I need suggestions for a 1 night stay on Florida's Atlantic coast

[Mithridates]

My wife and 2 daughters and I are driving to South Carolina this summer to visit family for a few days and from there are driving down the coast, eventually ending up at our favorite place in the universe, Walt Disney World.  Since we are driving instead of flying, we wanted to have a few beach days at the ocean.  We'll get one in SC, but also would like to have one in Florida somewhere on our way to WDW.

The current plan is to drive the 5 hours or so from Charleston to Daytona Beach, spend the rest of the day and night there and then proceed to Orlando some time the next day.  But I only picked Daytona because it's well known.  What I would really be interested in is some other awesome coastal town somewhere between Jacksonville and Daytona(or maybe a little south of Daytona).  All we're really looking for is some beach time and then maybe something fun to do for the evening.

Any suggestions, or should I just stick with Daytona?

[DOSHIGH]

I would consider St. Augustine; it's got history, typical beach town attractions, Ripley's Believe It or Not!, a pirate museum, and Anastasia State Park is nice and is right on the beach. 

[wonderpug]

Fit in a visit to Cape Canaveral if you can!  The Saturn V rocket alone is mindblowing.

[RuperT]

I would consider St. Augustine; it's got history, typical beach town attractions, Ripley's Believe It or Not!, a pirate museum, and Anastasia State Park is nice and is right on the beach. 

+1

[Cortilian]

I would consider St. Augustine; it's got history, typical beach town attractions, Ripley's Believe It or Not!, a pirate museum, and Anastasia State Park is nice and is right on the beach. 

+1.

St. Augustine is pretty awesome.  You and your wife will probably love it. The historic district, Alligator Farm, Ripleys, http://www.nps.gov/casa/index.htm. The kids would probably love the Cape more but St Augustine Beach is better.

DO NOT stay at Vilano Beach.  Stay at St. Augustine Beach.  Vilano is made up of crushed sea shells and is awful.

[Mystic95Z]

Fit in a visit to Cape Canaveral if you can!  The Saturn V rocket alone is mindblowing.

+1 If you've never been to Cape Canaveral's museum its def worth a visit.

[Mithridates]

Thanks for the feedback!  St. Augustine sounds pretty good to me.  We should be able to get there by early afternoon and be able to enjoy the day there.  I think that's what we'll do!  (Thanks for the beach tip, Cortilian!)

I had previously considered the Space Museum but was scared off a little by the step price tag($41 per person).  Sure, we're blowing millions at Disney world already, but that seemed like a lot for an afternoon at the museum.

[wonderpug]

It's an intimidating price tag for a family, but man did I have a blast there.  Before you see the Saturn V room, they have you sit in the actual control room where they handled the Apollo launches, and light up the stations in use as they take you through a replay of a launch countdown sequence--even rattling the windows when it's go time to make you feel it's happening right outside.  Then the Saturn V rocket itself.  Pictures cannot possibly capture how enormous that thing is in person.  It's gargantuan.  You walk and walk along its great length and then there at the very end you see the tiny tiny capsule for the humans that's strapped to the football field length of rocket fuel containers you just walked past.

Then there's the rocket garden, showing a bunch of other historical rockets standing tall, a museum with a bunch of other capsules, space suits, and other artifacts.  I really loved seeing some of the Russian modules next to the American--interesting contrast.

Also got to see the shuttle itself dangling inside its iconic hangar bay, and the launch pad, and the big crawler thingie.

Admittedly I'm a nut for space exploration stuff, but I really can't recommend the Space Center highly enough.