This past Thanksgiving, we visited my sister’s family in St. Augustine, Florida — the nation’s oldest city. And yes, now you’re ready for that next round of Jeopardy! We loved taking our nephews and niece to see the holiday lights. But there is so much more to explore. That’s why we decided to compile our top picks for a family vacation (St. Augustine for kids!).
Christmas lights in downtown St. Augustine.
What Airport is Near St. Augustine, Florida?
Depending on where you’re flying from, you might find some deals into Jacksonville, located 45 minutes north of St. Augustine. However, this marks our second time flying into Orlando International Airport (MCO). Sure, it’s insanity (especially at Thanksgiving), but you generally will get the cheapest deals here (and a lot more travel options, including direct flights). St. Augustine is an easy 2 hour drive north of Orlando so it’s become more or less our tradition to hit up Disney before making the drive north to celebrate the holidays with our family. Think of it as an excuse to visit Disney!
Our usual pre-holiday tradition of hitting up Epcot on our visit to Florida.
Check out our itinerary below where we explored one day in St. Augustine and share some great ideas for your next family vacation.
Morning Activities if you Have Just One Day in St. Augustine, Florida
Enjoy the included breakfast at the Kenwood Inn, located in the heart of St Augustine.
What a better way to start off your morning than having a healthy breakfast? We recommend booking a night at The Kenwood Inn, located right in the heart of St. Augustine. Kevin’s parents traveled down from Washington, DC and met us here (making us the VERY grown up kids in this scenario!). Kevin’s mom found this charming spot over a decade ago — long before I knew Kevin — on a family trip. The Kenwood Inn goes all out every morning serving breakfast from 8:30-9:30 AM on the weekdays and 8 – 9 AM on the weekends.
Kevin enjoys breakfast with his mom at the Kenwood Inn.
You’ll find plenty of choices including cereal, mimosas and other breakfast items that can be enjoyed in the indoor dining room or outside on the inn’s porch. While November can get a little chilly in northern Florida, it didn’t stop us from sitting outside every day.
Late Morning – Ice Cream and Shops! St. Augustine for Kids
Downtown St. Augustine is a shopping paradise.
After enjoying your breakfast, you’ll be fueled up and ready to explore downtown St. Augustine. The downtown area is incredibly walkable and packed with art galleries, tacky tourist gift shops as well as eateries and other gift stores. Even though we were visiting over Thanksgiving, many of the stores remained open and the streets were packed. Some of my favorite stops include the gift shop at the Columbia Restaurant (be sure to pick up some Sangria mix), Whetstone Chocolate and The Ancient Olive with its free olive oil samples (which of course any kid, or adult for that matter, loves).
Columbia Restaurant gift shop.
Now that you’ve worked up an appetite, head over to Peace Pie for a late morning snack. And clearly, no judgement on our end. Kevin was more than down for an ice cream sandwich as it wasn’t even noon!
Peace Pie in downtown St. Augustine.
Featured on the Food Network and many other TV shows, Peace Pie combines the traditional ice cream sandwich with your favorite pie fillings. We had a hard time choosing between the ice cream sandwich packed with brownies or the s’mores versions with graham crackers and marshmallows.
And we have a winner – double chocolate brownie. Kevin is in his glory!
Afternoon in St. Augustine: Wander Among the Alligators
The Alligator Farm Zoological Park features a variety of animal species, including hundreds of native alligators. But that’s not all you’ll find. Exhibits include lemurs, Komodo dragons, toucans and a sloth exhibit. The park is one of Florida’s oldest attractions, but it sure doesn’t feel like it. We were very impressed by just how updated and well-kept this part was. It isn’t the creepy Gator Land experience or backwater swamp tours we’ve risked our lives on before!
You’re so close to the alligators you could almost touch them. But clearly, we don’t recommend that.
We arrived around 1 PM, which was the perfect time to catch the alligator feeding in the swamp. This is not to be missed. The alligators know what’s coming as one of the staff members climbs inside the exhibit. We were freaking out as the alligators climbed on top of one another to get their early afternoon snack (that we hoped wouldn’t include the staff member).
From here, we wandered the park and enjoyed listening to the educational talk where one of the animal keepers wandered inside one of the exhibits. He’s braver than I would be!
Look at all the alligators lined up. Yep, I think I’ll pass on this job.
The park also has a zip line and aerial course called Crocodile Crossing. Guests can coast at eye-level with exotic birds and fly high above crocodiles on one of two courses that reach up to 30 or 60 feet high. The Sepik River course (35 feet high and about 45 minutes long) is $37 per person. The Nile River course is higher and longer (about 90 minutes) and costs $67 per person. Advanced reservations are highly recommended during their busy times, especially the weekends. They were completely booked the day we visited.
Evening in St Augustine
Dinner with the family at Pizzalley’s in downtown St. Augustine.
To wrap up your time in St. Augustine, we recommend dinner at Pizzalley’s in downtown St. Augustine. If it’s a holiday, there will be a wait. This old school Italian joint doesn’t take reservations — first come, first served only. But they are able to seat large groups likes ours (with a table of 10). We were told there wouldn’t be a wait at 5 PM (the day after Thanksgiving). But let’s just say, they were a little off with that answer. Luckily, Kevin’s parents were nearby and got a head start on holding the table (about a 1.5 hour wait time). We grabbed a drink at the bar, and by the time we got them, our table was nearly ready. You’ll find all the typical Italian staples here — like pizza, chicken parm and spaghetti. But what did we devour? Umm, 3 baskets of breadsticks and sauce.
The delicious bread sticks from Pizzalley’s.
By the time our meal arrived, I was actually pretty stuffed. But that still didn’t stop me from eating it anyway. But hey, we’ve been walking all day. So I’m sure it’s all equaled out. And there you have it — what a packed day full of food and adventure with the entire family.
Looking for other ideas for trips in Florida? Check out our 1 day itinerary in Jacksonville, hitting up the best food and shops. Or if you’re planning on passing through on your way south, check out our 3 day itinerary from Miami to Palm Beach.
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