by Virgil Calderon
There are many resorts in Florida, attracting visitors to the sunny climate and beach lifestyle. Daytona Beach is one of the most popular areas and it has a varied mix of activities and places to see. There are 23 miles of white beaches and a large number of hotels and motels cope with the rising population during summer. Fishing and water sports are popular, including kayaking, surfing and parasailing. Boat tours explore the area and bikes are available for hire. The historic city architecture is in the old Southern style. Nightlife is lively with international cuisine restaurants, casinos and nightclubs. Shopping has everything from designer clothes boutiques to flea markets.
The activity most associated with the city is motor sports. The area has a tradition in car and motorcycle racing from the pioneer years of racing to the events of today. The Daytona Beach Road Course racetrack is the historic site for 15 world land speed records, achieved between 1905 and 1935. Famous drivers made their name in these attempts, including British driver Sir Malcolm Campbell. The track was also involved in the early NASCAR meets.
The annual Daytona International Speedway racetrack is another landmark in the world of speed. The most famous race held here is the Daytona 500, which is a NASCAR Nextel Cup race. The race has the most valuable purse and is widely televised. This famous venue in Daytona Beach also hosts races for motorcycles, go-karts, customized trucks, sports cars and stock cars. There is also a lake called Lake Lloyd, which presents powerboat racing competitions.
Cultural heritage is also important to the city and it is justly proud of the Museum of Arts and Sciences. It is a collection of permanent exhibitions and traveling displays, concerned with the local social history and natural history of the Daytona Beach area. Each gallery is divided into a special interest, one of which is the Center for Florida History. There is large collection of fossils here and the skeleton of the Giant Ground Sloth, which was found locally. Africa: Life and Ritual displays masks, sculpture, weapons and religious artifacts. The Gallery of American Arts contains furniture, paintings, silver and glass. There is also a planetarium, which presents laser concert shows.
The city is a good base for seeing well known tourist attractions, including the Kennedy Space Center and Sea World Florida. Other local beaches are close by, such as New Smyrna Beach and Ormond Beach.