Travel

On tour: The Hard Rock Hotel, Daytona Beach looks like the ultimate holiday for music lovers 

The oceanfront pool at the Hard Rock Hotel, Daytona Beach

It’s no wonder Florida is the number one travel destination for Brits, outside of Europe. It’s got incredible weather, beautiful beaches and fun around every corner. And that fun isn’t limited to the greatest theme parks in the world – but it also takes the form of a beach haven for music lovers. Say hello to the Hard Rock Hotel, Daytona Beach. 

Situated on the North East coast of Florida and full of lively bars, restaurants, iconic racetracks and world-class golfing, Daytona Beach is a destination in itself worthy of your post-pandemic holiday plans. What has bumped it to number one on our travel plans for a summer of fun, though, is the recently-opened Hard Rock Hotel, Daytona Beach.

The ocean view at Hard Rock Hotel, Daytona Beach
The Hard Rock Hotel, Daytona Beach boasts views of the outdoor stage and the Atlantic shoreline

Panoramic ocean views of the Atlantic shoreline, mid-century modern design, and stylish luxury have put the Hard Rock Hotel Daytona Beach centre stage as the destination’s newest beachfront hotel and the fourth Hard Rock Hotel in Florida. 

But what really sets this apart as the stay for maximum fun is that, true to the iconic brand, music is the beating heart of the property.

The “Sound of Your Stay” is the hotel’s signature, complimentary in-room music amenity programme. The first of its kind, this groundbreaking audio experience offers guests different music options to amp up their stay – from curated music playlists to soundtrack your stay, to an iconic Crosley turntable and ten records hand-selected by Hard Rock’s music experts to play in your room, this hotel is all about the rockstar experience.

You can even release your inner Santana, with a choice of 20 Fender guitars which can be delivered to your room, from legendary Stratocasters, to classic Telecasters. Every guitar comes complete with a Fender Mustang floor amp and pair of Nixon headphones, to ensure maximum sound (and zero noise complaints) during jam sessions.

The lobby of the Hard Rock Hotel Daytona Beach
Mid-century modern and sleek luxury is the aesthetic inside the Hard Rock Hotel, Daytona Beach

Meanwhile, the treatments at the full-service Rock Spa & Salon are more Zeppelin than Zen. Putting a musical twist on classic treatments, the brand’s signature Rhythm & Motion menu offers the world’s first fully immersive music-centric spa treatments that use amplified vibrations, pressures and patterns – promising to take guests on a rhythmic massage journey, and leave you feeling energised and ready to rock.

Even the oceanfront  pool of this resort is musical. The pool itself even boasts an underwater sound system, and for the kids to splash in, we have just three words: guitar-shaped pool. Surrounded by luxury private cabanas, the main pool is as well suited to rocking during the day as you soak up the sun, as it is to winding down with views of the ocean and a craft cocktail at night from the al fresco bar. 

Daytona Beach is ideally located 30 minutes from Daytona International Airport and 90 minutes from Orlando International Airport – though there is also private jet access, if that’s more your style. Less than two hours from the world-famous attractions of Disney World, Universal Studios Orlando and the Kennedy Space Centre, it’s also an ideal beach base – either as a destination itself, or to add on to your Orlando theme park trip for a two-centre beach retreat. 

Ready to rock? We’ll be brushing up on our guitar skills ready for our next USA vacay…. 

Book your stay here. Flights to Daytona International from London this summer from around £587, flights to Orlando from London from around £430.

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Bex April May is an experienced entertainment, travel and lifestyle journalist based in London, writing for The Guardian, Metro, Cosmopolitan, MTV, Shortlist and more. Follow her adventures on Twitter @bexlectric and on Instagram @bexaprilmay

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