By the time 2026 settles in, the Daytona Beach area feels less like it’s reinventing itself and more like it’s carefully sharpening what it already does well. Beaches remain wide and bright, motorsports history still hums quietly in the background, but a noticeable layer of new energy is arriving—hotels rising along the shoreline, cultural landmarks being restored rather than replaced, and experiences designed to feel both contemporary and rooted. Walking along the coast or through the city center, the changes don’t shout; they reveal themselves gradually, the way a familiar place surprises you when you come back after a few years away.
Hospitality is one of the most visible shifts. In Ormond Beach, the Residence Inn by Marriott is set to open in summer 2026 as a five-story, 137-room oceanfront property designed for longer stays, the kind where mornings drift into afternoons without a schedule. Extended-stay guestrooms, an elevated outdoor pool facing the Atlantic, a lobby pool bar, meeting space, fitness center and the practical comforts of self-laundry and complimentary breakfast all point to visitors lingering rather than passing through. Farther south, the TownePlace Suites by Marriott Daytona Beach Oceanfront is expected to open in spring 2026, bringing spacious suites with full kitchens, oceanfront event space, and a bar and lounge that feels aimed as much at sunset conversations as overnight convenience. Together, they subtly signal that the area is leaning into slower, more immersive visits.
Food history gets its own revival with the return of Billy’s Tap Room along Granada Boulevard. First opened in 1922, the restaurant is one of Ormond Beach’s originals, the kind of place locals still reference in stories even when the doors are closed. Under new ownership and scheduled to reopen in 2026, Billy’s promises a refreshed interior that keeps its historic soul intact—seafood, steaks, beer and wine on tap, live entertainment, and that hard-to-manufacture feeling that comes from nearly a century of accumulated memory. It’s the sort of reopening that feels less like a business launch and more like a neighborhood ritual being restored.
Even the shoreline itself is becoming more inclusive. A newly designated Daytona Beach Dog Beach now stretches for 1.7 miles between the Williams Avenue and Seabreeze Boulevard approaches, welcoming leashed dogs during daylight hours. Rules are straightforward—leashes on, waste picked up, wildlife respected—and the atmosphere is relaxed, the sound of waves mixing with paws in sand. For visitors traveling with dogs, this addition quietly changes the rhythm of a beach day. Other dog-friendly spots remain available nearby, including Lighthouse Point Park in Ponce Inlet, Smyrna Dunes Park in New Smyrna Beach, and the Ormond Beach Dog Beach, turning the region into one of Florida’s more pet-friendly coastal destinations.
Civic spaces are also undergoing meaningful upgrades. The Ocean Center Convention Complex is in the midst of a $40 million renovation tied to its 40th anniversary, a project that feels less cosmetic than foundational. New arena seating and flooring, LED lighting, improved sound systems, refreshed greenrooms and backstage areas, and updated interior and exterior finishes are being phased in through late 2025 and early 2026. By spring, the Ocean Center plans to unveil the transformation with a community celebration, positioning the venue not just as a convention hall, but as a modern, flexible gathering place for events that range from concerts to civic milestones.
Some of the most resonant changes involve preservation. The historic Main Street Arch beach approach, originally built in 1936 as part of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal through the Works Progress Administration, has completed its restoration. Nearly 90 years old, the arch remains one of the city’s most recognizable landmarks, its curved lettering framing the ocean beyond. Seeing it renewed rather than replaced feels symbolic—Daytona Beach choosing continuity, memory, and craftsmanship over novelty for novelty’s sake.
That same respect for history defines the Jackie Robinson Ballpark renovation project. Opened in 1914 and now the oldest stadium still in use in the minor leagues, the ballpark is where Jackie Robinson played in the first integrated Major League Baseball spring training game in 1946. As a National Commemorative Site and part of the African American Civil Rights Network, it carries weight far beyond sport. The ongoing renovation, expected to be completed in early 2026, includes a multi-story player development facility, upgraded clubhouses, indoor batting cages, fitness areas, improved dugouts, accessible parking, and new team stores and seating. It’s a modernization that carefully avoids erasing the past, letting history and contemporary use coexist.
Families and culture-seekers will find something entirely different at the Museum of Arts & Sciences, where Expedition: Dinosaur is currently transporting visitors into a vividly imagined prehistoric world. Life-like animatronic dinosaurs move and roar amid immersive soundscapes and interactive stations, creating the uncanny sensation of walking among ancient giants. The exhibit runs through March 29, after which the museum will temporarily close—aside from special Planetarium events—to prepare for something even bigger: construction of a new 90,000-square-foot, $150 million museum scheduled to open in fall 2028. In a way, Expedition: Dinosaur feels like a bridge between eras, closing one chapter while previewing the scale of what’s coming next.
Getting in and out of the region continues to get easier. Daytona Beach International Airport, named Florida’s Commercial Service Airport of the Year for 2024, has expanded its connectivity with the return of JetBlue Airways, offering twice-daily nonstop flights to New York (JFK) and Boston (BOS). Alongside service from American Airlines, Avelo Airlines, Breeze Airways, and Delta, the airport’s growing route map reinforces the sense that Daytona Beach isn’t just polishing its attractions—it’s making sure access keeps pace with ambition.
Taken together, these developments don’t try to turn Daytona Beach into something it isn’t. They refine, restore, and gently extend what already draws people here: open beaches, layered history, family-friendly discovery, and the comfort of a place that knows its identity. By 2026, visitors may notice more amenities, more polish, and more choice—but the essential feeling remains familiar, like a favorite drive along the coast that somehow still finds a new view around the bend.
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