Things to do in St Augustine Florida

St. Augustine is probably one of the most famous “small” cities in America. This comes partly from the fact that it’s the oldest city in America, partly because certain celebrities own houses there, and partly because it’s one of the most vibrant places you will ever discover. No matter when you visit, there are scores of people having a good time in the many bars and restaurants in the downtown area, in the unique and local shops down St. George’s street, and in the many historical monuments scattered around.

Getting Around St. Augustine

When it comes to transportation, downtown St. Augustine is perfect for walking around. You’ll only need to walk a mile or two in order to see most attractions/places of interest. In addition to walking, we’ve also seen low-lying buggies that some tourists use, as well as a trolley tour.

Pro tip: metered parking is free on Sundays.

Things to do in St. Augustine

Being a historic city, St. Augustine has many historical attractions to check out, as well as excellent restaurants and a lot of bars with live music that you will hear deep into the night!

Castillo de San Marcos

Great for: Kids, Couples, History, Families
Address: 1 S Castillo Dr, St. Augustine, FL 32084
Website: https://www.nps.gov/casa/index.htm
Cost: Free for walking around the fort on the outside; $15 for inside tour
Hours: 9am to 5pm

This is by far the most famous attraction in St. Augustine, and that’s not such a controversial statement if you actually see it in person for the first time. It’s a beautiful, large fortress that sits on the water, overlooking the Matanzas Bay. You can walk the grounds of the fort for free, but you can also take an inside tour for $15.

Flagler College

Great for: Kids, Couples, History, Families
Address: 74 King St, St. Augustine, FL 32084
Website: https://legacy.flagler.edu/pages/tours
Cost: $14 for adults

Named after Henry Flagler, this was once the famed Ponce De Leon Hotel, a playground for the rich. It’s a fabulous architectural structure, externally as well as internally. We have never done the actual tour, because just seeing the building from the outside and then the lobby inside is enough for a nice experience.

Lightner Museum

Great for: Kids, Couples, History, Families
Address: 75 King St, St. Augustine, FL 32084
Website: https://lightnermuseum.org/
Cost: $15 for adults
Hours: Every day, 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Right across the street from Flagler College is the Lightner Museum, which, you guessed it, was also once a very famous resort for the extremely rich, complete with an indoor pool (a first of its kind at the time). It was called the Alcazar Hotel and was also built by Henry Flagler. The tour is well worth the money, as you can easily spend a few hours looking at all the historic artifacts.

Villa Zorayda

Great for: Kids, Couples, History, Families
Address: 83 King St, St. Augustine, FL 32084
Website: https://villazorayda.com/
Cost: $12 for adults
Hours: Monday-Saturday, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Another fantastic example of St. Augustine’s Moorish Spanish Revival architecture, this was built as a private residence to mirror aspects of the world-famous Alhambra Palace in Granada, Spain. It’s located down the street from the Lightner/Flagler behemoths, and is a little smaller, but still a great slice of history to explore.

Fountain of Youth Archaeological Park

Great for: Kids, Couples, History, Families
Address: 11 Magnolia Ave, St. Augustine, FL 32084
Website: https://www.fountainofyouthflorida.com/
Cost: $18 for adults
Hours: Monday-Sunday, 9am – 6pm

Named after the infamous water source that gives one immortality, this is actually thought to be the first landing place of Ponce De Leon in Florida. It also contains a well that is supposedly the real fountain of youth!

The park itself is perhaps a little overpriced at $18 per adult, but if you wish to learn and walk on a slice of Florida history, it’s a worthy visit.

Colonial Quarter

Great for: Kids, Couples, History, Families
Address: 43 St George St, St. Augustine, FL 32084
Website: https://colonialquarter.com/
Cost: $14 for adults, $8 for children
Hours: 10AM – 5PM

The Colonial Quarter is kind of like a mini theme park within the downtown area. It has several restaurants, a live music area, a cool gift shop, and a history area where you can view a musket firing demonstration, learn about blacksmiths, and take a tour of the history of St. Augustine.

Medieval Torture Museum

Great for: Couples, History, Entertainment
Address: 100 St George St, St. Augustine, FL 32084
Website: https://medievaltorturemuseum.com/
Cost: $14 for adults
Hours: Monday-Sunday, 10AM – 10PM

I can safely say that this is definitely not for kids! It’s a very cool museum for those that can stomach all the various torture instruments that were used in the middle ages. Some of them are funny (chastity belts and…other types of belts), but most are pretty violent and…unique in their violence.

