Things to do in Port Canaveral?

We have an overnight after disembarking the ship and looking for things to do in Port Canaveral. My husband will go to the Kennedy Space Center, but I want him to really enjoy his time there and not have to worry about DD6 being bored. It’s a lot of money to spend on her to be done in a couple of hours, you know? So I was thinking about something else she and I can do while he is there. Any ideas?

Just down the road is Cocoa Beach there is lots of touristy shops and of course the original Ron John’s

There’s also the beach.

We took a helicopter tour in Port Canaveral. I don’t remember the name of the company, but it was right near the cruise ship area. The helicopter held 3 people. Our guide was great! We flew over the pier and the beach. It was absolutely beautiful!
There is also Jetty Park… I’m not sure what all is there. We camped there for a trip to Kennedy Space Center. I do know that they had some recreational facilities… basketball goals, etc. Might be worth checking out.
Cocoa Beach is also a great place to spend some time. It is maybe 10 minutes down the road.
However, I will tell you that I have made many trips to the Kennedy Space Center. My son was 4 the first time he went and is now 10. We spend a full day there every time we go and he has never been bored. They have some kid friendly, hands on kinds of things to do there. The shuttle is absolutely incredible. Part of your day at the Kennedy Space Center will be a bus tour that lasts about 1 1/2 hours. Part of that is the Saturn V Center… lots of kid friendly things to do there as well. Don’t assume that your 6 year old will be bored. Just a thought…

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Thank you! I know, I go back and forth quite a bit on the Kennedy Space Center. But I cannot imagine my daughter making it through a 1.5 bus tour. She is very active, so anything that requires her to sit, listen and be still is hard. I would hate to get on the tour and have her have trouble and disturb my husband who just spent two weeks doing all things Disney and this is his ONE thing, you know? But also, I don’t want to pay $90 for her and me if she is done in about 2 hours…which I could see. Decisions, decisions…

I understand! My son has always enjoyed the bus tour but I get it if you don’t think your daughter will! One option might be one of the “extra” tours. The up close and personal tour stops pretty regularly and lets you get off the bus often. Might be a good chance for your daughter to be more active. Of course this costs extra… But it is a good tour with several stops. Just something to think about. I’m sure you have already done this, but just in case… if you go to the KSC website you can click on different activities and it will tell you exactly what they entail and how long it should take to do. I found it very helpful for planning my day. You can also read the reviews on TripAdvisor. If you decide not to do KSC, Cocoa Beach is probably a good option.

http://www.jettyparkbeachandcampground.com/park_index
Here is a link to some information on Jetty Park… mainly a beach, fishing pier, and playground… but it is right down the road from the cruise ship terminals.

http://www.floridaairtours.com/cocoa-beach-helicopter-tours/
Here’s the link to the Helicopter tour we did. We did the Port to Pier tour… it was amazing! They also do biplane tours. It leaves from a parking lot next to the cruise terminals.

I haven’t been in about 5 years, but the ‘bus tour’ that I remember was really taking you out to the sites, you get off, look and another bus comes to get you, then you go to the next stop and you do a lot of walking around on your own. It wasn’t like a bus tour of a town where you’re directed to certain sites and have to make it back to the same bus at a certain time with a lot of “keeping up” with a guide.

But maybe it’s changed. Our little guys (5 and 7) had a great time. And there was a little park there at that time, too.

My kids didn’t like the walking through the mission control displays, but that’s because they have no frame of reference. They liked the rest of it, though.