St. Augustine Travel Essentials

• St. Augustine’s climate is subtropical with hot and humid summers and cold to mild winters. It shares Florida’s temperate weather where temperatures vary between 64°F in winter and 91°F in summer.
• The wet season in St. Augustine is May–October and the highest rainfall occurs from June through September.
• August is the hottest month of the year when temperatures can reach up to 105-115°F. Daily thunderstorms are common throughout the summer months.
• March–May is the best time to visit St. Augustine when the temperature is comfortable and the city highlights spring events such as the Rhythm & Ribs Festival. Expect the summer crowds between June and August – it’s best to book way ahead due to higher rates and prices. The city offers memorable winter holiday sights such as the Nights of Lights. It rarely snows in winter.

• Plug type: A and B
• Electricity: 120 V
• Currency: United States Dollar (US$)
• International dialling code: +1 904
• Emergency telephone number: 911

Most visitors to St. Augustine fly into Jacksonville International Airport (JAX) first, then take an hour’s transfer south to the city. The airport is served by national and regional airlines. Airports with overseas flights and connections from almost every major American city are Orlando International Airport (MCO) in Central Florida (2 hours south of St. Augustine) and Daytona Beach International Airport (DAB) (about an hour south).

Driving in, you can reach St. Augustine via Interstate 95 from the north or south, or from the west via Interstate 10. You can also hop on an Amtrak train or Greyhound bus, with their respective stops in Jacksonville and downtown.

Jacksonville International Airport (JAX)

Jacksonville International Airport (JAX) is about 55 miles north of St. Augustine, or an hour’s drive via the Interstate 95 highway. There’s free Wi-Fi available throughout JAX and you can order online ride-hailing services via their respective smartphone apps. You can find all ground transport adjacent to the baggage claim on the lower level of the terminal building.

Transport options to get you to St. Augustine from the airport include taxis as well as limousine and shuttle services, ride-hailing apps such as Uber, Lyft, and zTrip, and there are major car rental companies available at the airport.

Daytona Beach International Airport (DAB)

Similar to JAX up north, Daytona Beach Airport is about 55 miles south of St. Augustine and roughly an hour’s transfer. It’s served by domestic flights from major cities within the U.S. as well as by Canadian low-cost carrier Sunwing. Depending on which country you’re flying from, other overseas flights require a stopover at other major airports.

Ground transport options to get you to St. Augustine are available at the east end of the terminal, just outside Baggage Claim. These include taxis and limousine services as well as rideshare services such as Lyft and Uber. Shuttle services include Groome Transportation (+1 386-257-5411), DoShuttle (+1 386-947-9947), and Pierre Shuttle Service (+1 386-255-5595).

Jacksonville Amtrak Station and Palatka Station

St. Augustine doesn’t have its own train station, though if you’re coming by Amtrak, you can arrive at Jacksonville Station aboard the Amtrak Silver Meteor and Silver Star Lines which link New York and Miami. It’s also the arrival hub of the Amtrak Thruway buses.

The station is located on Clifford Lane, 4 miles west-northwest of Downtown Jacksonville. From here, you can get to St. Augustine by taxi, rideshare, or bus in just under an hour.

Palatka is a historic train station that’s closer to St. Augustine – about 40 minutes’ drive south-west – and is similarly served by both Amtrak lines. You can use ride-sharing apps such as Uber and Lyft to get to St. Augustine.

Greyhound Bus Station

You can get into St. Augustine by Greyhound Bus, stopping at the Greyhound Bus Station on 1 South Castillo Drive, downtown. It’s right next to the city’s Historic Downtown Parking Facility.

St. Augustine Municipal Marina

If you plan to arrive by sea, you can make reservations to dock at the city's Municipal Marina on Avenida Menendez (+1 904-825-1026) as well as many other private docks near downtown and around Anastasia Island across the bay. Transient (both long- and short-term), as well as hourly dockage rates, are available.

