Archives: Destinations

St. Augustine History Museum

A combination of historical displays and private collections bring over 400 years of Florida history to life. The museum features displays of the various countries that ruled over St. Augustine: England, Spain, and France.

• Your St. Augustine History Museum Includes:
  Visit our Spanish sunken treasure room
• Explore how St. Augustine and Florida grew under the Spanish
• Hear fascinating stories about the Indians, the Spanish Galleons and the Pirates of the Revolutionary War
• More than 400 years of history is on display
• Masks are strongly recommended inside except for vaccinated guests

Henry Flagler was a powerhouse and catalyst for change in the real estate and transportation industries. His contributions to Florida are documented and displayed throughout the St. Augustine History Museum. As you tour through, you will also see authentic artifacts, unpublished photographs and learn about the evolution of St. Augustine and Florida under Spanish and British rule. More than 400 years of history is on display including toys and dolls from the early 19th and 20th centuries, a replica of a Spanish galleon and real gold, silver and jewelry found in lost treasures off the Florida coast. Housed on the Old Jail, the museum offers another level of insight into Floridas past.

Potter’s Wax Museum

The first wax museum in America, Potters has been delighting guests since 1949. Inspired by his visit to a wax museum in London when he was a boy, George Potter dreamed of creating his own world of wax in the United States. Today, this Wax Museum is home to more than 160 different wax figures – each an authentic life-sized recreation of the men and women they represent. Artists and craftsmen spent a great deal of time researching the process in the British museum before creating these incredibly life-like figures. Founder George Potter described his meticulous process:

Each part of the figure is custom-tailored, using real hair that is grown by women in Italy and placed onto the figure a single strand at a time. The eyes are made in Germany and the hands are sculpted in Belgium with wax imported from France. Even the costumes were designed by one of the greatest in the industry-costumers to the Court of Saint James.

The museums collection includes people who have played an important part in history: Celebrities, sports figures, people in the news and many modern-day figures. Stand next to Tiger Woods, Captain Jack Sparrow, Elvis and Harry Potter. Take your picture with Angelina Jolie, Michael Jordan and Brittany Spears. See Princess Diana, Ponce de Leon and many of Potters original figures.

The Wax Museum offers an entertaining time for adults and children of all ages. Groups and school field trips are welcomed. Bring your camera, as the figures make for a great photo opportunity!

Admission Includes:

• See more than 160 different wax figures
• The collection includes people who have played an important part in history
• An entertaining time for adults and children of all ages

The Old Jail Museum

Listed in the National Registry of Historic Places, The Old Jail is a must-visit when in St. Augustine! Built to look like a hotel in the Romanesque Revival style and painted in an unassuming color, visitors will find that the Old Jail has been renovated to give tourists a glimpse into the daily lives of St. Augustines most notorious prisoners living under the penal system of the 19th and early 20th centuries. Costumed actors tell tales of the jail and its occupants, and even book you as an inmate! Additionally, the Old Jail has a large collection of weapons and artifacts for you to inspect up close and is one of just a few prisons of its kind still standing that makes for a great day of sightseeing on a historical adventure. It would be a crime if you did not stop by for a visit!

In 1878, oil magnate and industrialist, Henry Flagler, left the familiar confines of his tony and privileged life in New York City and traveled south to Jacksonville, Florida with his ailing wife. On strict doctors orders, they were advised to escape the intemperate winter of Manhattan so his wife, Mary Flagler, could potentially recover from tuberculosis. She would not survive the trip. Shortly thereafter, Henry Flagler would re-marry and make his way to the Ancient City, St. Augustine, Florida. Finding the area charming and brimming with possibilities but sorely lacking in accommodations, the businessman hit the ground running and began to make sizable real estate investments, one of which was the Hotel Ponce de Leon.

In 1891, Henry Flagler contracted the company that would eventually build Alcatraz to construct a jail just north of downtown on San Marco Ave. So as not to create an eyesore that would strike fear in the hearts of the general public and to avoid discouraging his fat cat friends from investing in the city, he decided to disguise it.

Lincolnville Museum & Cultural Center

The rich history of the Black experience in St. Augustine, Florida is also the history of the Black experience in America. In 1866, free men and women birthed Lincolnville: a community that found itself at the crossroads of history. Through exhibits and stories told from a local, intimate perspective, the Lincolnville Museum and Cultural Center chronicles 450 years of the winding road that is the black journey. Come and experience the journey for yourself.

Lincolnville Museum and Cultural Center is an African American history museum located at 102 Martin Luther King Avenue in St. Augustine, Florida. It is located in the former Excelsior School, St. Augustine’s first black public high school.

Marineland General Admission

Discover the oceanfront playground that has delighted visitors since 1938. Make an ocean of memories as you meet bottlenose dolphins up close, experience the wonder of marine life, explore 80 years of Florida history, and even swim with dolphins in our unique educational programs.

TourPass grants admission but does not include Dolphin Swims or Meet & Greets. You can upgrade to these programs for an additional fee.

Daily Schedule:

• Shark Talk: 10:30 a.m. (Feedings on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday)
• Dolphin Training Presentation: 11:15 a.m.; 2:30PM
• Turtle Talk: 1:00 p.m.

Classic Car Museum

The Classic Car Museum is a 30,000 sq ft special events space, museum and classic car storage facility located just outside of historic St. Augustine, FL. The versatility that each space offers is endless. Our venue is perfect for any type of event. From a classic car back drop to an outdoor manicured lawn and pond, to an upscale banquet room, these spaces offer something new, something memorable and something within your reach.

