I definitely think Next.js is a great option for such websites. The main reason is that it can do static site generation with React, as well as SSR. It's really simple to set up, and very flexible.
It means you can build quickly and even if you start static, you can later add more functionality, go SSR, or even build out a full on web app without actually migrating or rewriting.
People have opinions about React, I will not go into that too much, but personally I find it a very effective and enjoyable tool to build things with.
Imo something like Next.js is easier to develop with than "just HTML" as you get templating, hot reloading in development, routing, image optimization, i18n options, and all the other goodies that come with it, or are already solved by someone. It's imo not to be underestimated how much work all the little things are when you have to do them manually.
That said, I have to agree that it's strange not to enable SSR and not to make a static export, I think it's pretty much the default. I find the export functionality one of the best things about Next.js as it makes sites blazing fast and really easy to host.
It means you can build quickly and even if you start static, you can later add more functionality, go SSR, or even build out a full on web app without actually migrating or rewriting.
People have opinions about React, I will not go into that too much, but personally I find it a very effective and enjoyable tool to build things with.
Imo something like Next.js is easier to develop with than "just HTML" as you get templating, hot reloading in development, routing, image optimization, i18n options, and all the other goodies that come with it, or are already solved by someone. It's imo not to be underestimated how much work all the little things are when you have to do them manually.
That said, I have to agree that it's strange not to enable SSR and not to make a static export, I think it's pretty much the default. I find the export functionality one of the best things about Next.js as it makes sites blazing fast and really easy to host.