VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. – Volusia County Beach Safety has a new tool to make your next trip to the beach stress-free.

You can find where to park, how to access the beach and find a lifeguard— all on your phone before even reaching the coast thanks to the Volusia Beaches app. 

For Tony Moore, nothing says family vacation like views of the water and sand at his toes, which is why he was up early Friday to claim a prime spot at the beach.

“We just wanted to get away and we love Daytona so that is why we are here,” Moore said.

He shared that he’s been coming to Daytona Beach for decades and knows first-hand how difficult traffic can be when trying to make it to the shore during the summer.

“It is almost impossible,” Moore said. “I know when we pulled in last night cars were bumper-to-bumper all the way in. It was just a big traffic jam.”

That’s why Captain Tamra Malphurs of Volusia County Beach Safety said the county has been working for the last few months to revamp the Volusia Beach app.

“we’ve got our live beach cams, our beach conditions, our active lifeguards,” Malphurs said, while scrolling through the app’s features.  

Malphurs said the app is now more user-friendly and packed with real-time information to give locals and tourists alike better access to all 47 miles of Volusia’s beaches. The app can tell you everything from where the nearest bathroom is to where to find off-beach parking.

“You can sign up for the ramp access notification, you can literally be on the highway and get an update on a ramp closure and then you can look for alternative parking or an alternative beach access ramp to drive on,” Malphurs said.  “This will help us with some back ups you know on those beach access ramps during those busy weekends and holidays and also it helps the cities as well with those traffic back ups.”

While it will help stop congestion, it can enhance beach safety too.

“We always tell people the most important thing when coming to the beach is find an open life guard tower and they can do that before  they even leave their house,” Malphurs said.

The update couldn’t have come at a better time. According to AAA, three-quarters of Floridians feel more comfortable traveling now than they did three months ago, with 33% of those polled saying they planned to visit a beach destination by the end of the summer.

For Moore, this app is a welcome surprise.

“well I think it is a great resource. You can tell what areas open, what is the easiest route to get into the beach,” Moore said. “I will definitely use it first thing tomorrow morning.”

You can download the Volusia Beach app for free in Apple’s app store or on Google Play for Androids.