Apollo Beach(New Smyrna Beach)

Located near the city of New Smyrna Beach (which has a beach by that exact same name), Apollo Beach is a large five-mile-long east-facing beach with white sand.  This beach is a part of a national seashore named Canaveral National Seashore.  Apollo Beach was featured in The Daily Telegraph newspaper’s article “Find out-of-this-world beaches on Florida’s Space Coast.”  

Apollo Beach is also considered a nude beach –  this clothing-optional portion is located near the southern end of the beach.  The beach is usually open between 6 am and 8 pm.

Although Apollo Beach does not have lifeguards, it has many other amenities including a boardwalk, restrooms, a shower, and picnic areas.  Dogs are not allowed here.

Apollo Beach offers many fun activities including sunbathing, beachcombing, fishing, picnicking, swimming, surfing, kitesurfing, windsurfing, skimboarding, boogie boarding, jet-skiing, boating, wakeboarding, parasailing, surf-skiing, kayaking, canoeing, and wildlife watching.  

If you are planning to swim or surf here, we recommend being careful because the water here is known to have unpredictable rip currents.  

If you like birdwatching, you can see many kinds of resident and migratory birds here.  If you like fishing, the middle part of this beach offers an amazing Apollo Beach fishing experience and you can catch many kinds of fish here.  If you want to know more interesting details about the Canaveral National Seashore, the nearby Apollo Beach Visitor Center offers interesting exhibits about the local cultural and natural history.  

In addition, Canaveral National Seashore – within which Apollo Beach is located – has many other fun things to explore including nature trails, historic sites, a large lagoon, and a campground.

Apollo Beach offers wheelchair-friendly access ramps near the beach’s parking lots. A beach wheelchair is also available for disabled visitors.  If you want to use a beach wheelchair, you can contact the Apollo Beach Visitor Center by phone at (386) 428-3384. 

Getting to Apollo Beach is easy – from Interstate 95, you need to turn onto Florida State Route 44 through Exit 249 and then and then drive east until you reach Florida State Road A1A.  Once you reach here, then you need to drive south along this road.  The northern entrance station for Canaveral National Seashore is located along Florida State Road A1A.  You need to pay an entrance fee at this station – the entrance fee here is $25 for vehicles, $20 for motorcycles, and $15 per pedestrian/bicycles for 7 days.  After paying the fees, you can drive further south along Florida State Road A1A to the five free Apollo Beach parking lots.   

We recommend visiting this beach early during weekends because it can get crowded quickly.  We recommend checking Apollo Beach weather reports before visiting here because the beach can sometimes experience stormy weather.

Apollo Beach is a great place for watching rocket launches – these spectacular rocket launches are often conducted by NASA and a private company named SpaceX which was founded by renowned entrepreneur Elon Musk, who is also the CEO of Tesla and is worth nearly $230 billion.  In addition, sea turtles use this beach as a seasonal nesting site.

There are many attractions near Apollo Beach New Smyrna within a 35-minute drive.  Ponce Inlet Light Station & Museum is a historic site that has a lighthouse from 1835 named Ponce de Leon Inlet Light, and it also has other historic structures, including the lighthouse keeper’s quarters and the oil storage building.  It offers an interesting insight into local history.  Old Fort Park is a park that has the ruins of a historic structure made of coquina limestone – many believe that this structure was constructed as a commercial building during the late 18th century.  The park also has benches, and also hosts many fun events including many summer concerts and the annual Art Fiesta.  Indian River Lagoon Park is a recreational park that offers an opportunity to explore the beautiful natural landscape along the banks of the Indian River through a walking trail.  This park offers many other amenities including a pavilion with restrooms and picnic tables, two docks, and a kayak and canoe launching spot.  Riverside Park is a recreational park that offers many amenities including a fishing pier, picnic areas, restrooms, a gazebo, a playground, and walking paths.  If you are looking for another attraction near the beach, Mosquito Lagoon Aquatic Preserve is a nature preserve that is set within a lagoon named Mosquito Lagoon and it offers many fun activities including wildlife watching, kayaking, canoeing, fishing, and boating.

If you get hungry, there are many great restaurants near Apollo Beach within a 25-minute-drive.  JB’s Fish Camp is famous for serving amazing seafood with Southern-style and Cajun culinary influences – it also serves great sandwiches, chicken dishes, soups, and salads.  The Garlic is an upscale Italian restaurant which offers a beautifully landscaped garden – it also serves delicious pastas, seafood, salads, steaks, and burgers and it also hosts live music performances.  Norwood’s Eatery & Bar has a bar which is set in a treehouse and it also offers a variety of other dishes including seafood, wraps, soup, salads, pot pie, and pastas.  The Breakers Restaurant is a waterfront restaurant that is set in a brightly painted building and it is famous for serving excellent burgers – it also serves outstanding seafood, poultry dishes, and chicken wings and it has also been praised by the Orlando Weekly newspaper.  If you are looking for another good and affordable nearby restaurant, Mi Mexico Restaurant serves amazing Mexican dishes including tacos, burritos, and quesadillas.

If you are looking for a hotel near Apollo Beach, there are many great nearby options within a 40-minute drive.  The 4-Star Black Dolphin Inn offers many amenities including  a porch, a pier, boat docking facilities, a hot tub, a fire pit, loaner facilities for beach chairs and beach chairs, and complimentary breakfast.  The Salty Mermaid is another great hotel that offers many amenities including a courtyard, outdoor sitting areas, sunbathing areas, a gift shop, and bike rental facilities.  A more affordable hotel is the 3-Star Best Western New Smyrna Beach Hotel & Suites which offers many amenities including a fitness center, vending machines, a restaurant, and a pool.  Another moderately priced hotel is the 3-Star The Islander Beach Resort that offers many amenities including a pool, a game room, multiple hot tubs, ATM, a kids’ play area, and exercise room.  If you are looking for another good and affordable nearby hotel, Sea Vista Oceanfront Motel & Tiki Bar offers many amenities including a bar, a pool, and a communal area with picnic tables