Canal-front Cocoa Beach pool house--walk to beach and downtown shops & eats

Welcome to Manatee River Retreat! Owner-managed 4-bedroom, 2-bath Cocoa Beach waterfront home for up to 8 guests. Enjoy a private unheated pool, landscaped canal-front yard, dock, bright Florida room, full kitchen, Spectrum Wi-Fi, smart TV, and parking for 4 vehicles. Located in a quiet residential neighborhood and offered on a request-to-book basis for guests who will treat the home with care. The property has four bedrooms and two full bathrooms and accommodates a maximum of eight overnight guests. The large living room, central kitchen with island, dining area, and Florida room give families and small groups room to spread out while staying connected. Step outside to a private landscaped yard with a swimming pool, canal frontage, seawall, and dock. The setting is designed for relaxing outdoors and enjoying Cocoa Beach weather. Guests may use the dock, but swimming or wading in the canal is prohibited and the boat lift is not available for guest operation.

Unique benefits:
-Owner-managed and deliberate low-turnover.
-Private canal-front setting with pool, dock, landscaping and Florida room.
-Four-bedroom layout for families and small groups without high-density sleeping arrangements.
-Paddleboards and boogie boards provided
Direct-booking model with no OTA service-fee layer.
-Convenient Space Coast location for beaches, launches, Port Canaveral and Kennedy Space Center.

Rate notes:
Standard 3-night minimum. Rates vary by season. Cleaning fee and required taxes are additional. Reservations are subject to owner approval, signed rental agreement, identity verification and security-deposit authorization.
This is a request-to-book property, not an instant-book property. Because the home is in a quiet residential neighborhood, we review every reservation request before approval. The primary guest must be at least 26 years old, all overnight occupants must be registered, and the signed rental agreement and required verification must be completed before the reservation is final.

Why Kids Love It

Kids love Manatee River Retreat because there’s always something fun to do. Spend the day splashing in the private pool, watching fish and wildlife along the canal, or relaxing in the bright Florida room after a day at the beach. Nearby family favorites include Kennedy Space Center, Lighthouse Cove Adventure Golf, the Museum of Dinosaurs & Ancient Cultures, Cocoa Beach Aerial Adventures, surfing and boogie boarding, and—if the timing is right—the unforgettable experience of watching a rocket launch from Florida’s Space Coast. With plenty of room for the family to spread out, a smart TV for downtime, and the beach just minutes away, it’s an easy place for kids to make great vacation memories.

Area Information

Cocoa Beach & Florida’s Space Coast

Manatee River Retreat is located in a quiet residential canal neighborhood in Cocoa Beach, giving guests a peaceful waterfront home base while keeping the beaches, restaurants, Port Canaveral, and the attractions of Florida’s Space Coast within easy reach. Cocoa Beach combines the laid-back feel of an old Florida surf town with something you simply cannot experience in most beach destinations: rockets regularly launching into space just up the coast.

If you only do one major attraction during your stay, we recommend Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex. Plan on spending most of a day there. Our must-see stops are Space Shuttle Atlantis, the Apollo/Saturn V Center, and the Kennedy Space Center Bus Tour, which takes you behind the gates into the working spaceflight complex. One important tip: go early and take the bus tour early in your visit—the final bus departs well before the Visitor Complex closes.

Before you arrive, check whether a rocket launch is scheduled during your stay. Watching a launch from our dock is one of the experiences that makes the Space Coast truly special.

For a completely different side of Cocoa Beach, get out on the water. The Thousand Islands Conservation Area and surrounding Indian River Lagoon ecosystem are wonderful places to explore by kayak or guided eco-tour. These mangrove waterways provide opportunities to see dolphins, manatees, rays, fish, and an extraordinary variety of birds. A guided kayak trip through the Thousand Islands is one of our top recommendations for guests who want to experience the natural side of the Space Coast rather than just the beach.

If you visit in summer, consider a nighttime bioluminescence tour. From roughly June through October, portions of the Banana River, Indian River Lagoon, and Mosquito Lagoon can glow with bioluminescent organisms as kayaks and wildlife move through the water.

Of course, leave time simply to enjoy Cocoa Beach itself. Start a morning with a walk on the beach, try a surf lesson, visit the Cocoa Beach Pier, or stop at the iconic Ron Jon Surf Shop and the Florida Surf Museum. Cocoa Beach has a deep surfing culture, and even complete beginners can book private or group lessons locally.

Some of the best Cocoa Beach days are the simple ones: coffee in the morning, a few hours at the beach, lunch at a local restaurant, an afternoon by the pool, and then watching the sky over the Space Coast as the sun goes down.

Favorite Places To Eat

We have a guest notebook in our home with a list of our favorite restaurants and attractions.