St. Augustine, Florida is one of the best cities to visit any time of year with its great weather! It’s rich in history and has so much beauty to look at. It’s right on the water and just a short 45-minute drive from Jacksonville airport.
Read to the end to find out a unique and fun thing you must do in St. Augustine, that most people don’t know about!
A Little History
St. Augustine, Florida is the longest occupied European-established settlement in the continental United States, Founded in 1565 by Spanish explorer Don Pedro Menéndez de Avilés. He was acting on orders from King Phillip II of Spain to establish permanent settlement. You can see the Spanish influence all over the city.
The first Thanksgiving happened here in St. Augustine, on September 8, 1565, with Spanish settlers and the Timucua Native American tribe.
Under orders from Queen Elizabeth I of England, Sir Francis Drake attacked St. Augustine, Florida in 1586. This was a time that tensions were high between Catholic Spain and Protestant England.
Now that you know a little history, here are 17 Things you Must do when visiting St. Augustine, Florida!
- Old Town Trolley Tour Ride
The Old Town Trolley Tour has 22 hop-on and hop-off locations. They give you a great guided map of Old Town with local coupons. The trolley driver gives facts along the ride over the speakers. I was told by someone getting off the trolley not to sit in the first row of the 2nd trolley car as they were getting the exhaust fumes blown their way (I sat in the back and it was great). They have different types of tours you can choose from. There is free parking while on your ride or while visiting the Old Jail or one of their other museums on the property. I highly recommend it, as parking downtown can be difficult, especially on the weekend. And start your trolley ride early so you can hop on and off all day. *If you come during Christmas time and in January, they do special Christmas light tours.
2. Castillo de San Marcos
Fort Castillo de San Marcos National Monument is right on the water and a must to visit. It was built in 1672, replacing a previous wooden fort. Each room in the fort gives you a glimpse into what it was like during that time.
There were 2 scheduled cannon demonstrations that day up on the top of the fort. Reenactors dressed in uniforms march up the stairs to start prepping the cannon. We were instructed to cover our ears. It was really cool to see a real cannon fire. You’re allow to talk with the reenactors afterwards and ask questions or take photos.
The Castillo de San Marcos entry fee was $15. It’s wheelchair accessible on the first floor only, which is where the bathrooms and gift shop are also located. Something fun I bought myself at the giftshop was a national park passport. Each national park has their own unique stamps. I stamped mine twice.
You can also sit outside of the Fort and enjoy the scenery. You can see the Anastasia Light House from here.
There is a metered parking lot located right in front, which is also a trolley stop.
5. Flagler College
Flagler College is a beautiful place to walk on a sunny day. It used to be the Ponce De Leon Hotel, built as a luxury resort during the Gilded Age. It was completed in 1888. Fun Fact (Per the trolley guy) it houses the most Tiffany-Stained Glass in one place. It’s covered with bullet proof glass both inside and outside.
6. Lincolnville Neighborhood and Museum
Continuing on the trolley ride, we drove down the Historic Lincolnville neighborhood. I had no idea about the history here connected to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the Civil Rights Movement. How he was shuffled from house to house for his safety in 1964 while fighting for civil rights and against the violence being done to the black community. The Lincolnville Museum is a great resource on events that took place during his time and on black history here in St. Augustine.
7. The Governor’s House – Museum
The next day was rainy, and I visited the Governor’s House Museum which is free to the public. They have great pieces of art. Their security guard was kind enough to point out some features in a painting I wouldn’t have noticed. Most of the art featured were reflective of Florida and the St. Augustine area.
8. The Old Senator
The Old Senator is a huge Live Oak tree that’s more than 600 years old! There was a racoon right in the center that disappeared into the tree as I snapped this photo. I guess he’s not ready for his close-up Mr. De-vil.
9. Magnolia Avenue
I visited the street behind the Old Governor – Magnolia Avenue. National Geographic listed it as one of the most beautiful streets. It was a rainy day when I got to visit and to me the street and trees were still very beautiful.
10. Aviles Street – Oldest Street in the United States
Aviles Street is the oldest street in the United States. It’s downtown and you’ll find a lot of art galleries, cafes, and historic landmarks – like the Military Hospital Museum, Oldest House Museum, Father O’Reilly’s House Museum, Ximenez-Fatio House Museum. Aviles Street is right next St. George Street which is a pedestrian only street. There was a great art gallery in this area I visited with local glass art, and art from Dr. Suess, Picasso, Renoir, Salvador Dalie (those are in the back room) and many more.
11. Bridge of Lion
The Bridge of Lions is a must see when you’re in St. Augustine. The bridge opened in 1927 and has become an iconic place to visit. It has marble lion statues on each end that were modeled after some in Florence, Italy. It’s a drawbridge that allows vessels to pass. It connects downtown St. Augustine to Anastasia Island and it’s a beautiful walk day or night.
12. Fountain of Youth
Ponce De Leon, he sailed here from Spain in 1513 in search of the Fountain of Youth. It’s now a tourist attraction where you can visit and sample the water. If you do, let me know if you look younger after. It’s a large property and has peacocks walking around.
13. David Statue (replica)
Outside of Ripley’s Believe it or Not, is an exact replica of the Leonardo DeVinci’s David sculpture housed in Florence, Italy. Because of too many accidents from people looking while driving, they’ve covered him with some bushes.
14. Villa Zorayda Museum
The Villa Zorayda Museum is a unique museum to visit. One interesting thing you can see here is (possibly) the oldest rug. Estimated to be 2400 years old, this Egyptian rug made entirely of cat hair. It was taken from an archeology site and had been wrapped around a human foot. The rug comes with its own curse, because of course it does. But not to worry, you should be fine. They have free parking and ticket prices range from $8.52 – $15.98.
15. Augustine Lighthouse – Anastasia Island
I love lighthouses and this is the 2nd one I’ve climbed and the tallest! If you decide to go all the way up, make sure you have comfortable tennis shoes on and are in semi-good shape. There is a small bench at every other landing to take a quick break. It’s a great view at the top! By the time I made it back down, my legs were shaking. But I did earn (and purchase for $1 at the giftshop) a signed certificate that I climbed the Lighthouse. I recommend going and seeing the exhibits first before going up the lighthouse. I visited and explored the house. But after climbing the lighthouse, I didn’t have it in me to explore the rest of the grounds. That’s ok, I’ll be back!
16. Alligator Farm – Anastasia Island
Florida is known for its alligators, and you can see plenty at The St. Augustine Alligator Farm located on Anastatia Island. They have alligators from all over the world. Tickets are $35.99 for adults and $20.99 for children 12 and under.
17. The Capybara Café
In evening I wanted to do something really different and went to the Capybara Café. I had never seen one before and it was a lot of fun! You must book your ticket and time slot in advance. I arrived and they took eight of us per room and we sat down after cleaning our hands. Then they let in 3 capybaras. While a caretaker was telling us about our new friends, she handed us some kale to feed them. They made their happy sounds. We were told they loved it when you scratch their bottom and it causes their fur to puff up. We tried it but they were too busy enjoying their kale to puff up their fur. That’s ok. The owners live on the property and rescue the capybaras and other animals. You’ll see some of them while you wait to go back to meet the capybaras. This is the only Capybara Café I’ve ever heard of. This is a great thing to do at any age! And they are adorable 😊
