# HIVC Cape Canaveral seeking reco's on what to do there



## jbats (Jun 28, 2016)

We're staying at the HIVC Cape Canaveral in a month, 3 adults (bringing grandma along) and 2 kids age 12 and 8 staying in a 1 bedroom unit. Besides the pool, beach and Kennedy Space center what is there to do in the area? Any must see spots, restaurants, etc? Anywhere nice for my husband and I to go to dinner for our anniversary? Is there a grocery store close by? Do they rent cabanas/chairs at the beach? We've only been to Orlando so not sure what to expect.

Thanks!


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## Tank (Jun 29, 2016)

Here is a facebook page of HIVC owners , very helpful for your answers about HIVC 
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1524109404475068/


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## Rehdaun (Jun 29, 2016)

A few free/low cost things to do:

Merritt Island Black Point Wildlife Drive $5 per car
Cocoa Beach Pier - Small fee
Brevard Zoo - $18 adult
Manatee Sanctuary Park - Free manatee & dolphin viewing
The Dinosaur Store (museum not yet open)
Ron Jon Surf Shop
Sharaton (across street from Ron Jon's) Shark Tank - Free
Sea Turtle Preservation Society - Donation
Nature trail hike
Watch a space launch

A few restaurants for the family:

Dixie Crossroads in Titusville - for seafood
Slow and Low for BBQ
Papa Vito's for pizza
Sunrise Diner for breakfast
Simply Delicious for breakfast or lunch - Kid friendly

There's two Publix down Atlantic Ave., one fairly close to the Cape Canaveral / Cocoa Beach border.

They had chair rental prior to being added to HIVC.  Summer months only.  Not sure if they still have that.


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## moonstone (Jul 1, 2016)

Another thing to do that your kids might enjoy is to go up to Jetty Park one afternoon when the cruise ships are leaving Port Canaveral, its almost walking distance from the resort. I believe there is a $5./ car admission charge if you drive over. They have a nice kids play area & beach there as well. Check a cruise port schedule (Google one) for dates & times of ship departures. We have found they usually leave on Fri, Sat, Sun or Mon and nearly always at 4pm. If you or the kids have never seen one up close it is a treat and you'll be closer to them than watching from the beach at the resort.


~Diane


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## jbats (Jul 1, 2016)

Thank you so much for all the info!


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## Weimaraner (Jul 3, 2016)

jbats said:


> Thank you so much for all the info!



I'm here now and saw a sign for 2 chairs/1 umbrella $20 a day. There is also rentals for bikes etc. About 6 cruise ships have left port while we went on a walk on beach. They have lots of fun activities including a movie thear with 5 movies/day and nagician/comedian. They sell soda mugs for $12.99 (i think) with free refills.We are here in 2 bed thru RCI and ended up in Oceanfront building - love this place! My 9yo and sister checked in while I parked car and they tried to convince me that we had a parking lot room assignment. They had me convinced until I saw our room map and my daughter drew a dumpster next to our room haha


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## donnaval (Jul 5, 2016)

You usually see a lot of dolphins off the pier right at the resort, and have the kids pay attention to the back of the ships as they glide by, because the dolphins will be jumping around going after fish churned up by the ships.  You can usually get a really good look at a pelican or two on the pier (they often sit on the posts).  We haven't been to the resort since it became HI, but we really enjoyed the stays we had there in the past.


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## FLDVCFamily (Jul 6, 2016)

Don't know if it's possible at this late of a date, but you could see if KSC could accomodate your kids for a week of camp. My kids went 2 weeks ago and it was amazing. It's a day camp, and is about 20 minutes from that resort to the ATX center where you drop them off. 

How far do you mind driving for dinner? If you want something close, I'd recommend Fish Lips at the port. If you don't mind driving, there's a Melting Pot in Viera, Islands Fish Grill in Indialantic is yummy, and River Rocks is good (US1 Melbourne). 

Brevard Zoo has reciprocity agreements with other zoos I think, so might be cheap or free if you have another membership. It's a great zoo in my opinion...small, but well done. 

There are surf camps in Cocoa Beach that might interest your kids. I think there is one right at Ron Jons but there are others too.


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## JPD (Jul 29, 2016)

I second Merritt Island, stop by the visitor center and get a map. Make sure you go and see the Manatees. There is a Manatee viewing area, but on the other side of the bridge, there is a boat ramp and parking lot where all the Manatees hand out. We saw about 20 there at one time. There are also a lot of big alligators around there, so be careful.


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