Travel tips

St. Augustine is just under 13 square miles wide – it’s small and very walkable with plenty of pedestrian-friendly sidewalks throughout the city. Furthermore, getting around the city is cost-effective and convenient thanks to the local trolley services that take you around the historic downtown area where most of the city’s highlights are.

You won’t need to rent or drive a car on your own in St. Augustine as the streets are narrow and there’s limited street parking. Even so, a car would help for getting to the beachfront areas on Anastasia Island, just across the bay.

How does St. Augustine’s Old Town Trolley work?

St. Augustine’s Old Town Trolley Tours provide an easy and effective hop-on, hop-off trolley service that can get you around various stops – mostly top attractions – within the city. You can even ride the beach shuttle that’s included free with your trolley ticket, taking you to the beach and attractions like St. Augustine’s Lighthouse & Maritime Museum.

The Old Town Trolleys run daily, every 15 minutes between 9 am and 4.30 pm. Various ticket packages and durations are available, with occasional promos and discounts available online from the Old Town Trolley Tours’ website.

Taking a taxi

Taxi companies serving St. Augustine and St. Johns County include Clean Taxi (+1 904-808-9995), Abrax Taxi (+1 904-599-6666), and Affordable Taxi (+1 904-460-4363), among others. You can hail one on the street or call to arrange for a pick-up. Uber and Lyft are the main ride-hailing apps used in St. Augustine, available 24/7 and with rates slightly cheaper than standard taxi fares.

Renting a car in St. Augustine

Renting a car and driving on your own in St. Augustine isn’t advisable due to the city’s small and walkable size and lack of significant parking spots. Even so, if you must and want the freedom of travel, particularly if you plan to explore Anastasia Island across the bay, car rental companies in the city include Enterprise (+1 904-797-1697), and Avis (+1 904-825-2764), and Budget (+1 904-794-0708).

Travelling by Sunshine Bus

The St. Augustine-based Sunshine Bus Company runs 6 main lines and a connector route in and around the city. As St. Augustine and St. Johns County's public transit system, the Sunshine Bus is an affordable and convenient ride with plenty of stops throughout the city. Detailed colour-coded route maps are available from the Sunshine Bus website. One-way fares are paid on the bus and daily and monthly passes are also available.

Cycling around St. Augustine

Cycling around St. Augustine is a pleasant experience in favourable weather conditions and the city itself is very bike-friendly. You can find public bike racks throughout the city and there are plenty of trails you can try, including the downtown route across the Bridge of Lions along State Road A1A.

Other great cycling spots include Anastasia State Park with rentals available right in the park, Stokes Landing, and the St. Johns River-to-Sea Look trail. Bike rentals in St. Augustine include Drifters (+1 904-315-6150) and St. Augustine Bike Rentals (+1 904-547-2074) which also rents out scooters.

Rhythm & Ribs Festival

• March
• St. Augustine’s spring festivity features a delicious barbecue championship alongside live music, mechanical bull rides, and a kids’ zone.
• Where: Francis Field

St. Augustine Arts and Craft Festival

• Thanksgiving weekend (November)
• An annual St. Augustine festivity featuring various art media from over a hundred artists and local galleries. The festival also features local food, art demos, and family entertainment.
• Where: Francis Field

Nights of Lights

• November–January
• Various sites around St. Augustine’s downtown and bayfront area come to life with over a million twinkling white lights through the holiday season – best viewed on evening tram tours.
• Where: Downtown

Castillo de San Marcos National Monument

A 17^th-century Spanish offering splendid views over St. Augustine and Matanzas Bay, and with a chapel, ammunition depot, and guard quarters open for public visits.

St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum

This 19^th-century lighthouse and maritime museum on Anastasia Island has over 200 stairs that you can climb up for stunning views of St. Augustine and the Atlantic Ocean.

Lightner Museum

An antiquities museum featuring impressive 19^th-century Spanish Renaissance Revival architecture housed inside St. Augustine’s historic Hotel Alcazar.

Saint George Street

St. Augustine’s most popular walking street, stretching from the Old City Gate to Plaza de la Constitucion and lined with restaurants, shops, and historical highlights.