Cape Canaveral

Cape Canaveral is a city in Brevard County, Florida, most famous for being the home of America's spaceport, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS).

Understand

Cape Canaveral is part of a region known as the "Space Coast", since all of the manned United States spacecraft are launched from the Space Coast. The city sits at the northern end of a barrier island on the Atlantic coast of Florida, south of the geographical cape. Falcon 9 (pictured above), the first rocket to land its first stage, takes off from the Kennedy Space Center. The visitors' complex of the space center is found across a waterway, to the west.

The northern part of the city, known as Port Canaveral, is one of the U.S.' main ports for cruise ships.

Get in

By plane

By train

The nearest Amtrak station is 🌍 Orlando Health/Amtrak station in Orlando, 50 miles west. There are no Amtrak Thruway connections from Cape Canaveral.

By car

Cape Canaveral is at the eastern end of Florida State Route 528 from Orlando. Interstate 95, a primary north-south route on the Atlantic Coast, intersects FL-528 near Cape Canaveral.

  • Martin Andersen Beachline Expressway connects Cape Canaveral and Cocoa Village to its junction with I-4, south of Orlando, near Walt Disney World, at 48 mi (77 km) west, via Orlando International Airport. Locally FL-528 ends at its intersection with US Hwy 1 in Cocoa Village. From its intersection with US 1, the road continues across the causeway as FL-A1A, into Port Canaveral/Cape Canaveral as Astronaut Blvd (FL-A1A) where it curves south through Cape Canaveral and into Cocoa Beach as Atlantic Ave (FL-A1A) (the main thoroughfare). It crosses over I-95 at exit 205.

Get around

By bus
  • Space Coast Area Transit is the local Brevard County bus service. It is a cheap way to get around and is wheelchair accessible. The website provides maps and timetables. Buses travel to most sites and places of interest. $1.50 per ride, or $42 for a monthly pass.
  • Bus route 9 serves as the main bus route through Cape Canaveral and Cocoa Beach between King George Blvd & N Atlantic Ave in Cape Canaveral (to the north), to SR-A1A & S 13th in the south of town, via Shephard Park at Ocean Beach Blvd (SR-520) as the main begin/end point of the route.

By car

The city, as a barrier island, is fairly compact and can be crossed in a few minutes by car. The main road in the area is the main causeway, which turns south to follow the barrier island toward Cocoa Beach. Ridgewood Avenue follows the majority of the beach.

See
  • 🌍 Sands Space History Center, 191 Museum Cir (Just outside and to the right of the south gate of Cape Canaveral Air Force Station), ☏ +1 321 853-9171. Tu-F 9AM-2PM, Sa 10AM-5PM, Su noon-4PM. The History Center is an extension of the Cape Canaveral Space Force Museum. It is outside of the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and does not require entry onto the station. Free. 
  • 🌍 Cape Canaveral Space Force Museum (Visitors must book a tour with Canaveral Tours.), ☏ +1 321 853-9171. M-F 8AM-4PM, W Th 9AM (launch and operations schedule permitting). The four-hour tour includes stops at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Museum, the Cape Canaveral Lighthouse, and several historic launch complexes. Reservations are required two days in advance and seating is limited. Only US citizens and permanent residents are permitted, and they must present one form of official ID, such as a driver's license, military ID, or passport, when registering and upon arrival. Bus and most facilities are not wheelchair accessible. $57.95 for tour. 
  • 🌍 Cape Canaveral Lighthouse. Built in 1859 and open to the public through the Cape Canaveral Lighthouse Foundation. 
  • 🌍 Jetty Park Beach and Pier, 9035 Campground Cir, ☏ +1 321 783-7111, . 7AM–9PM. No pets. You can buy parking passes via the website. (updated May 2022)
  • 🌍 Manatee Sanctuary Park, 701 Thurm Blvd, ☏ +1 321 868-1226. 7AM–sunset. Park on the west side of town with a pavilion, inlet of the Intracoastal Waterway, and potential manatee viewing. (updated May 2022)

Do

NASA keeps a list of Brevard County parks where rocket launches can be viewed. The best places off-site are to the south from Jetty Park near Port Canaveral, or across Indian River in Titusville.

Evening and extended cruises are offered from Port Canaveral. These are especially popular for their casino facilities which are not available on land.

Fishing

Buy

Eat

Drink

Sleep

Go next
  • Cocoa Beach is the next town serving as the southern extension of Cape Canaveral along Atlantic Ave (FL-A1A), south of Barlow (5800 block).
  • Kennedy Space Center is the primary space center in the United States, home to the launch of several notable rockets, including Apollo 11 (the first one that went to the moon). The precinct contains several exhibitions, and there are regular tours.
  • Space - The launch facility is a gateway to low Earth orbit and beyond, although extremely expensive.
  • Disney World is 1½ hours by car due west in Lake Buena Vista south of Orlando
Routes through Cape Canaveral
Daytona Beach ← Titusville ←  N  S  → Cocoa Beach → West Palm Beach


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