St. Augustine Florida

[KrissyCat7]

We are planning a trip to St. Augustine for Thanksgiving. Does anyone have any suggestions for lodging, things to do, places to eat?

[MandyMaloo]

Oooh! I loved St. Augustine! I used to live in Clearwater (not too far from there!)

Definatly go see Fort DeSoto (some say it's haunted?) and the "Fountain of Youth". Great things there! Also, I believe there is a Ripley's Believe It Or Not out there...it's been awhile since I was there though. We also got to go on a horse ride through historic St. Augustine and make our own candles. It was a great time.

Have fun and take lots of pictures!! :)

[ctjo]

I just went to St. Augustine 2 weeks ago. What a fun and cute town!!! We had a great time.

We stayed at the Monterey Inn, which is in town (as opposed to being by the beach). It was nice -the location was great, and the price was right. But to be honest it was a little old and kind of small. Suited our needs just fine though. There was a Hilton next door that looked nice, and there are a TON of bed & breakfasts there, which all looked great.

DH went to college in St. Augustine so I was lucky to have a great tour guide :) We did take 3 tours however - Flagler College Tour, Ghost Tour, Trolley Tour. If you want me to describe any of them, let me know.

There are a ton of great restaurants in the area. The Conch House is on the beach side, very fun atmosphere - island/like. Santa Maria is a restaurant on the dock where you can feed the fish while waiting for your dinner. A1A Ale House is a prew bub with pretty good food as well. We also had a very nice/fancy dinner one night - I forget the name the place but I can get it for you if you want.

Also, since we were visiting DH's college town, we went to a TON of bars - I can give you the low-down on them if you're interested :)

I really, really enjoyed St. Augustine and definitely want to go back some day. You'll have a great time!!

[gayle]

Oh I LOVE St. Augustine!

Be sure to eat crepes at Le Pavillon.
http://www.lepav.com/

Go to Fort Matanzas, see Flagler College, and be sure to walk Old City and go to the Fountain of Youth!

I LOVE this City, I could move there in a heartbeat.

[udsweetpea]

Another recommendation for The Conch House! We loved it!

[December27JJB]

-Beaches
-Flagler College
-Ghost Tours
-Ripley's believe it or not
-Fountain of Youth
-Tours (trolley, helecopter, or horse carriage)
-Potters Wax Museum
-Lightner Museum
-Castillo De San Marcos
-Old Florida Museum
-Santa Maria Restaurant
-Nights of Lights Festival (November 19, 2005 through Jan 31, 2006 )
-Anastasia State Park and Recreation Area (bird sanctuary and beaches)

I highly recommend staying at Casa Monica because its near everything (except the beaches) I think its right next to the Lightner Museum ( www.casamonica.com ) But there are also many, many Bed and Breakfast Inns in the Old Spanish Quarter area.

You can find more information on St Augustine at www.oldcity.com

Good Luck and Have fun! Its a beautiful city!

[KrissyCat7]

Thanks for all the advice girls...keep it coming!

We are looking at Carriage Way Bed and Breakfast although Im also thinking about a regular hotel on the beach....we are more hotl type of people....and I dont mind being a little ways away from it all.

Ctjo- Id love to hear more about the tours and the bars. We will definetly be in a few bars.

[ManteoChik]

I left some St. Augustine info in your ebride journal...

[mya174]

LOVE St. Augustine! We actually rented a house on Vilano Beach (minutes from St. Aug). It was a tiny little one bedroom right off the beach. Really cute! It costs us the same if we would have stayed in a hotel. There is a place in Vilano Beach called Caps. A wonderful place to dine on the Intercoastal Waterway. A1A Ale in St. Aug has really good bevos. A ton of good advice has been given already! Have fun! We are dying to go back again one day.

[ajb524]

I love St. Augustine! It is such a cute town. We have been to the Fountain of Youth and Ripley's. I've never been on the Ghost tour, but it's something I would like to do in the future. There are tons of cool antique store's if you are into that sort of thing.

