Best Beach Vacation Search – Find a Beach for your Next Vacation or Day Out
Posted on | December 12, 2009 | 9 Comments
Travelers like to find new places to explore. Judging from the trends of online searches, most of them want to go to the beach. If that sounds like you, do you know how to find a new beach for your next vacation or day out? This article will teach you how to use free tools to prepare for a visit to a beach you’ve never seen before.
Your beach day starts with an online search:
- Submit the word “beach” and the name of a town, city or state into your favorite search engine. The results will include “things to do” directories (some with detailed addresses and reviews), official pages from local governments, and personal pages with reviews and directions.
- Search for beach cities in a map Web site such as Google Maps, Yahoo! Maps or MapQuest. For example, submit “Miami, Florida” and the map will zoom in to the specified location. If you have a rental home, condo or hotel in mind, submit its street address and scroll the map (or zoom out) to find the nearest body of water.
- Browse a directory of beaches such as http://www.morebeach.com or http://www.AreWeThereYetMap.com. The owners of these sites have already located good beaches for you to visit. You’ll find lists of beaches organized by region, plus maps, street addresses and links for more information.
To view beaches in more detail, switch the Web site’s map type to “satellite”. If the site you’re on doesn’t offer satellite photographs, try another site. Then zoom in to street level and look for:
- Rental location: How close are your choices of rental homes, condos and hotels to the beach? Can you walk there or will you have to drive?
- Public parking: Where is it and how many spaces are available (meaning how many total, not how many are occupied in the photo)? Cars are easy to see, so scroll around the map to find rows of them. Switch the map type to “hybrid” and take note of street names in relation to parking lots and street parking.
- Beach access: How far is the walk between parking or drop-off points and the sand? Make sure you bring only as much gear as you can carry.
- Beach length: Does the beach stretch for miles or is it a tiny spot of sand useful mostly to locals? Many beaches are closed off on each end by large rocks, trees, or grass.
- Beach width: How much space is between the grass/rocks/parking lot and the water? Of course in the ocean, the tides will change this trait every hour. Sandy shores look white or light tan merging into the blue-green water, while rocky slopes and retaining walls look dark and grainy against the water.
- Watercraft: Are boats visible along the shore? Don’t swim in a marina or other high traffic waterway.
- Lifeguard towers: The towers may be hard to see. Look for round or square roofs and rectangular shadows, often paced at equal distances from each other on the sand. If possible, swim near the lifeguards, especially when you bring children.
- Coral reefs: Green and brown splotchy areas in the water near shore may indicate a reef, giving you a chance to view a fascinating ecosystems of coral structures, colorful fish and other wildlife. Bring your snorkel and mask, but don’t touch the coral or you’ll damage the colonies of polyps that build the reef.
- Seaweed: Then again, green and brown splotchy areas might just be seaweed.
After your search you’ll have a good idea of how to get to your chosen beach and what to expect when you get there. Check the tide and weather reports before you head out and you’ll be ready for a great day at the beach. Have fun!
Related posts:
- Pink Beach On The Harbour Island Bahama
- Pattaya Beach Thailand
- Choosing the perfect beach chair
- Renting a Beach Chair or Sitting in the Sand in Saint Tropez Beach – Which is Which?
- Beach Wedding Favors – Now Easier Than Ever
- Renting a Beach Chair or Sitting in the Sand in Saint Tropez Beach – Which is Which?
- 5 Must See Beaches on you Kauai Vacation
- Top 10 Beaches in the Caribbean
- How to Choose the Best Beach Resorts
- Mombasa Beach Holiday Vacation & Safari | Game Fishing Sport Rich & Food for Poor
Comments
9 Responses to “Best Beach Vacation Search – Find a Beach for your Next Vacation or Day Out”
Leave a Reply
December 12th, 2009 @ 9:44 am
Try any of the beaches between LA and San Diego in California. There are a lot of them and you can just pick a beach and see if you like it. The weather in southern California at this time of year is almost always great! No worry about major hurricanes etc. It is where I would pick if I had to go. You can also find a larger hotel that is located on the beach where they will serve drinks poolside or for you to carry down to the ocean's beach!
December 12th, 2009 @ 9:59 am
10 hours away by car is Myrtle Beach North Carolina. Loads of young people go there for Spring break.
I stayed at a campground with tent and trunk full of camping things, with my girlfriend…. a long time ago.
There is no beach that is 5 hours away, except maybe Lake ERIE straight North. Don't overlook the little islands there (Put in Bay) that are also a great hangout for college students. between Toledo and Cleveland, but more to the west. ISLANDS!!
http://www.putinbay.com/
http://www.pibinfo.com/
budget lodging : http://www.calibex.com/Hotels–zzput+in+bay+ohio+lodgingz2703100zcalibex2zB7z5—html?nxtg=30810a1c0507-6885328611224E69
December 12th, 2009 @ 2:23 pm
If it is 1200 mile and your jeep gets 20 mile to the gallon you will need 60 gallon to get you there, and at 3.00 a gallon it will cost you 180 one way ,360 round trip…….this is for example…..find out how many mile it really is and how many mile you get to the gallon and that will give you a good idea.
December 13th, 2009 @ 5:14 pm
Think fortlaudrdal is the nearest. (According to my knowledge). its better to check from a airport service or some international map in the net.as if there were any mistake, you will be in no way…..
December 14th, 2009 @ 1:03 am
DART Route 208: stops from Rehoboth to Ocean City:
http://www.dartfirststate.com/information/routes/pages/rt208.shtml
DART Fares:
http://www.dartfirststate.com/information/getting_there/fares/index.shtml
December 14th, 2009 @ 3:07 am
I'm not sure a group of 18/19 year old guys want to go to NYC for the theater and Shakespeare…
Head down to Myrtle Beach or Fort Lauderdale. If you want to check out the west coast, go to San Diego. Plenty of nightlife in all of those cities, and more to do than just hang out at the beach.
December 14th, 2009 @ 6:54 am
July and August because of the heat.
December 14th, 2009 @ 1:37 pm
I avoid beaches with my kids but I can help with the flights. I'm an ex-F/A and I fly with my three between Europe and California about every six months, plus shorter trips in between.
For such short flights, it wont be a problem with the ears. Just visit the ped before leaving to be sure he doesn't have an ear infection and otherwise, hís ears should be fine. It's a myth that they have to drink or suck on take-off and landing. Ear problems are highly overrated.
He'll be safer and everyone will be more comfortable if you can bring your carseat and see if you can use it on board in an empty seat. Wont you need it at your destination anyway? (Never risk car company seats, they can be expired, nasty, the wrong size, etc.). Double check that your carseat is FAA certified. Most are in the U.S.
On check in, ask how full the flight is and ask if you can be seated with an empty place besides you.
I go into way more detail in an article I wrote and placed on a blog for all parents to see. It's totally non-commercial and written to help out other parents (and my ex-coworkers, if parents have fewer concerns!)
http://flyingwithchildren.blogspot.com
Have a good trip and be careful with your little guy and that hot Florida sun!
December 15th, 2009 @ 2:19 pm
Baseball plays "games," not matches.
You want to be there at least a half hour before game time.
Give yourself an hour from SoBe, especially if it's a weekday, it will be rush hour. If you get there early, no problem; you can watch practice & there's other stuff to see & do.
It will be better to simply go directly there from whatever part of the Everglades you are at. You can take the Expressway or Turnpike & it will take a little longer than the trip from SoBe. There is no reason to make the long traffic jammed trip back to the the Beach & then back to Miami.