A Trip to St. Augustine, Florida - The Oldest European City in the USA
♦ Routes (free): Detailed travel itineraries in USA
Most Israeli tourists visiting Florida visit Orlando and its famous theme parks, Miami and its beaches, and sometimes even travel south to Key West at the state's southernmost tip. But Northern Florida also has much to offer travelers: St. Augustine, located about 170 km northeast of Orlando (about a one-hour and forty-minute drive) on the Atlantic coast, features long beaches and a wide strip of sand with a variety of hotels along the shore. It is a charming and picturesque tourist city considered the oldest European city in the entire USA!
While there were several settlements founded before St. Augustine, they all failed. The city was founded by a Spanish admiral named Pedro Menéndez de Avilés on August 28, 1565. This was 42 years before the English established Jamestown in Virginia and 55 years before the Pilgrims arrived at Plymouth (Massachusetts). Even 50 years earlier, in 1513, another Spaniard named Juan Ponce de León, who was then the governor of Puerto Rico, arrived at the site, but he did not establish a settlement in the area.
♥ Recommended hotels in St. Augustine:Centennial House - Saint Augustine - High-quality Bed and Breakfast in a historic house with 8 double rooms in a central location in the heart of the Old City. Some rooms feature a whirlpool tub. Free internet, parking, and breakfast. Casa Monica Resort & Spa, Autograph Collection and Spa The Casa Monica Spa Hotel in St. Augustine is a 4-star historic hotel from 1888 in an impressive preserved building in the heart of the Old City, close to all the city's museums and landmark buildings. The hotel features a lovely gallery, beautiful paintings, and authentic furniture. The hotel has a beautiful swimming pool with a jacuzzi and cabanas. Luxurious rooms with character and atmosphere. Private parking, free internet. Part of the Marriott chain. Island Shores Inn - A 3-star rated hotel with 20 rooms located near the beach, 700 meters from the famous lighthouse. Each room has a refrigerator and microwave. The hotel has an outdoor swimming pool. Free internet and parking. Holiday Inn Express and Suites Saint Augustine North - A 3-star rated hotel with 82 rooms, each with a refrigerator and microwave. Located in the city's suburbs. The hotel has an indoor swimming pool. Free breakfast, parking, and internet. Hampton Inn St. Augustine-Historic District A 3-star hotel with 53 rooms in a central city location. The hotel has a gym and a swimming pool. Free breakfast, parking, and internet.
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Attractions and Tours in St. Augustine
Tours to book from GetYourGuide.com:
Recommended guided tours to book from Viator:
Ancient Fort and Port
Three forts were built to protect the city; Castillo de San Marcos is the oldest fort in the entire USA. The city's port is also considered the first port built in the USA.
The first settlement of free blacks (non-slaves) in North America was established in St. Augustine at Fort Mose. In St. Augustine, you will also find the narrowest street in the USA, which led from the port to the Treasury House and is only 2.1 meters wide.
The Old City Center
The Old City center is relatively small and ideal for exploring on foot. It features pedestrian streets full of shops, restaurants, and galleries housed in well-preserved and restored ancient houses, historic churches, and open-air museums where you can visit and tour the historical buildings. There are many museums, such as the St. Augustine Pirate & Treasure Museum.
Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Museum, the first of its kind, was established in the city and is still active today. You can discover a two-headed calf, a man with four pupils, and various other oddities and surprises.
St. Augustine is also home to Potter's Wax Museum, the first wax museum established in the USA, containing a collection of 200 wax figures ranging from kings and presidents to movie and TV stars.
A variety of impressive museums are located in well-preserved ancient buildings: from the Lightner Museum, housed in the iconic building that once held the Alcazar Hotel, the most luxurious hotel of its time, which is now an art museum combined with galleries, shops, and a beautiful inner courtyard; to "Villa Zoraida," a luxury villa from 1883 designed under the inspiration of the Alhambra Palace in the Spanish-Moorish style, which has become a magical museum.
