The best beach in the Ponce Inlet is Winter Haven Park. This beach is by far one of the best strips of sand between Daytona and New Smyrna Beach. It is not a park in the traditional sense, for there aren’t swing sets or playgrounds, but a quiet, sometimes secluded stretch of white sand in a great location.
The water quality is very good, and more sub-tropical looking, and the sand quality is excellent. This is the spot the locals come to, and tourists sometimes miss. People go further past the park for Ponce Inlet’s world class fishing, and to visit the historic red lighthouse. There are many popular restaurants in this location on the waters of the Ponce Inlet, and people often discover the beach on their way to eat stone crabs and other seafood delicacies.
What is most enchanting about this beach is seclusion, aside from lush beauty. It has all the qualities one would ask for in a world-class beach, yet it is never crowded, even on the weekends, unlike Daytona Beach, with the steady influx of tourism.
The parking lot off of Atlantic Avenue is small, so that keeps the levels of people under control, and one may even pass by the park, thinking it is a random parking lot, for the beach is not visible straightaway. There is a lush, winding walkway, with a cement lined road with imprints of starfish and sea shells, that sparkle in the sunlight. Once up the little walkway and bushes, there is the lovely Atlantic Ocean, with its blue-green waters and the white stretch of sand for miles. There is a little grill area, and two benches, and one little boardwalk leading down to the beach, but aside from that, the rest is pure nature.
One doesn’t feel isolated, there are buildings to the immediate left and far right, but they are probable resident dwellings, and not overcrowded hotel type of establishments in the touristy districts. You may see fishermen, often casting their lines into the ocean, and leaving their poles in the sand, to go and sit back and relax till the catch of the day. This is a good place to fish, for the waves are gentle in tepid weather, not as fierce as the Flagler Avenue beaches, which make for better surfing conditions in that locale. This beach is, without a doubt, the best for relaxing, fishing, swimming and sunbathing. There is a lifeguard on duty, but there may not be one at various other locals along the beach away from the main entrance. Use caution, just in case when swimming whenever a lifeguard is not present.
The Ponce Inlet is located by Port Orange Florida, or down A1A from Daytona Beach. To get to the Ponce Inlet from Daytona, take either A1A straight down, or from Port Orange, cross over the bridge, and turn right on South Atlantic Avenue. The location of the beach is 4589 S. Atlantic Avenue.
