Great American Roadtrips – Florida’s A1A – St. Augustine

In this post, the next in our series about Florida’s A1A Scenic and Historic Byway, we’re taking a look at St. Augustine, and some of the things that you can see and do in the city if you stop off there during your Florida car hire holiday.

St. Augustine is the oldest permanent settlement in North America. It was established by the first Governor of Florida, Don Pedro Menendez de Aviles in 1565. In 1885, Henry Flagler, who had co-founded the Standard Oil Company with John D. Rockefeller, moved to St. Augustine and began to develop the city as a luxurious holiday resort for the rich and famous.

The city is still a popular tourist destination and has many historic sites and buildings for you to visit. It also has some great hotels and restaurants, so it’s worth spending a few days exploring St. Augustine before heading back onto the A1A in your hire car.

One of the best ways in which to get your bearings when you arrive in St. Augustine is to take an organised tour of the city. There are plenty of different tours to choose from: you could take an Old Town Trolley Tour, climb aboard one of the Ripley’s  Sightseeing Trains, or even take a helicopter tour. You could also explore some of the allegedly haunted locations in St.Augustine on a ghost tour, relax on a scenic cruise or head off on a historical pub crawl.

St. Augustine’s main landmarks include the St. Augustine Lighthouse, which was constructed between 1871 and 1874. It is still a working lighthouse, and you can take a tour of it and climb the 219 steps to the observation deck. You can also visit the museum, which is situated in the old Keeper’s House and contains exhibits relating to the history of St. Augustine, the lighthouse and the US Coast Guard, as well as collections of shipwreck artifacts and old photographs.

Other historic sites in and around St. Augustine include: the Castillo de San Marcos, the only surviving 17th century fort in North America; Fort Matanzas, which was designed to block the southern approach to the city and which was completed in 1742; and Fort Mose, which was the first free community of ex-slaves to be founded in the USA.

You can also explore Old St. Augustine Village, where you can see nine historic houses and the site on which the 1863 Emancipation Proclamation was made, which resulted in all of Florida’s slaves being freed. Another of St. Augustine’s many attractions is The Oldest House Museum Complex, where you can see the oldest surviving colonial house in Florida and visit the Mauncy Museum in order to learn more about it.

Other museums in St. Augustine include the Colonial Spanish Quarter Museum and Ripley’s Believe It or Not, and you can also take a tour of the Old St. Johns County Jail.

If you’re travelling with children, head for the Ponce de Leon’s Fountain of Youth Archaeological Park (11 Magnolia Avenue, St. Augustine). You can see a landmark cross made from coquina shells, which is believed to have been placed there by Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leon when he discovered Florida in 1513.

Although Ponce de Leon actually set off on his voyage in order to discover new lands on the orders of King Ferdinand II of Aragon, legend has it that the explorer discovered Florida whilst searching for the Fountain of Youth, a mythical spring. Anyone drinking from the Fountain of Youth was believed to have their youth restored. When Dr Louella Day McConnell bought the land which has now become the archaeological park in 1901, she discovered a natural spring on her property and charged people to drink the waters. You can still drink a glass of water from the spring today.

Other attractions in the Ponce de Leon’s Fountain of Youth Archaeological Park include a planetarium, a Timucua Indian Exhibit, the Discovery Globe and a model of a wrecked Spanish ship. There are also 15 acres of grounds to explore and you can park your Florida hire car in the car park free of charge.

The St. Augustine Alligator Farm Zoological Park (999 Anastasia Boulevard, St. Augustine) is another popular family attraction. It’s currently the only place in the world where you can see all of the 23 recognized species of crocodilians on display, and the park is also home to snakes, a Komodo Dragon, Albino Alligators, monkeys and exotic birds. You won’t be able to miss Maximo, the park’s largest resident, a 15 ft 3 inch long salt-water crocodile, which weighs 1250 pounds. You can also see a number of wildlife shows and watch the alligators being fed.

St. Augustine has a wide range of shops, with everything from malls, such as St. Augustine Premium Outlets, to stores selling antiques and second-hand books. You’ll also find specialist shops, such as TeepeeTown, Heavenly Presents and The Pearl Shop, and there are plenty of bars, clubs and restaurants in the city.

Once you’ve explored St. Augustine, you can continue along the A1A in your hire car. In the next post in the series, we’ll be looking at some more things that you can see and do along the way.

Image: Daniel Schwen

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