Juliette Gordon Low Birthplace

Guided Tours

The Juliette Gordon Low Birthplace is offering guided tours exploring the fascinating life and world-changing legacy of Juliette Gordon Low, Founder of the Girls Scouts, through stories, art, and artifacts held in her childhood home.

Please allow at least an hour for your visit, so you can fully enjoy the tour, garden, and museum store.

What You’ll Experience

A tour of the Juliette Gordon Low Birthplace provides an exciting look into the history of our remarkable founder and her home, as well as a glimpse into a movement that is still building girls into strong women of courage, confidence, and character over 100 years later.

During your visit to the Birthplace you will be guided on a journey through the life of Juliette Gordon Low. Original and period furnishings adorn seven spacious rooms with high ceilings. You will see unique architectural features, including elaborately carved millwork, decorative plaster ceilings, and the impressive staircase with its curved mahogany rail. Numerous works of art, including many pieces created by Daisy herself, are on display throughout the house.

You may browse the garden independently before or after your tour. Be sure to look for the monogrammed gates that are believed to be forged in part by Daisy herself.
Before you head back out into beautiful Savannah, you’ll want to visit our shop for great local gifts, items made by girls and women around the world, and Girl Scout merchandise.

Admission to this attraction is subject to availability

Ghost & Gravestones Trolley Tour

Prepare yourself for a Frightseeing Adventure like none other as your resident Ghost Host shares tales both true and truly unnerving of the citys tumultuous past. Discover the secrets of the Tolomoto Cemetery and the apparition seen playing on the sacred grounds after dark. Could it be the spirit of five-year old James or is it the Ghost Bride, still waiting for her walk down the aisle. Be sure to keep a watchful eye while passing by the old City Gates. You might catch a glimpse of Elizabeth, a child victim of the yellow fever, waving to those who pass by. Plan to arrive at least 20 minutes early to make time to visit Cromwells Parlour of Paranormal Curiosities.

Creepy Crawl Haunted Pub Tour

We have teamed up with the original St. Augustine Historic Pub Crawl to bring this unique experience to those of you who prefer a little…spirits with your spirits!

Explore the most notorious haunted taverns on this spine-tingling investigation. This adults only walking tour gives you a chance to try real paranormal equipment at the actual haunted sites we visit, while enjoying drinks and hearing the haunted history along the way.

• A local craft beer at the first stop is INCLUDED with your ticket.
• Pub Crawls last appx 2hrs and explore at least 4 unique venues on each tour.
• Tours depart Friday and Saturday from their downtown tour reception lobby at 4 Granada Street.
• Ages 21+ only. TOURS DEPART RAIN OR SHINE.

Ximenez-Fatio House Museum

Includes admission and with the audio tour

Brief History
In 1798, Don Andres Ximenez built this fine three-story home and warehouse of coquina for he and his bride, Juana Pellicer Ximenez. Juanas father, Francisco Pellicer led the Menorcan exodus of 1777 out of New Smyrna, from their illegal bondage by Dr. Andrew Turnbull. Pellicer brought approximately 600 people to St. Augustine at the invitation of British governor Colonel Patrick Tonyn. Francisco Pellicer was also a master carpenter and may well have been involved in the construction of this home. In his original site plan, Ximenez included a grocery story and storage room, tavern, and billiard hall on the first floor, family bedrooms and living area on the second floor, and servants/enslaved persons living areas on the third floor. There were also two large warehouses that butted up to each other – what we now know as the first floor guest rooms – along with a detached kitchen and washroom.

Juana Ximenez died in 1802, at the age of 26. Andres followed in 1806. He was 53. The Ximenez family passed the property among them until 1825, when Mrs. Margaret Cook and her husband were given the opportunity to purchase an interest in 1/3rd of the house. She bought another 1/3rd interest in 1827, after her husband passed away. By 1830, Mrs. Cook owned the whole compound. She converted the home into a boarding house by turning the tavern into a lobby, the billiard hall into a fine dining room, and the two warehouses into four guest rooms. The grocery store and storeroom remained intact since it was such a profitable business. Mrs. Cook hired Eliza Whitehurst, a single lady, to manage her new boarding house. In June 1838, Mrs. Whitehurst died, most likely due to a Yellow Fever epidemic ravaging St. Augustine.

In July, Sarah Petty Anderson, also a single woman, purchased the boarding house from Mrs. Cook. In 1852, Louisa Fatio, the last of this impressive line of single women to either own or manage the property, became the manager of Miss Andersons boarding house.

In 1855, Miss Anderson sold the property to Louisa and moved to Tallahassee. Miss Fatio owned the property and kept it afloat during times of slavery, secession from the Union, re-occupation by Union troops in 1862, and Reconstruction. She died in 1875, having maintained the integrity, reputation, and prominence of this boarding house through a time when the term boarding house often had a very negative connotation.

The house spent the next several decades as an artists retreat until it fell into disrepair by the 1930s – yet the downstairs/grocery store and storeroom always housed some form of retail business.

In 1939, The National Society of the Colonial Dames of America in the State of Florida purchased the property, and in the process of refurbishing the home, presented it for the first time to the public on May 6, 1940, as an example of historic home restoration. Please visit this amazing property at your first convenience. In the meantime, we have built this extensive website for you to virtually step onto our property, play our games, hear our stories, and read of our history.