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Planning a trip to St. Augustine
Getting to St. Augustine
The Daytona Beach International Airport is about an hour’s drive south of St. Augustine, but service is more frequent—and fares usually lower—at Jacksonville International Airport, about the same distance north.Getting Around St. Augustine and Info on Guided Tours of the City
Once you’ve parked at the visitor center, you can walk or take one of the sightseeing trolleys, trains, or horse-drawn carriages around the historic district. The trolleys and trains follow 7-mile routes, stopping at the visitor center and at or near most attractions between 8:30am and 5pm daily. You can get off at any stop, visit the attraction, and step aboard the next vehicle that comes along about every 20 minutes. If you don’t get off at any attractions, it takes about 1 hour and 10 minutes to complete the tour. The vehicles don’t all go to the same sights, so speak with their agents at the visitor center in order to pick the right one for you. You can buy tickets, as well as discounted tickets to some attractions, at the visitor center or from the drivers.Old Town Trolley Tours (tel. 844/388-6452) takes you on an hour tour with more than 20 stops at the historic district and its most famous sites. Best of all, you can hop on and off at your leisure all day. Tickets include admission to St. Augustine History Museum, and rides on a free beach shuttle which picks up and drops off passengers at various resorts and attractions around town. The tour costs $45 for adults, $24 for kids 4 to 12. Rates are cheaper online.
Ripley’s Red Train Tours, 19 San Marco Ave., (tel. 800/226-904/824-1606) is a fully narrated 7.5-mile, hour tour on red open-air trains that are small enough to go down more of the narrow historic-district streets. Tickets are $23.99 for adults, $12.99 for kids 6 to 12. They also offer package tickets that include admission to the Ripley’s Odditorium, Haunted Castle and mini golf course, and rates are cheaper online.
You may want to see the sights by horse-drawn carriage. Country Carriages (tel. 904/669-8619) offer slow-paced, entertaining, driver-narrated 45-minute rides past major landmarks and attractions are offered from 8am to midnight. There is also a cool, spooky ghost ride from 6pm to closing every night. Carriage tours cost $35 for adults, $12 for kids 5 to 11.
For a tasty tour of St. Augustine, City Walks Food & Wine Tours (tel. 904/925-0087) has a 3+ hour, all-inclusive walking, eating and drinking tour exploring historical and cultural influences on St. Aug cuisine from tapas to desserts. The tour is limited 10 guests per day and costs $149 per person, which includes alcoholic beverages, taxes, and tips.
Tour Saint Augustine (tel. 904/825-0087), offers ghost tours, historic tours, and even free tours around the historic area, all by foot. Rates vary based on the number of people in the group.
You can also search for old spirits with the nightly Ghost Tours of St. Augustine, 4 Granada St., (tel. 904/829-1122), during which guides in period dress lead visitors on 75-minute tours through the back alleys and off the beaten path haunts of the historic district or to the St. Augustine Lighthouse. Tickets are $25 person; a Creepy Crawl Haunted Pub Tour and Paranormal Investigation is a two-hour tour and includes a welcome drink and use of EMF meters to detect the presence of otherworldly types, is also $25 per person. They also offer paranormal tours to old forts, a ghost trolley tour, and private tours. Inside Tip: They offer a FREE tour every Sunday at 2pm—the Mystery, Mayhem, and True Crime tour is a one-hour walking tour of the history’s more sordid past. For a paranormal investigation of the Old Jail after dark, Ghosts & Gravestones, 108 Sea Grove Main St., (tel. 866/955-6101) offers a very creepy 2-and-a-half-hour tour with the latest in ghost-hunting equipment, limited to just 12 people. Children are not allowed on this tour. Cost is $101 per person.
The Sunshine Bus Company (tel. 904/823-4816) operates public bus routes Monday through Saturday from 6am to 7pm. The line runs between the St. Augustine Airport on U.S. 1 and the historic district via San Marco Avenue and the Greyhound bus terminal on Malaga Street. Rides cost $2 for adults, $1 for seniors. All-day tickets are $4 for adults and $2 for seniors. Children 6 and under ride free.