St. Augustine Lighthouse
Another popular tourist site in the city is the St. Augustine Lighthouse, painted with diagonal black and white stripes. The lighthouse, which is still active today, was built in 1874 and is about fifty meters high. You can climb 219 steps to its top. The magnificent view of the city, the sea, and the beaches justifies the effort! The site also features a museum located in the building that once served as the lighthouse keeper's residence, as well as a demonstration of wooden boat building using methods used in the days of the early settlers.
Archaeological Site and a Hotel Turned College
The city also features an archaeological site called "Ponce de León's Fountain of Youth," located where Ponce de León arrived with his ship and discovered a natural spring with mineral-rich water. The site also includes a planetarium, cannon firing demonstrations, and a reconstructed Indian village. It is located on a lovely street with magnolia trees covered in many ferns that create a green tunnel. The park is also known for the many peacocks that roam freely.
You can also visit the city's Authentic Old Jail, as well as Florida's first luxury hotel, whose impressive building now houses Flagler College.
Zoological Park
St. Augustine also has an alligator farm and zoological park, St. Augustine Alligator Farm and Zoological Park, popular with fans of reptiles and other animals, which was established back in 1893 and is still active today. Marine life enthusiasts will enjoy visiting a dolphin park called Marineland, where you can watch dolphin shows, feed them, swim with them, and even become a dolphin trainer for a day.
Historic Buildings
St. Augustine has an abundance of well-preserved and impressive historic Victorian buildings that have been converted into boutique hotels and especially Bed and Breakfasts, offering several rooms or suites with excellent breakfasts and other treats. Many of them are located right in the heart of the Old City, allowing you to walk to almost everywhere in the city.
Culinary
Food and drink enthusiasts will not be left disappointed. The city has a variety of restaurants, cafes, and pubs suitable for every palate and budget, as well as food tours.
Columbia Restaurant
Columbia Restaurant - St. Augustine Historic is a Spanish restaurant considered one of the best in St. Augustine.
A family tapas restaurant whose first branch in Tampa, Florida, opened back in 1905. In St. Augustine, it is located on the main pedestrian street in the heart of the Old City, in a large and impressive building with two floors and many decorated rooms, full of paintings and decorations, with a lovely patio, wonderful service, and varied and delicious food. A meal here blends perfectly with a tour of the preserved Old City, with its many European influences.
Chocolate Tour
You can tour (for a fee) a chocolate factory named Whetstone Chocolate Factory, where all production is handmade, watch the production process, and taste a variety of samples.
Winery Tour
Adjacent to the aforementioned chocolate factory is the San Sebastian Winery, where a short guided tour (free) is held and you can taste a variety of different types of wines.
Guided Tours
The most convenient and fastest way to tour the city and learn about its history and rich past is on one of the guided tours listed at the beginning of the article or a guided tour via a tourist trolley/train that stops at all points of interest in the city. Two companies travel almost identical routes and stop at the same points: Old Town Trolley Tours and Red Train Tours. With both companies, you can hop on and off throughout the day at the various stations. During the ride, the driver explains all the tourist sites and attractions you pass along the way and tells various anecdotes about the city and its history. In the evening, the city, known for being haunted by ghosts and spirits, offers a variety of ghost tours by several companies.
Golf Cart Food Tour
A guided food tour with a golf cart in St. Augustine by First Coast Cart Tours. During the ride, you see the best of St. Augustine, hear fascinating information and tips on where to visit and what to do.
Stopping at five culinary stations, in most of which you receive both food and wine. A cute little Peruvian restaurant, a wonderful Greek restaurant, a gourmet shop where we tasted different types of olive oil, balsamic, and dips, a wine shop where we tasted four types of wine accompanied by cheeses, fruits, and meats. The dessert was a multi-layered American waffle with strawberries and whipped cream accompanied by coffee or chai. In short - three hours of pampering and educational gourmet that leaves a taste for more.
