St. Augustine, FL--what's so special? A LOT!

This weekend we went away to St. Augustine, FL, a mere 195 miles northeast of Tampa.  I won't bore you with all the historical details (just enough), but for those who don't know, St. Augustine is the oldest continuously occupied European-established city and port in the continental US.  The Smithsonian is affiliated with many of the sites in St. Augustine.  That's right, Florida does indeed have history and culture--who knew?


We stayed over Saturday night at the Hilton Bayfront.  The hotel wasn't exceptional in terms of room space or aesthetics, but the location was top notch as it was right in the center of the city.  Location was key, as we finally got our stroller last week (City Elite--LOVE IT!  Thanks Grandma Ca and Grandpa S) and we were excited to take it for a spin.  It's also a very easily walkable city, so we were excited not to have to drive around everywhere.  Given that the city is on the water, the breeze made the heat tolerable. 

Here was our itinerary....

• I could write a paragraph about lunch, but I'll spare you.  We ate at O'Steen's.  That place is not to be missed!  We had the best fried shrimp we've ever had and the service and staff were wonderful, no question it was worth the wait.  The waits can be an hour or longer, but we put our name down and went down the road to see...

• The Lighthouse & Museum.  St. Augustine is the site of the oldest aid to navigation in North America. The original watchtower became Florida's first lighthouse in 1824.  However, by 1870, the tower was threatened by shoreline erosion and construction began on the current lighthouse. The new tower was completed in 1874. The old tower succumbed to the sea during a storm in 1880.  Papa Lusty climbed to the top of the tower (way to work off the fried shrimp to come!) while AML jr and I watched from below and took pictures.   

 

• After lunch, we headed to the stunning Flagler College, a four year college located in the former Ponce de León Hotel.  

 

• Next we walked across the street to the Lightner Museum and St. Augustine City Hall.  This was definitely the best looking city hall I've ever seen, and the building was equipped with a wedding event planning business and chapel--one stop marriage shop is an understatement!
• Next we walked around and checked out the various restaurants, shops, etc.  We enjoyed an afternoon popsicle snack from the Hyppo.  

 

• Then we drove to the Fountain of Youth Archeological Park, and it was pretty cool drinking from the fountain with AML jr in tow, plus we heard a real cannon go off and learned about the routes of Spanish exploration in the New World.  

 

• The last stop of the day was the Castillo de San Marcos, which was built to protect and defend Spain’s claims in the New World.
• We ended the day with a casual dinner at Scarlett O'Hara's.  It was basic bar food, but good.  We wanted to go to A1A Ale Works (a family friend recommended it), but we couldn't get in around 7ish.  

It was a busy day, but a fun and memorable one for sure.  I highly recommend St. Augustine for a day or weekend trip.  If you're looking for something fancier for hotel, try the Casa Monica Hotel, but be prepared to pay up.   For an upscale dinner, the restaurant in that hotel called 95 Cordova gets good reviews, as does Old City House Inn & Restaurant down the street.