[ctjo]

Since you asked (and I love re-living our trip!) :)

Flagler College Tour - they offer these at 10am and 2pm. Takes (I think) about 1 hour, and I think it was $6. This is not an admissions-type tour, it's just history, showing the campus, etc. (i.e., not talking about majors and whatnot). Flagler College is housed (for the most part) in what used to be the Ponce de Leon Hotel. It was a luxury hotel built by Henry Flagler. The architecture, decor, etc., is simply amazing. The dining hall (for students) used to be the restaurant of the old hotel - the ceilings are lavishly painted and the windows have (I believe) the largest collection of Tiffany stained glass anywhere. It's a very cool tour. Our tour guide was a college student, so she wasn't as slick and professional as the other tour guides we had, but still good.

Ghost Tour - This was a walking tour of the town - took place at night. Lasted almost 2 hours. The guides dress up in "period costumes" so ours was a pirate - very cool. I didn't see any ghosts (I tried!) but it was a fun tour with a lot of history and fun stories. Wear comfortable shoes - we walked in the Spanish Quarter, up to the fort, and back again, stopping at 2 cemetaries.

Trolley Tour - typical tourist-y trollies run all over St. Augustine. Stops in many places downtown, and also goes out to the Fountain of Youth, Old Jail, Ripley's museum, winery, maybe other places? Admission to many of these places is an extra cost. We bought tickets our last day - you can get on and off wherever and as many times as you like. I think the tickets are good for 2 days so I'd buy earlier if you're interested in this. Goes to all the major sites. To be honest, by the last day we had seen most of this stuff already, but it was relaxing and fun.

Bars
A1A Ale House - brew pub. Good beer - I preferred the lighter ones. Also has regular alcohol, etc. Built 10 years ago - which scared the heck out of DH because he remembers it being built and made him feel old :)

Rendezvous - this bar specializes in foreign beers - lots of beer from SO many different countries. I don't think they have anything on tap - all bottles. It's in a strip mall, which seems an unlikely place. I found the bartenders to be friendly and knowledgable about the types of beer - what was good (and not), etc. There is a beer there called Samichlaus . It is dangerous!! 14.9% alcohol. 'Nuff said...

Scarlett O'Hara's - this is your normal bar - also a restaurant. Pretty big - several different rooms, and a nice outside porch. The one night we were there they had a band.

Mill Top - small-ish bar. On top of a mill (go figure!). We went on a Sunday - it was nice and quiet.

King George - if you're looking for a dark, hole-in-the-wall bar, this is it :-) Not much to it.

Conch House also has a cool bar - there is a crow's nest you can climb up. The night we were there they had a steel drum band - it was fun.

It's just such a fun, cute town. There is so much history - I even had fun just walking around and looking at the historic buildings. I feel like there is something for everyone there - museums, good restaurants, shops, beaches, etc.

December27JJB - the Casa Monica looks BEAUTIFUL! I can't believe I forgot that place! We want to stay there next time :-)

[bellaprincess]

Hi,
I actually rent out my oceanfront condo. If you are interested PM me and I can give you info on the rate and send you the link to see some pictures of the place. :)

[IrishMeg]

I wouldn't miss:

Fountain of Youth
Ghost Tour (take it AFTER dark not before)
Old Jail
Flagler College
Walking through the old part of the city and seeing the shops
Fort Matanzas
Lighthouse
http://www.smallindulgencesdayspa.com/
We've always had good meals at the Raintree.


I think the best advice I can give about going to St. Augustine is not to plan too much. It is very relaxing and very laid back, so I'd just take it a day at a time. Do what you want, when you want to. You'll find things to do as you go and you'll find things you don't really feel like doing.

I'd also recommend getting a trolley pass. I think you mentioned that Jay hadn't been there before and for that reason I would use the trolley. It is a great way to see everything.

