Melbourne Area Beaches

While Cocoa Beach holds the title of "Orlando's Closest Beach," about a half an hour south of Cocoa Beach the public beaches of Melbourne Beach and the nearby municipalities offer the same waves for surfing and boogie boarding, without the crowds usually found at Cocoa Beach or even New Smyrna Beach to the north of Cocoa.

The best way to access the Melbourne area beaches from the Orlando area is to take the Beachline (SR 528) east to SR 520 and take Interstate 95 south to either the Eau Gaille or Hwy 192 exit and keep heading east over the causeway until you reach A1A and the barrier island where the beaches can be found. Heading south on A1A from the Eau Gaille Causeway, beach lovers can choose between Paradise Park, Indialantic, and Ocean Park in the town of Melbourne Beach.

While Melbourne Beach does not have two rival surf shops or a string of fast food establishments like Cocoa Beach to the north, the public access beaches are a bit more accessible for those who are willing to go the extra miles. In fact, one of the beauties of traveling up or down A1A in Brevard County is being able to choose a beach that is to your liking anywhere along Florida's Space Coast.