I'm trying to plan a cheap florida trip for a few weeks...just seeing if you guys had any informantion on beachs, breaks, nightlife.... any help would be appreciated or even some where else that may be cheap... i was gonna put this thread in the Florida forum but i figured they would tell my yankee ass to stay the hell home....
if you are looking to be cheap you could camp at sebastian but im sure there are also som cheap hotels...try to avoid spring break costs unless you want to be there for spring break
I'm thinking about driving down there as well. Anybody have an idea about how much it would cost in gas to drive from de all the way down as far as FTL?
Its about 1050-1150 miles, so depending on your gas mileage, it can be expensive. you won't find surf in ft. lauderdale either. For decent surf, stay north of delray beach and watch the forecasts. lauderdale/south beach have decent surf maybe 10 days a year.
I was thinking of going to new smyrna until i just found out it is the shark attack capital of the world, but that should not matter because it is so rare. (knock on wood)
while this is true, smyrna is also a freakin wave magnet. its almost always waist+ and most of the time bigger than that. in the middle of summer flatness, you can almost always go the NSI (new smyrna inlet) and catch some waves. I think it avgs 5-10 days a yr that you cannot actually surf. but the local sea life is very much in abundance there.
I dont know what you call cheap but a very cool hotel we stayed at was the Royal Pacific right at Universal Studio.You might be able to get it for $250-$220.You can take a 10 minute water taxi ride right to City walk which is a very cool vibe and Universal Studio is right there as well.Anyway throw this question out to the Florida forum.I had asked them about Key West and Key Largo and they threw me alot of good info.
nsi is the most consistent in florida and the shark attacks areonly a few stitches here and there not anything serious & usually during the summer when the water is loaded with people. brevard county has a lot of decent spots and if there's waves you can always find a stretch thats relatively empty. if you go to either nsi or sebastion and the waves are decent dont expect to get many unless you really rip - best locals per capita that i have seen anywhere on the east coast, if you want waves at either of those spots go for dawn patrol & get em before the crowds. you can get hotels on the beach in cocoa beach right now for $100-$150/nt
I had the exact opposite experience at New Smyna Beach last spring. Consistently waist - chest high and the locals were lazy and wouldnt paddle out until after the beach was open to vehicles so they could park at the break. I scored EMPTY decent waves by walking in the 1/2 mile or so before and after the beach was open to vehicles. It actually freaked me out a bit surfing practically by myself and thinking how sharky that place is
if your headed to the south beach area and interested in beach front condo with a view to kill, let me know. my family owns and rents a condo on collins boulevard. no waves but the nightlife is killer.
I lived there and worked for a year and surfed alot of the coast. Sebastian inlet is beautiful, can be crowded and competitive. Never seen Monster hole working real well but if its working i could see how it could be one of the longest rides on the east coast. You have to go to 2nd light across from patricks air force base. It can work when no other spot in central fl is working. Go to spot. St Augustine would be a good place to visit and maybe get lucky with some surf. Cool town. Oldest city in america. Theres a awesome hostel there forget the name. But its right in the town. Juno beach (north south florida) One of my favorites for some reason. Have to catch it at the right time. Surf the left side of pier for fast rides. Right side for long. Has awesome view from a little tiki hut in between sessions on top of a dune. Can get good. I think because its north of the bahamas which block alot of south florida. Fort lauderdale commericial pier IF theres a rare chest or higher. Plus a bar on beach and lights on pier could be used for night surfing. Music going on from beach to is pretty cool. Florida seems like endless beaches with all different styles from top to bottom and interesting points inbetween just taking guesses can be fun.
thanks guys for the input.... i don't think im gonna go down as far as south beach but if I do I'll let you know.... thanks