Playalinda Beach, Canaveral National Seashore

Playalinda Beach is a rare beach on the space coast. Instead of looking polluted, it looks like one of the South Florida beaches. The sand is perfectly clean with little shells. The water is clear and blue-green, and a few degrees cooler than South Florida which makes it nice. The beach is surrounded by perfect nature- seaside and silvery palmetto plants. It looks wonderful when you look back toward the beach from your gorgeous swim!

There are plenty of parking lots- thirteen in all- with wooden boardwalks leading to the sand. Lot 13 is a clothing optional beach but remember- not all people are super models!
It is expensive to enter- $20. 
We thought we had found heaven, but alas, we were all stung by sea lice, tiny invisible jellyfish. At the time it feels like a tiny prick. We didn't see any jellyfish so we continued swimming. But we got stung all over, hundreds of bites. It was on our skin for hours after we swam, under our swimsuits too, without us knowing it. There was a sign at the entrance saying "Jellyfish" but we didn't see any on the shore or in the water. We didn't realize that "jellyfish" can also mean sea lice, which are invisible jellyfish larvae. Sea needles are also sometimes present at this beach. Both are common in late spring and summer. Ask the ranger before swimming.
There is a visitor center and a hike as well, accessed along the road that leads to the beach. Black Point Wildlife Drive is another great thing to do out here- drive along and look for alligators and birds.

Directions

Entrance costs a steep $20, which lasts for 7 days.

Click on map for interactive view