Sights in Atlantic Coast
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Cummer Museum of Art & Gardens
This handsome museum, Jacksonville's premier cultural space, has a genuinely excellent collection of American and European paintings, Asian decorative art and antiquities. Look out for works of local interest, including Thomas Moran's 'Ponce de León in Florida' painting, and Winslow Homer's portrait of the St John's River. The garden, draped with wisteria and shaded by a massive, mossy oak so large it needs supports for its limbs, is a grand place to unwind after absorbing all the beauty inside. Both the museum and gardens are impressively accessible, including a number of Braille and audio guides.
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Museum of Science & History
Enlightening exhibits about Jacksonville's pre-Columbian history and Spanish, French and US settlements fill this museum, along with a comprehensive natural history of the St John's River system, one of the few rivers in the world that flow north.
Admission is also good for the Brian Gooding Planetarium, which shows your traditional sky and space fare, plus kids' movies and the occasional rock 'n' light show.
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Museum of Contemporary Art
Small, but one of the best cultural offerings in town, the Museum of Contemporary Art focuses on 1960 to the present.
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O'Reilly House Museum
Caught in the grip of a severe offshore hurricane in the late 1800s, the desperate captain of a supply ship heading from the Minorca Islands to St Augustine ordered most of the cargo to be thrown overboard to save the ship from sinking in the tumultuous seas.
It was then that the crew found a little statue of the Madonna, 3ft high with human hair curls and silk and Spanish lace petticoats. They prayed to it for their safe passage and, as the story goes, the winds dropped and they were able to make it to port.
The statue was passed down through the generations of Minorcan families, who prayed to it when hurricanes threatened the town. Its last caretaker, Sister St Charles…
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Historic Remains
Opposite the Bridge of Lions, in the heart of downtown, the expansive, grassy Plaza de la Constitution, a former marketplace, has a gazebo, a couple of cannons and a Civil War memorial, as well as the remains of the town well. It was the central market for food, but also for slaves.
Other historic remains include the Old City Gate, at the northern end of St George St, built in 1739 to defend the northern St Augustine line from British attacks; and the Rosario Defense Wall (opposite the Huguenot Cemetery), a re-creation of a section of the original Spanish-built earth barrier - spiky yucca plants and prickly-pear cacti along the top successfully fended off the Brits.
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Jackie Robinson Ballpark
On an island in the Halifax River, this ballpark is home to the Daytona Cubs, a Class A minor-league affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. In 1946, the Montreal Royals, Jackie Robinson's team, was in Florida to play an exhibition against their parent club, the Brooklyn Dodgers. Other Florida cities refused to let the game proceed due to segregation laws, but Daytona Beach cried, 'Play ball!' and Robinson later went on to be the first African American baseball player in the majors. The ballpark, seating 4200 people, was renamed in his honor in 1990.
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Fountain of Youth
When Ponce de León first came ashore here in 1513, the Timucuans are said to have shown him a freshwater stream some believe to be the fabled Fountain of Youth. Today, you can take a kitschy 45-minute tour of the site, now an 'archaeological park,' and drink from the sulfur-tasting trickle, but we seriously doubt it'll have any anti-wrinkle powers! The park is about a mile north of downtown – just follow the signs.
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Daytona Beach Pier
Follow Main St further east and you’ll stumble onto coral-colored Daytona Beach Pier. Easy to spot for its iconic 180ft tower (which formerly zoomed sightseers heavenward for panoramic views, but now sits frustratingly impotent on the pier), two-person cabled gondolas carry you the length of the 1000ft pier and back for $7 per person. It is worth a gander, but the pier’s vintage feel has somehow disappeared. Too bad: this pier – among the longest on the east coast – has been around over 100 years.
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Alligator Farm Zoological Park
- St Augustine, USA
- Sights › Zoo
Maximo – a 1250lb, 15ft, 3in Australian saltwater crocodile – is the biggest of the reptiles at this gator-palooza, the world's only facility with every species of crocodilian in residence. Look for albino alligators, freaky gharials and seven different species of endangered monkey, including the world's smallest, the pygmy marmoset (the size of a mouse). There are talks and shows throughout the day; catch hungry alligators snapping their jaws at feeding times (noon and 3pm). The park is a five-minute drive from downtown St Augustine along Anastasia Blvd.
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Ritz Theatre & La Villa Museum
This refurbished 1929-built grande dame incorporates a museum and 400-seat theater. Both showcase the La Villa area's African-American cultural heritage, which in its heyday saw it dubbed the 'Harlem of the South'. The museum's newest permanent exhibition, Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing, is an animatronic tribute to the district's native son James Weldon Johnson, composer of the slave freedom anthem of the same name. Performances at the Ritz range from choral to jazz as well as stage productions.
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Jacksonville Zoological Gardens
- Jacksonville, USA
- Sights › Zoo
Northeast Florida's only major zoo opened in 1914 with one deer; today, it's home to over 1800 exotic animals. Jaguar football fans won't want to miss jaguars prowling replicated Mayan-temple ruins. Other highlights include the wetlands of Wild Florida, with rare Florida panthers, and an elevated viewing platform that brings you face to nose with giraffes. The zoo is about 15 minutes north of downtown off I-95.
