As you begin planning your first-time visit to Cocoa Beach, you may be wondering if you can find enough activities to fill all the moments of your week in paradise and you may be curious about the restaurant landscape you will be exploring. With any other vacation rental company you would just have to wing it, dive in with the little research you have managed to complete on your own, crossing your fingers and hoping you don’t miss anything special. But because you chose Happy Palm Stays for your vacation accommodations, we do the research for you, providing this ultimate first-time Cocoa Beach visitor guide, leading the way to a vacation experience so full and exciting you will never want it to end.
Toes in the Sand
Yes, we imagine you know how to spend the relaxing part of a day at the beach, staking your claim on a corner of our sandy paradise and savoring some salt air time and Vitamin Sea therapy, but there are many other water related activities that will bring you joy and we have listed a few of our favorites below.
Learn to Surf
Surfing and Cocoa Beach will always be connected. We are the birthplace of one of the world’s greatest surfers, Kelly Slater, and we proudly retain the title “Surf Capital of the East Coast.” The famous Ron Jon Surf Shop began its life here, and the Westgate Cocoa Beach Pier has become the center of surf activity, so it just makes sense that you begin your surf journey with lessons offered by the Ron Jon Surf School. Based out of their shop located at 150 E Colombia Lane, they offer surf lessons year-round, and their instructors are also CPR/BLS certified, so worried parents can feel safe about letting their children take a turn on the boards. Also offering professional videographers/photographers to document your lessons, you will have a tangible memory of the journey you took.
Follow the Dolphins
One seafaring experience is destined to change the way you look at the sea forevermore, and that is, of course, a dolphin eco tour offered by many local companies, including Cocoa Beach Dolphin Tours. Located at 420 W Cocoa Beach Causeway, this overachieving company doesn’t stop at bringing you where the dolphins frolic, it also explores the habitats of the even friendlier creatures, the manatees. Gliding across the Indian River Lagoon, where more than 1000 bottleneck dolphins spend most of their life while sharing their homes with over 4000 manatee, your eco cruise is destined to make memories you will cherish.
Flying Through the Sky
Our final water adventure of the moment (don’t worry, there will be more later) involves boats, sails, and blue skies. Parasailing is a thrill seeker’s activity that is also safe (for all those who may be worried), and Cocoa Beach Parasail, located at 505 Glen Cheek Drive in nearby Cape Canaveral, is a company we recommend. Offering reasonable prices, photo packages you can add to your adventure, and well trained captains as well as Coast Guard certified boats, you can fly through the sky, concentrating on the beauty that surrounds you.
Anglers Delight
Your trip to Cocoa Beach was probably initiated by one of two things. The love of space or the love of water, and of course, there are more water adventures for you to enjoy, including the joy of a fishing charter. For those who prefer simpler activities, there will be no need to charter a boat, surfcasting from the shore while your other family members frolic. But if the call of the sea demands to be answered, there are many fishing charters that will help you answer successfully.
Surfcasting and Pier Angling
If the thought of fishing from the shorelines of Cocoa Beach makes you happy, just know that a saltwater fishing license is required for non-residents and can be purchased from the link found below. There aren’t many other rules attached to this type of fishing, other than daily catch limits and a reminder that you shouldn’t fish where people are swimming. (People scare off the fish anyway, so it’s not a big deal.) If you want to surf from the Cocoa Beach Pier, however, you won’t need to purchase a fishing license, just pay the pier fee which is cheaper. You can even rent poles from the pier shop, if you forgot your own.
The Siren’s Call of the Sea
It’s the deep waters and the big-game fish that may be what your heart desires, and Fin & Fly Fishing Charters can make your heart’s dreams come true. Located at 951 Bali Road in Cocoa Beach, they have a fleet of five boats captained by experienced captains and offer both inshore and offshore fishing expeditions. Our thrill seekers will be thrilled with their nighttime shark fishing charter, offering an experience that will never be forgotten as you participate in a battle of wits with the coldest blooded denizens of the sea. Fishing charters are a bit pricey, so if this interests you, start saving your pennies in advance!
Space Coast Attractions
Now that we have gotten sea waters out of our blood (for the moment, anyway), it is time to explore some of the not to be missed attractions this part of paradise offers. We’ve listed a few of our favorite attractions below.
Florida Surf Museum, 4275 N Atlantic Avenue in Cocoa Beach
Your surfing lessons at Ron Jon Surf School may lead you to a deeper interest in the sport, and the Florida Surf Museum offers a comprehensive exploration of surfing history. Also offering a few online exhibits that you can examine from the comfort of your Happy Palm Stays vacation sanctuary or at home in your own living room, you really do need to add a visit to the museum to your list of fascinating things to do during your stay in Cocoa Beach.
