*lifeoftheparty* Posted April 6, 2016 Share Posted April 6, 2016 (edited) ...... Edited December 18, 2016 by *lifeoftheparty* Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom2att Posted April 6, 2016 Share Posted April 6, 2016 Great beaches in the area, and lots of history to explore. The Casillo de San Marcos (a 16th century fort), the Pirate and Treasure museum, the Colonial Quarter museum, the St. Augustine Lghthouse, the Alligator Farm, the Old Florida Museum . . . . I've done all these things and would recommend them to a family with boys especially. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
*lifeoftheparty* Posted April 6, 2016 Author Share Posted April 6, 2016 (edited) .. Edited December 18, 2016 by *lifeoftheparty* 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tess in the Burbs Posted April 6, 2016 Share Posted April 6, 2016 We like St Augustine. So much so, that driving home from WDW we detoured off the highway to go see it again. It happened to be a pirate festival weekend, and we had a great few hours seeing all our favorite things, before getting back on the highway to head home. The fort is cool, and the city area across the road is fun to walk and dine. There was a museum a few blocks away that was interesting. It's worth a day trip YES Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom31257 Posted April 6, 2016 Share Posted April 6, 2016 It's one of favorite vacations we've taken. Definitely eat gourmet pops at The Hyppo. http://www.thehyppo.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SebastianCat Posted April 6, 2016 Share Posted April 6, 2016 St. Augustine is filled with historical things that will keep you busy for several days, plus the beach and Alligator Farm. We've been there many times, and my kids have loved it. As for Tampa, there's a lot to do here. (I live in Tampa, so feel free to PM me if you have questions.) You didn't say how old your kids are, but here would be a list of things to do: -Busch Gardens (there's a lot to see and do even if you aren't huge roller coaster fans) -Adventure Island (water park across the street from BG- open seasonally starting in March - if you go during March when it's not spring break locally, you'll have the place to yourselves) -Florida Aquarium (also has a splash area outside) -Tampa History Museum -Lowry Park Zoo -Clearwater Aquarium -Beach! Our favorite beaches, that aren't overrun with tourists, are Honeymoon Island (near Dunedin) and Fred Howard Park (in Tarpon Springs). Ft. DeSoto is also really nice (south St. Pete). The gulf beaches have clearer, more colorful water than the Atlantic side, but fewer waves. If you like looking for critters, go to the beaches on the gulf side. If you like surfing, go to the beaches on the Atlantic side. -If you go to Fred Howard Park, spend half the day at the sponge docks in Tarpon Springs. One of the shops (sorry, I forgot the name, but it's one of the first shops on the main street by the sponge docks) has a little museum and show a movie about the sponge diving industry. Get lunch (and dessert!) at Hellas. -If you like Cuban food, eat lunch at the Columbia restaurant in Ybor City. Crowds are better and more family-friendly for lunch than after dark. -If you are hockey fans, the Lightning season will be going on. If you are baseball fans, Feb/March is when all of the teams from the eastern half of the country are here for spring training. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bettyandbob Posted April 6, 2016 Share Posted April 6, 2016 We stayed in St. Augustine Beach. Best Western I think. Walking distance to beach. There is a free shuttle from sever St. Augustine Beach hotels to St. Augustine. We did the on off your bus and visited the sites. Beautiful town. If you want to do the chocolate factory tour it is popular. You need to reserve by the morning of the day you want to do it. We also liked the lighthouse. We didn't do colonial quarter. We only spent two days and found enough to do without that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leeannpal Posted April 6, 2016 Share Posted April 6, 2016 Love St. Augustine! I would also go to the Kennedy Space Center if you can. I would think that the drive to St. Augustine from either Disney or the Space Center would be more like 2.5 hours. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
umsami Posted April 6, 2016 Share Posted April 6, 2016 Thank you!! Right after I posted this, I saw that I could get the government rate at Casa Monica hotel in St. Augustine, only $159 a night!!! I think I'm booking, the hotel looks gorgeous! Casa Monica is a beautiful, historic hotel. I had my wedding reception there. :) I love their curried chicken salad, too. Ripley's is in St. Augustine which can be fun/campy. Daytona isn't too far with the Speedway, too.... plus there's a waterpark thre. Another thought is Aquatica, which is Sea World's waterpark and is "only" $59/person. Also, Legoland has a bunch of homeschool days where it's $12.50/kid and $25.00/adults. http://www.legoland.com/florida/planning-your-visit/groups-parties/school-group-programs/home-school-days/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
