New Smyrna Beach, Florida

 Just a week after we returned from our trip to Oklahoma City, South Padre Island, and San Antonio, Texas, we packed up again and took a road trip to New Smyrna Beach, Florida. It was May 2022, and we had a good reason for this trip. Our youngest granddaughter was performing in a National Cheer Competition at the ESPN studios in Orland. She and her teammates had earned a trip to this competition by their excellent performances in local competitions. We try and follow our granddaughters in all their endeavors and that is why we found ourselves traveling south yet again.

We knew there was a chance that her team would not make it to the finals on Sunday, but it was a chance we were willing to make for her. We did not plan to get there in time for her Saturday performance. We figured if she didn't make it, her family would still have a few days to spend with us in our Air BnB.

We drove as far as Fort Campbell, Kentucky where we stayed in a Quality Inn. This was the day we would drive through Atlanta for the very first time. We had driven to St. George Island, Florida at least 20 times but never went through Atlanta. We prayed it would be an easy drive but we had heard the worst about Atlanta traffic. Well, I am happy to report that we sailed through Atlanta but then ran into a horrible windy, thunderstorm forcing us to check into a motel earlier than we expected. We ended up at a very expensive Holiday Inn but we had no choice. We were joined by countless other travelers in the same boat as us. The motel was very, very nice, clean, modern, great breakfast, all the things I like in a motel, but way too expensive for one night. In the daylight the next morning we found numerous motels in the area that would have been more than adequate at a much lower price.

We made it to Florida the next morning, took the obligatory "Welcome to Florida" picture and decided to explore St. Augustine since we had a few hours to kill before we could check into our rental. We fell in love with St. Augustine and decided we would spend Thanksgiving 2022 there which we did, but that's another post. 

Left St. Augustine and checked into yet another wonderful Air BnB with a pool and just across the street from the beach. We took a walk on the beach, it was a Saturday, and it was so crowded with both cars and people. We like a more deserted beach, so we were a bit taken aback. We got word that night that our granddaughter's cheer team had done an outstanding job but had not moved on to the finals. The bad news was we would not be able to see her perform, but the good news was they would be joining us the sooner than expected.

Sunday was Mother's Day, and I enjoyed every minute of mine. John and I walked all over New Smyrna and discovered so many cool places. We checked out Flagler St. with all its fun shops, had drinks at a few bars including Norwood Treehouse which was really a cool place and later drove to Canaveral National Seashore where we used our lifetime senior national passes. There was a warning at one of the areas that we might see naked swimmers, we did not stop and check it out. On our way back to the Air BnB we found our "Blue Parrot" on New Smyrna. A place right on the beach called Chase's Oceanfront. It had yummy drinks and such good seafood.

My daughter's family arrived on Monday. We immediately went to the beach, and it was deserted just the way we like our beaches to be. It is a very wide, flat beach so we could walk in both directions for long distances. We swam in both our pool and the ocean. That was our last warm day. The rest of our stay was cold and windy, in facti it was warmer up here in Wisconsin than it was down there! We still had lots of fun making memories. We drove to Daytona Beach and checked out the boardwalk, we ate at Fish Camp, and we took a boat ride to learn about mangroves, manatees and other natural things.

           The pier at Daytona Beach

 It was a short trip, but we enjoyed our time in New Smyrna Beach. I would highly recommend this area especially for Seniors. There is a lot to do, bars, restaurants, attractions and of course the beach. This area is home to many snowbirds and it's easy to see why.

Our drive home was uneventful. Another great vacation in the books.