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Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex
Houston, we have an attraction. It was perhaps inevitable that, considering its proximity to Orlando, the space center would develop a ride, and thus Shuttle Launch Experience officially achieved lift-off. Reaching a top 'speed' of 17,500mph – vertically – this realistic simulator ride was designed by astronauts to feel just like a space-shuttle takeoff, but without the teary goodbyes.
Your ticket to the complex includes a two-hour bus tour, a 45-minute IMAX film, live-action stage shows, exhibits on subjects such as early space exploration and encounters with astronauts. It also includes the Astronaut Hall of Fame, where you'll experience the G-Force Trainer and other…
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World Golf Hall of Fame
Even nonfans of the game will enjoy the World Golf Hall of Fame. There are 18 exhibits (like 18 holes), the front nine covering the history of the sport and the back nine examining modern professional golf. Separating them is the Hall of Fame itself, with multimedia exhibits on inductees. Admission includes nine holes on a real grass putting green designed to PGA specifications, and an IMAX film.
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Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge
Bordering both the Kennedy Space Center and Canaveral National Seashore, this spectacular 140,000-acre refuge includes brackish marshes, mangrove swamps, pine flatlands and coastal dunes. More than 500 species of wildlife make this their home, including thousands of waterfowl stopping along their north–south migrations, alligators, otters and armadillos. The 7-mile Black Point Wildlife Drive has a pull-out for the 5-mile Cruickshank Trail, and several other shorter trails can be found throughout the refuge. Stop at the visitor center, 4 miles east of Titusville on SR 402, for a park map.
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Marine Science Center
Despite the built-up environs at Daytona Beach, loggerheads, green turtles, Kemp Ridleys and occasionally leatherbacks are found in the area. A rehab center for injured sea turtles and birds, the Marine Science Center has a wet/dry lab, some great kid-friendly exhibits and a guided tour of the on-site turtle and seabird rehabilitation facilities (call ahead).
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Old St Augustine Village
The nine homes in Old St Augustine Village are Florida’s largest collection of historic homes. Dating from 1790 to 1920, highlights include the delightfully crooked Carpenter’s House; the crayon-colored windows of the Spear House; and the Murat House, which was the one-time home of Prince Achille Murat, Napoleon’s nephew. Yes, that Napoleon.
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Jacksonville Zoological Gardens
Northeast Florida's only major zoo which opened in 1914 with one deer, today has over 100 exotic species. Don't miss the jaguars prowling around replicated Mayan temple ruins. Other highlights are the wetlands of Wild Florida, with rare Florida panthers, the Australian Adventure and an elevated viewing platform that brings you face to face with the giraffes.
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St Augustine Lighthouse
The light produced by this 1870s striped lighthouse beams all the way downtown. A great place to bring kids over six and more than 44in tall (since all climbers must be able to ascend and descend the tower under their own power), the lighthouse operates 'Dark of the Moon' paranormal tours on weekends at 8:30pm ($25/20 per adult/child).
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Our Lady of La Leche Shrine
The first Mass was held at the Mission of Nombre de Dios, also the site of Our Lady of La Leche Shrine and the 208ft-tall stainless-steel cross visible from many parts of downtown. First built in 1797, the coquina church became a cathedral in 1870, but a fire destroyed much of it in 1887. Pirates torched the cathedral's congregation several times.
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Boardwalk & Pier
Follow Main St E and you'll cross Daytona's sabal palm–lined, ocean-fronting Boardwalk. Look for ice-cream shops, arcade games and beachside patios where you can sip beer from plastic cups. It's good family fun with a side of sleaze to keep things hopping. Follow Main St further east and you'll stumble onto the long, coral-colored pier, once a summer-vacation icon. It's currently in a state of sad disrepair, but locals hope to have it up and running again in the near future.
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St Augustine Beach
The 7-mile stretch of St Augustine Beach is a great place to soak up rays, and the road fronting it has a small handful of hotels, family restaurants and boisterous bars.
There's a visitor-information booth at the foot of St John's Pier, where you can rent a rod and reel ($3 for two hours, $1 for each additional hour).
About three blocks south of the pier, the end of A St has – as Florida goes – some fine waves. For late-breaking surf conditions, to rent or buy a board, or just to chill with your fellow surfer dudes and dudettes, stop at Pit Surfshop.
Raging Water Sports rents kayaks ($20 per hour), sailboats ($40 per hour), jet skis ($90 per hour) and motorboats…
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Old Drugstore
Built in 1739, this dusty pharmacy offers a unique collection of antique vials and tonics in sepia-colored bottles, as well as some other curiosities, like vintage suppository molds. Adjacent to the artifacts is an extensive assortment of herbal remedies for sale (from stevia leaf to lotus flowers) for homeopathic use.
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Jacksonville Landing
At the foot of the high-rise downtown, this prominent shopping and entertainment district has about 40 mostly touristy shops surrounding a tip-top food court with outdoor tables and regular, free live entertainment.
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Little Chapel by the Sea
Little Chapel by the Sea is a drive-in Christian church. Pull up, hook a speaker to your car (or do as the locals do and tune to 680AM or 88.5FM) and listen to the Rev preach. He and the choir hold service on a balcony overlooking the sea of cars. There’s free coffee and donuts between services. Only in Daytona.
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Fort Caroline National Memorial
This memorial is the administrative headquarters of the Timucuan Ecological and Historical Preserve, a confederation of federal, state and local parks – some located on Talbot and Fort George Islands. The confederation works with private landowners to maintain the St John’s River ecosystem.
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