a short drive (50 minutes) to one of our near-by neighbors and spend the day exploring historic St. Augustine (https://www.visitstaugustine.com/), our nation’s oldest city that was established in 1565. Another option is an excursion (one hour and 15 minutes) to the Space Coast and spend the day visiting Cape Canaveral.  Attractions include:  https://www.kennedyspacecenter.com/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=yext    

Day 8 – After breakfast, enjoy sunrise on the horizon and dip your toes in the water one last time as you prepare to depart Daytona Beach with all the memories you made this week that will last a lifetime.