The closest beaches to Orlando are Daytona Beach and Cocoa Beach, so they naturally attract visitors who come to see the Orlando attractions.

If you've read my previous few blog entries you already know that I spent most of Memorial Day Weekend on Daytona Beach shooting a new video about all the great activities available to visitors right on the sandy beaches of Daytona. While there, I was fortunate to be able to stay at the fabulous Hilton Daytona Beach Oceanfront Resort.

I won't bother to complain about having to WORK on a holiday weekend, since I know you won't have much sympathy for me, so I'll just get right to the point. I'm a beach expert, not an expert hotel reviewer, but I want to give you some of my impressions of the Hilton, which has way more amenities than I was able to take advantage of during my 2-night stay.

The Hilton Daytona is right on the beach. Not across the street. Not two blocks away. Right on the sand. If you want a beach vacation, you need a hotel right on the beach. You want to be able to walk to the window and see sand and water. Anything else falls short.

Located just a short walk from the Daytona Beach Main Street Pier, the Hilton looms large on the beach. It has over 700 newly renovated rooms, and I found mine spotlessly clean with an air conditioner that kept me really cool, when I used it, that is. I preferred to turn the air off and enjoy the ocean breezes that kept me comfortably cool all night.

Let's face it, beach hotels are tough to maintain. Every guest has wet bathing suits, wet towels, sandy feet, and that moist salt air is tough on buildings and equipment. I'm sure if you've spent any time researching hotels on TripAdvisor or the like, you've heard more than one complaint about various maintenance related peeves. It can be a daunting task to select a hotel over the internet.

I had no such complaints at the Hilton. With two granite-topped sinks, one in the bathroom and one just outside, I knew I wasn't at a Motel 6. The bathroom sparkled, the towels were new and HUGE and fluffy, the water pressure was great and the tub drained. Carpets were plush and clean; bed linens, soft and luxurious; noise level, quiet after 10 p.m.; the view, Atlantic Ocean and the Pier.

All hallways are interior and air-conditioned and the elevators are prompt, and come with a security feature: you have to insert a room key-card or the elevator won't take you up. Nice.

The Hilton has eight restaurants and a small deli. I usually grabbed a dish of fruit, a bagel, and some juice from the Atlantic Deli for breakfast as I'm always in a hurry to get out on the beach. But Doc Bales' Grill had a fantastic breakfast menu and plenty of takers luxuriating in an unhurried morning meal. You may order from the menu or try the buffet.

I had dinner one night at Doc Bales. I chose the Prime Rib buffet, but since I'm not a beef eater, I went straight for the iced peel-and-eat shrimp, which were the size of small lobsters! There was so much food I hardly knew where to go next (and frankly, after I raided the shrimp, there wasn't much room left on my plate).

Outside, a wide sidewalk runs parallel to and above the beach for the entire length of the Hilton and Oceanwalk complex. The Ocean Walk shops are part of this mega-beach-hotel complex and offer everything from the Bubba Gump Shrimp Company restaurant with lighted drinks to a movie theater, Johnny Rockets, Cold Stone Creamery, a surf shop, Quiznos, Starbucks, and the Mai Tai Bar, just to name a few of the local merchants.

I could go on and on, but this is a blog, not a book, so I'll end by saying that the Hilton Daytona is a big beautiful hotel on a big beautiful beach and will not disappoint. And just because it is a luxury hotel doesn't mean there isn't a room package that will fit your budget.

There's nothing like the sound of the Atlantic surf to lull you off to sleep at night, or a pink sunrise over the ocean to greet you in the morning.