The Dinosaur Store and Museum, 250 W Cocoa Beach Causeway in Cocoa Beach
Family vacations can be frustrating ones, especially as you try to find activities that will interest your younger travelers, but your Cocoa Beach vacation is not going to be one of those trips. The amazing thing about a Cocoa Beach vacation is that almost everything you do will be enjoyed by travelers of all ages, with a visit to the Dinosaur Store being a happy example. Telling the tales of those creatures that walked the earth millions of years ago, visitors will authentic dinosaur artifacts on display, including cast replicas and true to life representations of those magnificent creatures that will scare and delight at the same time. Also offering an Adventure Zone with interactive activities, including a reptile run that features 25 live animals including alligators, snakes, and tortoises. Finish off your visit with a visit to the store, bringing home souvenirs that may include dinosaur teeth or fossils and we can promise it will take days, weeks maybe, for the stories your child tells about his time with the dinosaurs will stop.
Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, Space Commerce Way on Merritt Island
The space race had its beginnings right here in our neck of the woods, and if you come all this way and don’t visit the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, can you really consider that you have visited the Space Coast? We saved the best for last with this massive adventure, offering meet and greets with astronauts, a rocket garden in which actual rocket ships are planted, and a Behind the Gates tour that we highly recommend. Reaching for the stars is easy at the Kennedy Space Center. Also offering a peek into the future because we all want to know, “what’s next?” we can’t emphasize enough how much this exciting attraction will change your life! The Astronaut Hall of Fame can be found here as well, offering a truly fascinating glimpse into the lives of those heroes from the stars.
A Taste of the Town
Your best memories from your favorite vacations tend to revolve around the food you ate during your adventures, and there will be no exception made in Cocoa Beach. The restaurants listed below are sure to make their way into your vacation tales and maybe even haunt your dreams (in a good way) for years to come!
Breakfast at the Tiny Turtle, Minutemen Causeway in Cocoa Beach
Our mamas preached that breakfast was a meal that should never be skipped, and the restaurant owners of Cocoa Beach took those preachings to heart, offering a huge selection of breakfast restaurants guaranteed to make your mama proud and your tummy happy. And because we want you to enjoy the spots you can’t visit in your own hometown, we decided that breakfast at the Tiny Turtle would be the perfect way to begin your vacation adventures. Offering a Caribbean fusion menu that specials in fresh and local ingredients, they actually are a great place to visit for lunch and dinner as well, featuring live entertainment in addition to their delicious meals. Do yourself a favor and sample their Wake Up Burrito.
Lunch at the Shark Pit Bar & Grill, 4001 N Atlantic Avenue in Cocoa Beach
Sometimes keeping our tiniest travelers well wrangled is an experience in frustration, especially when we wait too long for the midday break, but the 5600 gallon aquarium filled with sharks and fish at the Shark Pit Bar & Grill helps make that job easy! Offering a laid back dining experience and a menu filled with foods of all types, including burgers, tacos, and seafood, the kid’s menu ensures that your picky eaters will not be complaining. Also serving breakfast and dinner, this is a great and fun spot to become a regular at.
Dinner at Pier 62 Oceanfront Restaurant & Bar, 401 Meade Avenue in Cocoa Beach
The appeal of the water is a major draw in luring travelers from all over the world to our doorstep, and when you find yourself reluctant to tear your gaze away from the sea, but are also fighting hunger pangs, dinner at Pier 62 promises to be the right answer! Offering a menu filled with fresh seafood, burgers, sandwiches, and more, its position on the Westgate Cocoa Beach Pier ensures that waterfront views will charm and delight, especially if you choose a patio table at which to dine. Pier 62 offers an elevated menu that comes with not so elevated prices, ensuring that your special occasion won’t make your bank account cringe.
The Thrill of a Rocket Launch
The thrill of watching a rocket launch into outer space is something that even seasoned veterans of such sights never tire and if you time your vacation correctly, you may be able to view a launch as well. Some can be seen from the balcony of your Happy Palm Stays escape, ensuring you will be comfortable and close to your favorite wine at the time of liftoff, others you may want to head to the beaches of Satellite Beach, Titusville, even the Westgate Cocoa Beach Pier. And for the ultimate thrill, experiencing one during your visit to the Kennedy Space Center can change your life forever. The Space Center website offers a schedule of upcoming launches, so check it out when planning.
At Home with Happy Palm Stays
The best vacations begin and end in the best vacation rentals, and we aren’t bragging when we say Happy Palm Stays offers the only retreats you will want to consider. Located in multiple towns throughout the Space Coast, not just in Cocoa Beach, our spaces are comfortable, relaxing, and filled with amenities that will make you feel pampered and spoiled. Beachfront condos are destined to be where you want to be, but we also offer a variety of standalone Cocoa Beach vacation homes, some on the water, some offering private pools, and all offering a lifestyle that reflects the beauty and wonder of our state. Planning a last-minute getaway? Our last-minute Satellite Beach FL rentals have you covered! Book with us today!
