Central Florida beaches prepare for spring break crowds
ORLANDO, Fla. - Spring Break 2024 is right around the corner; beaches in Central Florida are preparing for the influx of young tourists.
FOX 35’s Kelsie Cairns spoke to New Smyrna Beach, Cocoa Beach, and Daytona Beach officials.
Each city has its own approach to rule crackdowns.
Starting with New Smyrna Beach, you may remember the infamous Spring Break of 2022, with videos circulating online of high-school-aged kids taking over the streets and dancing on top of cars on Flagler Avenue.
New Smyrna is ensuring all bases are covered to curb the chaos this year.
"If this is the Spring Break where you were hoping to fill up a cooler with beer and head to NSB, then this probably isn't the location you wanna pick," says New Smyrna Beach Police Department Chief Eric Feldman.
"We welcome kids, we welcome everybody to enjoy our beach, but we want them to treat it as if it is their own backyard," says Lisa Martin, City Commissioner.'
"When they come in, they're going be greeted by an army of police officers smiling on foot – who will absolutely write you a ticket for not having your seatbelt on," Chief Feldman said.
The city will be enforcing its 11 p.m. curfew for anyone under 17. The city has this rule year-round but will use extra resources to ensure it's followed.
City leaders anticipate the biggest "kid crowds" in the third week of March.
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"Based on experiences we've learned over the last couple of years, we will have significant extra staffing this year," Feldman said.
Martin said, "This is not the same crowd that spends in our shops and restaurants – it's a different crowd, and they're kids who wanna have fun."
Moving on to Cocoa Beach, Wes Mullins, the Chief of the Cocoa Beach Police Department, said, "We're not Miami, but we're also a town that has 2.5 million visitors a year."
City Manager Wayne Carragino said, "We just want to get the word out, like we do every year, that anybody that has the intention of coming to Cocoa Beach and making a mess, drinking excessively, driving after they drink, and causing rowdiness, We're just not going to put up with it."
Mullins and Carragino want to ensure beach safety. Mullins said, "We're staffed appropriately. We're out on the beaches. We are out on the waterways and the roadways to ensure that everybody in the city of Cocoa Beach is going to be safe."
Cocoa Beach and New Smyrna Beach have contacted state agencies for extra help on standby. FOX 35 contacted Daytona Beach officials, who said there would be no curfews for Spring Break.