We started our spring break trip to Florida on Wednesday, March 9th. Our flight left at 5:20 from DSM but I took the day off of school to get last minute things done and spend time with the girls before leaving for a week. Scott took off work early and we picked Michael up from school right at 2:15 (his normal Wednesday early out time) and headed straight to the airport! We parked our car at Scott's coworker's house who lives right by the airport and took an uber to the terminal. It was our first time using uber in Des Moines and it was a very smooth process. We had plenty of time to relax before boarding our flight, especially since we were relieved we met the 40 lbs limit (exactly!) on our suitcase containing items for three family members for eight days! We ate supper at the restaurant by the boarding gates and enjoyed a wonderful flight to Orlando Sanford. We flew Allegiant and rode in a brand new, big plane. I swear the seats were a bit bigger and had a tiny bit more leg room.
I am a nervous flier but did well on this flight. We flew over a bit of weather where a big storm system was brewing over the Memphis area but it wasn't too bad. I enjoy looking out the window so it was disappointing that about half of our flight was dark and cloudy but I kept myself busy by listening to my favorite Disney podcasts I had hoarded over the past few weeks.
We had a smooth transition at the airport where we got our rental car (free van upgrade!) and headed out to Cocoa Beach which was about an hour drive away. Luckily we weren't feeling tired yet even though it was getting close to 10 o'clock. We hit the hay as soon as we arrived!
I was so excited to wake up the next morning to this beautiful view from our balcony at our hotel (La Quinta Oceanfront Cocoa Beach)!
The hotel was right on the beach next to the Cocoa Beach Pier. I had seen several recommendations for it on my favorite Disney forum (disboards.com) as many people like to stay here before their cruises (Cocoa Beach is right by Port Canaveral). It did not disappoint as it was a large room with an ocean view, balcony, and was a reasonable rate. I think every room had a balcony and even the non-ocean view rooms had a tiny bit of a beach view.
Michael and I headed out to the beach while Scott was still snoozing as we couldn't just sit around while all this beauty was around us!!
It was so fun to be at the beach in the morning without the crowds of people. So beautiful and peaceful.
I loved it!
Michael was so excited to have found many shells on the beach and collected a whole bag full from our day. He even found a little fossil! It was so nice that our hotel was just steps away from the beach- you could go from one to the other very quickly (a lot of hotels are marketed as oceanfront but are actually quite far from the beach, sometimes even across a busy street).
After a bit, we joined Scott and his parents for breakfast and then we headed out to run some errands (groceries for the week) and look at the surf shops. It was already turning into a beautiful day! We were excited our van upgrade rental meant all five of us could travel comfortably in one vehicle.
Michael was anxious to head to the pool after we returned so we jumped right in. We spent a while at the pool and then headed to the beach.
We bought a little bucket and some sand shovels at Publix while we picked up groceries- they were well stocked in anything you think you might need for your vacation! Luckily they were just a dollar each.
There's me!
I think we headed out to the beach around noon or so and we rented the chairs and umbrella from a guy on the beach. I though it was a good deal and he would drag them over and set them up for you. It was very sunny!
Margie brought along this little boogie board from her sister to use at the beach and while Michael didn't really get into it, Scott did for sure! It was fun to spend time in the waves, letting them crash over you. You could go out a little bit without it getting too rough or deep.
After the beach, we showered off all the sand and hit the pool once more. It was perfect!
We showered up, changed, and then walked over to the Cocoa Beach Pier for an early dinner at the seafood restaurant there. It was nice being able to walk over. After dinner we did a little driving tour of the area, down by Port Canaveral. I didn't realize we drove right by it when we came into the area because it was dark and would drive by it again the next morning. We were disappointed no cruise ships were in that night but the next morning a big Disney one had just pulled in to port so that was exciting.
Michael said his favorite part of this day was "finding seashells" and "dad burying him in the sand". It was a perfect first day of our vacation!
It sounds like you had a wonderful family vacation. Going to the beach is always fun. You don’t need to hit the major attractions. Sometimes just collecting seashells and swimming at the pool is enough. Oh, and breakfast by the beach is definitely something everybody should try!
ReplyDeleteCrystal Carson @ Tacky Jacks