Travel Guide to Florida

Rediscover Florida’s Historic Coast

- BY VANESSA CACERES

Look no further than Northeast Florida’s Historic Coast for family fun and culinary adventure in America’s oldest city, St. Augustine. After all, the St. Augustine and the Ponte Vedra Beach area has been welcoming visitors for hundreds of years. There’s something for everyone, including 42 miles of Atlantic beaches, historical charm and renowned golf courses.

SEE AND DO

Talk about a view from the top. The haunted St. Augustine Lighthouse and Maritime Museum offers breathtaki­ng views from the top, which you can experience day or night on moonlight tours. It features a Maritime

Archaeolog­y & Education Center along with a conservati­on lab, research library, and X-ray room, all of which provide a more interactiv­e experience of local history.

Now celebratin­g its 125th anniversar­y, the St. Augustine Alligator Farm Zoological Park gets you up close, but not too personal, with alligators, crocodiles, snakes and birds. The park now has its Oasis on the Nile feeding shows, with two-level crocodile viewing and exhibits of Egyptian artifacts. There’s also the new Hoffman’s Two-Toed Sloth Exhibit featuring Teddy and Grizzly. Feed your new sloth pals a piece of fruit or vegetables while you discover more about sloth conservati­on.

Ready for some oddities? Then don’t miss the Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Odditorium. A collection of the bizarre and mysterious, the Odditorium’s newest addition is the Jungle Room, where guests can play hands-on games or create their own jungle apparel while dancing to jungle sounds and tones. Ripley’s also has Red Train tours, ghost train tours and mini golf.

Get behind the scenes—or, actually, behind the seas—with the Behind the Seas Park Pass at Marineland Dolphin Adventure, which is now part of Dolphin Discovery. Behind the Seas allows guests to go “below the decks” through the history of Marineland and see hundreds of exotic species.

From late November to Feb. 2, St. Augustine shows off its beauty in Nights of Lights, during which millions of lights adorn the city’s buildings, homes and parks. The lights are over the Bridge of Lions, and cover St. Augustine’s Spanish Colonial architectu­re, sidewalks, rooftops, hotels and public spaces, for a 20-block light show. Now in its 26th year, last year Nights of Lights was listed by National Geographic among the top 10 holiday light displays from around the world.

DINE AND PLAY

Recently Named No. 1 Foodie Town in the South by Southern Living magazine, St. Augustine visitors are making food adventures a growing part of their stay. Restaurant­s include influences from Spain, France, Italy and Greece, reflecting the area’s history. Add spice to your life with the locally grown datil pepper, found in many local restaurant­s’ prepared dishes. It’s hot stuff!

The St. Augustine Distillery uses Floridagro­wn ingredient­s to make small-batch whiskey, rum, vodka and other drinks. Tours and free samples are available. Newer wine rooms around town include the Carrera Wine Cellar (featuring themed wine classes), Casa de Vino 57, and the St. George Inn wine bar, Bin 39. Craft beer tap rooms in town include Dog Rose Brewing Co., Ancient City Brewing, Old Coast Ales, and Bog Brewing Company.

For drinks with a view, the Tini Martini Bar on the front veranda of the Casablanca Inn has a full martini and bar selection and provides a scenic view of the Matanzas River and the Bridge of Lions. Nearby, Prohibitio­n Kitchen on St. George Street features flapper dresses, speakeasie­s, moonshine and swing.

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CARRIAGES ON KING STREET • FLORIDASHI­STORICCOAS­T.COM/STACEY SATHER
 ??  ?? ST. AUGUSTINE DISTILLERY • FLORIDASHI­STORICCOAS­T.COM/STACEY SATHER
ST. AUGUSTINE DISTILLERY • FLORIDASHI­STORICCOAS­T.COM/STACEY SATHER
 ??  ?? ST. AUGUSTINE LIGHTHOUSE & MUSEUM • ST. AUGUSTINE, PONTE VEDRA & THE BEACHES CVB
ST. AUGUSTINE LIGHTHOUSE & MUSEUM • ST. AUGUSTINE, PONTE VEDRA & THE BEACHES CVB

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