I'd love to hear how your trip at Thanksgiving goes there. We'll be on our honeymoon there at Thanksgiving next year. I'm wondering how crowded it will be and how the weather is. Have fun!! :)

[Brandy]

I LOVE St. Augustine! We went last year for the festival of lights and it was beautiful and so much fun (get there early! We had to park about 1.5 miles away). I really like Saltwater Cowboys and Creekside Dinery, and of course, The Colombia (it is the most beautiful one, in my opinion!). I also second the Ghost Tour, the fort, and A1A Aleworks. And if you're not going to stay at the Casa Monica, at least go by and drool :)

[HeatherFL]

I just want to write that I concur with what everyone has written! :)

The jail ghost tour was pretty cool and the carriage ride was nice. Be sure to kiss under the cabbage tree growing out of a palm (I think they were those types of trees LOL!)

A few restaurants we liked:
95 Cordova
A1A Aleworks
White Lion Restaurant & Tavern

Also, Fort DeSoto is in St. Petersburg (Tierra Verde), FL not St. Augustine. ;) The one in St. Augustine is called Fort Matanzas.

~H.

[fml]

I live in Jacksonville so, I know St. Augustine pretty well. The city of Jacksonville is a 30 minute ride up I-95 if you decide that you have exhausted all of the things to do in St. Augustine.

I'm surprised that no one has mentioned the Gypsy Cab Company. They bring in comedians weekly. I have heard good things about their restaurant as well.

The lighthouse is actually across the bridge from the Casa Monica. Climbing the stairs is worth the view.

Be forewarned that this is a very casual town. I have seen people in sneakers at 95 Cordova (which is a classy joint!)

Have a great visit.

[jeepgirl]

Awww! I love St. Augustine too, it holds some wonderful memories for me. The best one encompassed one incredibly romantic day I spent there with a guy I use to date (I'm happy to say we're still friends so it doesn't make it awful for me to go back there). I recommend taking one of those river tours - I know we really enjoyed it. Also there is a really great restaurant in the downtown area with a very lush courtyard and live music. The night we were there they were playing some really relaxing Jimmy Buffet songs. Man, I would love to go back in time! Have fun! :)

[HeatherFL]

The lighthouse is actually across the bridge from the Casa Monica. Climbing the stairs is worth the view.


SO TRUE! I decided to be "cool" and run the first set of stairs. HA! Boy were my quadriceps sore the next day! My "I did such and such number of stairs" magnet is proudly displayed, though!

~H.

[juliemag]

I just adore St. Augustine!! They have two great outlet malls right off I-95 that I love to hit. I also love to just walk around near the Spanish Fort and in the historic downtown area, right on the water. They have this great place (which I forget the name of) - but it's a traditional glass blowing place. They sell the finished pieces right there in their gallery. So cool! :D

Also, while we were there in May of 04 they were having a county fair, which was fun to walk around.

[KrissyCat7]

Thank you for all the great advice!! We will definetly take a lot of your suggestions.;)

We cannot wait to go. Ill definetly let you all know what we think when we get back.:D

[abbydog]

I'm surprised that nobody has mentioned the San Sebastian Winery. It's near downtown (where all the action is). You can go on a wine tasting, and buy some fantastic wine for cheap. Try the Vintner's Red. My family orders it by the case- my fave red for sure and only about $7/bottle!

Also, Harry's restaurant is a fun sort of cajun/seafod type place. Lots of evenings they have live music in the courtyard, which is really fun at night.

Kilwin's Ice cream parlor is awesome! I think there are 2 locations? Yhey have fantastic homemade ice cream and tons of great handmade chocolates & treats.

I also second (third?) the suggestions of trolley tours, Santa Maria, A1A Aleworks, and Ripley's Museum.

Have fun! I'm jealous :p !

[akacharlotte]

3rd Harry's Restaurant. If Brad Payne is still in the area and playing definitely check him out wherever he is. He does a wonderful rendition of Wild Horses. I loved Harry's so much I ate there lunch and dinner for 3 days. Their lobster fondue is fabulous!!!

I stayed at B&B in downtown but I can't remember the name. I think it was a sister B&B to Casa. Price was good, rooms were small but lovely-whirpool tubs in almost every room.

San Sebastian-very fun! I got drunk and had to get to Harry's for food!

[Delaney21]

bump!

We are going to St. Augustine for Easter this year and I'm definitely looking forward to it now that I see this thread!