Quote:I went there once during Bike Week because they had a swap meet over there for bikes and parts. The clientele was certainly interesting.
It's kind of depressing to go to Daytona Beach. There are few really nice hotels down there, and some new development, but the oceanfront that used to be the hub for spring break has gotten old and tired. One of my buddies stays at a hotel down there that is a "resort". He stays there for Bike Week because it's cheap. We stay up off SR 40 at one of the newer hotels up there. Last year, he kept bugging us to go in on a room with him. We politely declined. He kept talking about how the place had been remodeled. So, curiosity got the best of us, so we went to see the remodel. They had slapped a coat of paint on half the exterior, and painted all the rooms. They also put "new" furniture in the rooms. It looked like it came from one of the other places that had closed down there. They had an oceanfront room. The entire wall facing the ocean was sliding glass doors. They had the curtain closed, and you could see the moth holes. The smell of God knows what filled the room. Let's just say it was quite musty. We went to check out the view, and the glass actually fell out of the frame of the sliding glass door, and remained that way for the rest of the week they were there.
All of those old hotels on the ocean front that weren't destroyed by tropical storms a few years back should be torn down to make room for new development. All those mom and pop hotels need to go as well.
What makes it even worse is the residents don't want the bikers there. They complain about the noise and the traffic. They don't bother to think about the tens of millions being pumped into their economy. They've put sound restrictions on bikes, and they've got law enforcement out there handing out tickets for the most ridiculous stuff. We usually only go into Daytona to hit Main Street and a few other things, then spend the rest of our time up in Ormond, or down in New Smyrna.
I agree, Daytona especially beachside, is pretty sketchy and run down. They have tried to clean it up in spots (Boardwalk), but that area just seems to attract certain folk, and there is a lot of low income housing in some areas on beachside. As an long time Ormond resident, I try to stay away from beachside Daytona... I actually rarely ever go down there. If you are not careful, you could find yourself in a bad area with crack houses and criminals.
Now the main Bike Week attraction, Destination Daytona, isn't even in Daytona. It's in Ormond on US-1. but ya, I admit I hate bike week.
With that said, Daytona around the speedway has seen significant growth the past few years. Not bad for shopping and places to eat.
