- That Small Town Feeling
St. Augustine is the nations oldest continually inhabited city. The area was originally inhabited by the Timucuan Native Americans before the Spanish took over and founded St. Augustine in 1565. There are homes and stores that were built over 100+ years ago and resembles a small Spanish town.
St. Augustine is a city within St. Johns County. St Johns County has about 250k people. The city of St. Augustine and surrounding areas is probably about 30-50k people. Its one of those towns that has its sleepy moments and as well the hustle and bustle during high tourism season.
Almost every time I go out; I run into someone I know, or I see a friend driving. If you live here for long enough you get to see a lot of the same faces. Edit – The day I wrote this I was driving around and ran into my buddy who does AC. Then I have to meet at one of my past clients house for a locksmith and the guy I do BJJ is the locksmith.
2. Schools
St Johns County School District is one of the Top School Districts in the State.
First in the state out of 67 districts – in total school accountability points for the past nine years and is one of only two districts in Florida with a grade of A each year since 2010. Classroom Ratios
1:15.27 (PK-3)
1:17.63 (4-8)
1:19.48 (9-12)
There are currently 20 Career Academies including Hospitality and Tourism, Engineering, Communications, Design, the Arts, Business and Finance, and Information Technology.
3. Beaches
We have 42 miles of beaches within St. Augustine for everyone to enjoy. You can drive on the beach, you can take your dog to the beach (on leash), you can even cook on the beach. Beaches are free unless you are planning to drive on it.
I definitely recommend 4wd or AWD. I have a AWD vehicle and I get a little sketched out because of the clearance on my car (about 6 inches). Most of the time I am fine; though I have had to get pushed out a couple of ruts.
4. Recreation
Aside from the obvious winter sports, St. Augustine has about everything you could want to do. Fishing, Surfing, Boating, Biking, Kayaking, Team Sports, Horse Back Riding, Golf, Skateboarding, Pickleball. We got it. I mountain Bike and was super bummed about how flat Florida is. Though I have found some great trails not too far away from me to go after.
I just picked up golfing and I am absolutely terrible. Though I am loving the little improvements you can make every time you get a whack at it.
If you are curious if they have an activity here then reach out directly and I can answer.
5. Proximity to Jacksonville and other major cities in Florida (Orlando, Daytona Beach)
Jacksonville is a growing city with an international airport. For myself personally I never go up to Jacksonville unless I am showing homes or going on date night or catching a flight.
We are about 2 hours away from Orlando. So Disney and Universal are only about 2 hours away depending on traffic. There is also a huge international airport there that will take you anywhere you need to go. We use the Orlando Airport to take flights to Puerto Rico.
Daytona Beach – Do you like Motorcycles, Daytona 500, Bars and restaurants and beachfront. Daytona is 45-1 hr away from
6. History
Like I said earlier this town is very old. Established in 1565 by the Spanish and is the nations oldest continually occupied city. There is Castillo De San Marcos, Aviles St, The Fountain of Youth, The Colonial Quarter, the Lighthouse. If you are a history buff then you will love all the stories St. Augustine has to offer.
Also being one of the oldest cities in the Nation comes with being the most haunted. There are ghost tours year round.
7. Music Scene
There was once a time when performers lined the streets of St. Augustine. They actually put a stop to that in the early 2000s; though there is still a ton of live music to be seen within St. Augustine. If you are in downtown you are going to hear live music coming from local restaurants, pubs and on the side streets you will have some street performers.
They even have a website to check
https://www.visitstaugustine.com/music/all
Not to mention you do also have the St. Augustine Amphitheater where they are bringing in some really great acts. To name a few Rebulution, Ringo Starr and his Starr Band, Leon Bridges and Styx.
8. Events and Attractions
parades, fireworks, world-class attractions, festivals, historical reenactments, road races, helicopter rides, water tours, horse-drawn carriages, live entertainment, First Coast Opera, the St. Augustine Film Festival, the nationally recognized St. Augustine Food and Wine Festival, the World Golf Hall of Fame and its IMAX theatre, farm and craft markets, a world-class fine art museum (The Lightner), antique car shows, historic walking tours, forts, oddities, pirates, a torture museum, and (in the same location) a museum of miniatures, as well as shipwrecks, a lighthouse, a wild animal sanctuary, an abundance of outstanding art galleries,
9. Weather
The weather is pretty great year round. We get a 3 season kinda feel. The worst months are July and August where the heat and humidity are at 100%. Though during those times you just hop in your car and blast the AC and barely notice it. We dont really have a change of seasons in terms of the leaves, but we do have a great winter where temps are around 75 degrees during the day and can get a little chillier at night.
After a couple years of living down here you get pretty soft. I’ve been back up north a couple times to visit friends and family and 30-40 degrees feels wayyyyy colder then I remember.
10. The Arts
Whether its the architecture or it is one of the art walks hosted weekly. St Augustine loves everything to do with the arts. Music, Dancing, Comedy, Painting, Sculptures. There is some form of art all over town. There are farmers markets all over town as well as local small businesses that sell handmade items and art.
From December and January. St. Augustine has Night of Lights. This is where the whole area of Downtown St. Augustine is lit up like a christmas tree.
