Florida Family Beach Vacation

"Florida is a great place for family beach vacations -- there are so many to choose from!"

Ready for a Florida family beach vacation? Wide sun-splashed beaches, warm waters and tropical breezes wait for you and your family!

Let's take a look at some of the most popular Florida beaches for family vacations.

Florida Atlantic Coast

If you like beaches with a little bit of wave action, your best bet is the Florida Atlantic coast, especially North and Central Florida. The top four picks for families are:

Of these, Daytona Beach is the one with the most "stuff" -- attractions, beach toys, tours, fishing -- you name it. But if you'd like to get in a little history with the attractions, check out St. Augustine.

Cocoa and Sebastian are quieter, but the beaches are great and there are plenty of hotels and resorts in all kinds of price ranges. Of the two, Cocoa is closest to Orlando and Disney World.

One other thought for a great family vacation by the beach is the Disney Vero Beach Resort. It's snuggled between Sebastian and the South Florida beaches and because it's Disney, you know you'll have fun!

Florida Gulf Coast Beaches

One thing about the Florida Gulf coast beaches is that they are great for families with smaller children. The waters of the Gulf of Mexico are shallower and quieter, perfect for swimming.

But just because it's great for kids doesn't mean it's boring. The beaches are generally fairly wide and the sands are a little lighter than those on the Atlantic coast. Great for making sand castles!

Here are some great Florida family beaches for vacations on the Gulf:

Clearwater
Sarasota
Fort Myers

There are hotels in all kinds of price ranges, on the beach or close by. There are also attractions, of which Busch Gardens is probably the biggest (and it's still one of my favorites). But there are also tours, museums and all kinds of shopping opportunities.

Fort Myers is the southernmost of these beaches, and is close to the Florida Everglades, which is a whole vacation in itself!

Florida Panhandle Beaches

The Florida Panhandle beaches are also on th Gulf of Mexico. They have a little more wave action than beaches like Clearwater, but less than the Atlantic coast beaches.

The Panhandle offers great Florida family beach vacation opportunities. The beaches are wide and sandy, the hotels ample and there are parks and attractions sprinkled around!

My picks for the best family beaches on the Florida Panhandle are:

Destin
Pensacola
Panama City

Cocoa and Sebastian are quieter, but the beaches are great and there are plenty of hotels and resorts in all kinds of price ranges.

Florida Family Beach Vacation

There are lots of places here in the Sunshine State for a Florida family beach vacation. Which one you choose depends on what kind of vacation you want -- with the beach being the main vacation or only part of it.

Enjoy your Florida family beach vacation!.

Best Beaches in Florida page

Pictures of Florida Beaches page

Florida Outdoors page