For a taxi, reach out to Salty Sea (tel. 904/788-0518).
Solano Cycle, 61 San Marco Ave., at Locust Avenue, 2 blocks north of the visitor center (tel. 904/825-6766), rents bicycles and scooters. Beach cruisers cost $18 for 24 hours, while scooters are $75 for a single passenger and $80 for two. Open daily from 10am to 6pm.
Visitor Information for St. Augustine, Florida
You’ll find good info at the Florida’s Historic Coast website, which covers St. Augustine and Ponte Vedra, and Visit St. Augustine.The St. Augustine Visitor Information Center has three offices: at 10 S. Castillo Dr., at San Marco Avenue, 10 W. Castillo Dr. just off U.S. 1 and opposite the Castillo de San Marcos National Monument. All three sell tickets for the sightseeing trains and trolleys, which include discounted admissions to the attractions. The centers are open Monday through Saturday from 8:30am to 5:30pm.
Getting Around
City Layout
The oldest city isn’t exactly the largest. At just 12 square miles, St. Augustine is like a CliffsNotes version of history, with everything compacted in the city’s pride and joy—the historic district. St. George Street, from King Street north to the Old City Gate (at Orange St.), is the heart of the historic district. Lined with restaurants and boutiques selling everything from T-shirts to antiques, these 4 blocks get the lion’s share of the town’s tourists. You’ll have much less company if you poke around the narrow streets of the primarily residential neighborhood south of King Street. Most of the town’s attractions do not have guided tours, but many do have docents on hand to answer questions.
Getting Around
Once you’ve parked at the visitor center (cost is $10, but worth it because parking is a premium here), you can walk or take one of the sightseeing trolleys, trains, or horse-drawn carriages around the historic district. The trolleys and trains follow 7-mile routes, stopping at the visitor center and at or near most attractions daily between 8:30am and 5pm. You can get off at any stop, visit the attraction, and step aboard the next vehicle that comes along (about every 20 min.). If you don’t get off at any attractions, it takes about 1 hour and 10 minutes to complete the tour. The vehicles don’t all go to the same sights, so speak with their agents at the visitor center in order to pick the right one for you. You can buy tickets, as well as discounted tickets to some attractions, at the visitor center or from the drivers.
By Bus -- The Sunshine Bus Company (tel. 904/823-4816; www.sunshinebus.net) operates public bus routes Monday through Saturday from 6am to 7pm. The line runs between the St. Augustine Airport on U.S. 1 and the historic district via San Marco Avenue and the Greyhound bus terminal on Malaga Street. Rides cost $1 per person. All-day tickets are $3 for adults and $1.50 for seniors. Call for the schedule.
By Taxi -- For a taxi, call Yellow Cab (tel. 904/824-6888).
By Bike or Scooter -- Solano Cycle, 61 San Marco Ave., at Locust Avenue, 2 blocks north of the visitor center (tel. 904/825-6766; www.solanocycle.com), rents bicycles and scooters. Bikes cost $18 a day, while scooters are $75 for a single passenger and $80 for two. Open daily 10am to 6pm.
Getting There
By Plane -- The Daytona Beach International Airport is about an hour’s drive south of St. Augustine, but service is more frequent—and fares usually lower—at Jacksonville International Airport, about the same distance north.
By Car -- The drive is a straight shot on 1-95.
By Train -- The nearest Amtrak (tel. 800/872-7245; www.amtrak.com) is at Palatka, 220 N. 11th St. (platform only), though this is still 29 miles southwest of downtown St. Augustine. Buses sometimes make the connection, but you must check in advance.
By Bus -- Greyhound connects St. Augustine with the Amtrak train station at Palatka (45 min.) twice a day; and Daytona Beach, Orlando, and even Savannah (1 daily; 5 hr.), via Brunswick. Buses drop off at 1 Castillo Dr., right in the heart of St. Augustine.