There is also a little gift shop with some quirky items that are worth checking out. We weren’t sure what to expect when we visited, but found it to be interesting and entertaining, even if some exhibits made us a little queasy!

Ripley’s Believe it Or Not!

Great for: Kids, Couples, History, Families
Address: 19 San Marco Ave, St. Augustine, FL 32084
Website: http://www.thepiratemuseum.com/
Cost: $15 for adults
Hours: Monday to Sunday, 10AM to 5PM

It’s a little strange to find a Ripley’s in the middle of all the rich history that St. Augustine has to offer, but while the main museum doesn’t really contain any St. Augustine-related exhibits, they do offer a haunted house tour of the infamous Castle Warden.

Pirate and Treasure Museum

Great for: Kids, Couples, History, Families
Address: 12 S Castillo Dr, St. Augustine, FL 32084
Website: http://www.thepiratemuseum.com/
Cost: $15 for adults, $8 for kids
Hours: Monday to Sunday, 10AM to 7PM

St. Augustine has an infamous history with pirates landing on their shores and causing havoc, so it’s only natural that they would have a museum to exhibit this history.

With that said, this is less a museum than a kitschy attraction aimed mainly at kids, so don’t expect to learn a whole lot about the history of piracy here. There are some cool exhibits, including interactive ones that let you learn a little but about some famous pirates, as well as some real-life treasures that have been pulled out of wrecks by modern-day treasure hunters.

Spanish Military Hospital

Great for: Kids, Couples, Families
Address: 3 Aviles St, St. Augustine, FL 32084
Website: https://www.smhmuseum.com/
Cost: $10.50 for adult, $5.50 for kids
Hours: Monday to Sunday, 9AM to 5PM

If you ever wanted to know how surgeries and treatments worked in the 18th century, then the Spanish Military Hospital is a great place to visit. You will be taken on a short, but informative tour where you will get to see and touch the surgery tools that were used to perform

St George’s Street

This is the most famous street in St. Augustine, and one of the most visited in all of Florida. It’s the perfect place to stroll and people watch, as well as go to any number of great places to eat, listen to live music, visit a torture museum, or shop the quirky stores.

Our favorite place to eat is Columbia, a fantastic restaurant for Spanish food, and we also love getting fridge magnets of U.S. states at Magnet Force.

St. Augustine Alligator Farm

Great for: Kids, Couples, Families
Address: 999 Anastasia Blvd, St. Augustine, FL 32080
Website: https://www.alligatorfarm.com/
Cost: $28 for adults, $17 for kids
Hours: Monday to Sunday, 9AM to 5PM

Alligators are everywhere in Florida, in lakes, rivers, even neighborhood ponds! So there is no shortage of places that put them on display so that people can see these incredible predators up close and personal.

The St. Augustine Alligator Farm is one of the biggest such places in Florida, but in addition to gator watching, it also offers an obstacle course where you will have a chance to zip-line right over the alligators themselves!

St Augustine Beach and Anastasia Island

Located within Anastasia Island, St Augustine Beach is a typical Florida beach, with a nice pier, seafood restaurants, and some nearby nature trails. Nice place to hang out after a long day (or week!) at work.

Nights of Lights

Nights of Lights is an annual celebration of the holidays, in which the streets of downtown St. Augustine are lit up with thousands of lights, which makes everything glow beautifully, and turns St. Augustine into an even cooler place to visit at night than it already is.

It’s great fun to walk around, but be prepared for huge crowds. We’ve been to a few over the years, and frequently get stuck in traffic jams after 7pm.

St. Augustine Wild Reserve

Great for: Kids, Couples, Families
Address: 5190 Farm Creek Rd, St. Augustine, FL 32092
Website: https://www.sawildreserve.org/
Cost: $30 for adults, $20 for children
Hours: Tours are every Monday/Wednesday/Saturday, 11AM and 2PM

We did a full review of the St. Augustine Wild Reserve here, so feel free to check that out.

This place has a nice variety of animals, but their main focus is ‘big cats’, like lions, tigers, pumas, and even a jaguar. They take in animals that are either injured or have no other home. Definitely worth a visit to see these amazing animals up close.