Evening on Daytona Beach

It was almost nine years ago that my family and I made our move to the Daytona Beach area. We love going to the beautiful beaches in this county. In fact, we have been to beaches all around the state and feel Daytona Beach is the one of the best. Everyone has their favorite time of the day to go to the beach, including us. After spending time at the beach at all different times of the day, we have identified that our favorite time is in the evening.

Hitting the beach in the summer is awesome! It's hard to beat sitting there looking out at that view, listening to the waves, and feeling the refreshing water. In the summer months, which is when we go to the beach the most, we usually arrive around 6 pm, and we stay until around 9 pm. There are very few people I know who go to the beach at this time. The mornings and afternoons are the popular times to hit up the beaches, but we still prefer the evenings, and for good reason.

Here are reasons why evenings at the beach are the best:

• No crowds. There's hardly anyone at the beach in the evening. During the day the beach in the summer is packed! There are people everywhere and you have to try and find a good spot, and even then you are surrounded by others. In the evening we are often the only people around, except for the occasional person who will walk by every once in a while. There are no crowds on the beach in the evening.

• No sun. Hit the beach during the day and you will need sunscreen, or you will likely get burn. Not only that, but the sun just beats down on you and is so hot! Some people like to sit and fry under the sun, but for those of us who don't, the evenings are ideal. When you go to the beach in the evening you don't need sunscreen. The sun has dropped behind the buildings and you can just enjoy being there. The temperature at this time is perfect.

• Relaxing. Going to the beach in the evening is a great way to end the night. Whether you worked that day or were busy, sitting at the beach in the evening will help relax you (and the kids if you have any with you). This calms the mind and sets you on your way ready to sleep well for the night.

• No traffic. When we arrive at the beach it's about the time that all of the cars are leaving the beach. This means we get the beach all to ourselves. We park in a parking lot and walk our things down there, without worry about any traffic.

• Fun stuff. In the evening things are calmer at the beach, because it's less busy, and you get a chance to see more wildlife. I always see ghost crabs scurrying around the beach. Plus, once it gets dark, if we are still there we can put our lights on our cell phones and walk down to the water. Depending on the night, we get to see crabs moving around in the water. There are nights when we have seen just a few, but there are nights when we have seen many.

Everyone has their favorite time to hit the beach, whether it's in the Daytona Beach area or beyond. If you haven't tried going in the evening you may want to give it a try. There is a good chance you will be pleasantly surprised at how beautiful and relaxing it is, and how nice it is to visit the beach when hardly nobody else is there. Enjoy!