*lifeoftheparty* Posted April 6, 2016 Author Share Posted April 6, 2016 (edited) ... Edited December 18, 2016 by *lifeoftheparty* 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Truscifi Posted April 6, 2016 Share Posted April 6, 2016 We also love St Augustine. We can spend a full day at the beach, another day between the fort and the lighthouse, and brotherman loves the Alligator Farm. Depending on how much you enjoy history, you might enjoy a day just walking around and looking at all the historic homes and little museums tucked away in the historic district. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
*lifeoftheparty* Posted April 6, 2016 Author Share Posted April 6, 2016 (edited) ...... Edited December 18, 2016 by *lifeoftheparty* Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Florida. Posted April 6, 2016 Share Posted April 6, 2016 (edited) We love St. Augustine! Dh and I honeymooned there and used to go back every year for our anniversary. When ds got old enough to we started taking him and he fell in love with it too. We just spent four days there over ds' college spring break. We stayed at a bed and breakfast very close to St. George Street. There is plenty to do there both in the old city and at the beach. Your boys will probably enjoy the fort, Ripley's museum, the Spanish Quarter, and the Old Florida Museum (a hands on pioneer exhibit). On the beach there's the lighthouse which you can climb, or just browse around the museum at ground level (That's what I do while my people climb to the top. I stay firmly on the ground. :laugh: ) And there are a lot of places to get ice cream or chocolate. Go get a Cuban sandwich at the Cuban Bakery off St. George street. Yum! Get tickets to either the Red Train or the Old Town Trolley. We prefer the Red Trains but both are good. You can get multi-day passes and get on and off at any of the many stops when you're tired of walking. Or you can just ride the entire tour and learn about the history of the area. Taking one trip around will give you an idea where you want to go and spend more time. BTW, I'm in Titusville. If you go to the space center wave at me on your way. :seeya: Edited April 6, 2016 by Lady Florida Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Florida. Posted April 6, 2016 Share Posted April 6, 2016 Love St. Augustine! I would also go to the Kennedy Space Center if you can. I would think that the drive to St. Augustine from either Disney or the Space Center would be more like 2.5 hours. It's 1-1/2 hours. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pink and Green Mom Posted April 6, 2016 Share Posted April 6, 2016 Holy cow! Just saw how much it costs to get into the Kennedy Space Center!! Hmmmm, is that really worth $200 just to get in? My boys will be 12 and 4... We went about a year and half ago when mine were 13 and 10. I honestly do not think it is worth the money. My youngest wants to be an aeronautical engineer so he enjoyed it but the rest of us were sort of surprised at how not worth it it was. Just my 2 cents. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mama Geek Posted April 6, 2016 Share Posted April 6, 2016 We really like St Augustine. We have taken my dd(5) and niece who is 11. There are tons of things to do. Don't forget to do the fountain of youth. That was a lot of fun too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Florida. Posted April 6, 2016 Share Posted April 6, 2016 Holy cow! Just saw how much it costs to get into the Kennedy Space Center!! Hmmmm, is that really worth $200 just to get in? My boys will be 12 and 4... We went about a year and half ago when mine were 13 and 10. I honestly do not think it is worth the money. My youngest wants to be an aeronautical engineer so he enjoyed it but the rest of us were sort of surprised at how not worth it it was. Just my 2 cents. I don't think it's worth it, but I don't like to tell people that. After all, we live here and have been there at least 27 bazillion times. We go when they have free admission for local residents (your admission fee is actually canned food for a food drive). Some people are really into it or have kids who are big fans of the space program and I don't know if my attitude towards the cost is due to having lived here for 46 years and going there more times than I can count. Really though, I'd rather spend that money on something else. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Florida. Posted April 6, 2016 Share Posted April 6, 2016 we are more, play in the pool that is right next to the ocean while drinking fruity drinks people... I don't know if you like wine or spirits but St. Augustine has both a winery and distillery. If you get tickets for either of the train tours you can stop by and sample. And since you're on the train you won't have to worry about driving. ;) I don't know about the distillery (it's new and we didn't have a chance to go during our visit last month, plus neither of us care much for hard liquor) but the winery has ways to keep kids busy and even has various fruit juices for them to sample while the adults do some wine tasting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hellen Posted April 7, 2016 Share Posted April 7, 2016 It's one of favorite vacations we've taken. Definitely eat gourmet pops at The Hyppo. http://www.thehyppo.com We hated those Popsicles. We threw them in the trash because none of us liked it. It's been a while but I think it was a texture issue. My advice would be to share one first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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