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Fast Cars, Sandy Beach & Girls in Bikinis
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Daytona Beach, Florida, is one of Florida's most popular vacation destinations. With twenty-three miles of white-sandy
beaches, sun bathing is a popular activity. You can also swim, fish, scuba dive, parasail, snorkel, or play golf or tennis as
the mood strikes you. Combine all the outdoor possibilities with museums, shopping, and great restaurants, and what
you get is an area synonymous with fun and excitement! Although Daytona Beach is probably best known as a haven for
spring breaking teens or Harley riders during October's Bike Week, Daytona Beach has much to offer every visitor.
Daytona Beach was named after Matthias Day, Jr., an investor and publisher who purchased acreage along the banks of
the Halifax River, and founded a small community. Daytona became a tourist paradise when Henry Flagler, co-founder
of Standard Oil with John D. Rockefeller and Samuel Andrews, built the Florida East Coast Railway in the 1890's.
The packed sand of Daytona Beach provided a perfect environment for car inventors to test out their engines and set
new land speed records. In 1935, English speed demon Sir Malcolm Campbell hit 276.8 miles per hour! Daytona's early
racing history became a permanent fixture of the American landscape in 1959, with the opening of the Daytona
International Speedway.
In addition to being the corporate home of NASCAR, the big leagues of stock car racing, Daytona International
Speedway also houses DAYTONA USA, a state-of-the-art interactive motor sports attraction designed to offer a
hands-on experience of racing and its history in the Daytona Beach area. DAYTONA USA allows its visitors to participate
in a number of interactive activities, including a NASCAR Winston Cup pit stop, computer designing of and testing a race
car, "talking" to race car drivers, a 70mm movie depicting race day at the Daytona 500, trivia contests, and "calling" the
final laps.
Fast cars are only a part of the diverse activities available in Daytona Beach. With more than two dozen championship
courses at your fingertips, and moderate year-round weather, you'll enjoy golf as never before. Daytona Beach offers
courses designed by Rees Jones, Arthur Hills, Arnold Palmer, Gary Player, Lloyd Clifton and Bill Amick. The newest
golf course in the Daytona Beach area is the Rees Jones-designed LPGA International, home course of the Ladies
Professional Golf Association.
Daytona Beach has built quite a reputation for deep sea fishing, where fishermen have landed some of the biggest
Marlin on record. Charters can be rented at Ponce Inlet. Surf fishing here is also available year-round. Many varieties
of fish are caught from the Ocean Pier in the heart of Daytona Beach and the Sunglow Pier located at the southern end
of the beach.
For a panoramic view of the surrounding area, visit The Ponce de Leon Inlet Lighthouse. Built in 1887, it's the second
tallest brick lighthouse in the nation. In January, 1897, it was also a beacon of hope to the sailors and passengers of the
S.S. Commodore, which sank just offshore. One of the desperate souls aboard was author Stephen Crane, who later
recreated the experience in his famous short story, "The Open Boat."
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