Featured in The Best Romantic Escapes in Florida and built in 1885, Fairbanks House is an 8000 square feet Italianate villa rising above a quiet Victorian village on Amelia Island...
This boutique hotel is located in a quaint Victorian seaport village overlooking the Intra-coastal waterway with more than 25 restaurants and 60 specialty shops within walking distance...
Approximately 1,200 acres of maritime hammock with large Spanish moss-draped live oaks and a Civil War-era fort, a half-mile-long fishing pier, miles of beaches and 62 campsites for RV or tent camping offer a variety of opportunities to experience nature and history...
Fernandina Beach was one of Florida's earliest walk-about resort towns and remains one of its most attractive to strolling types with a yen for graceful architecture, harbor views and delightful shops and restaurants.
Ulysses S. Grant was among the first flush of tourists to arrive in the late 1800s to Amelia Island's Victorian Italian seaport, strategically positioned where Florida meets Georgia at Cumberland Gap on the east coast. Nearly 50 structures in the heart of Fernandina Beach's 55-block historic zone, including the residential Silk Stocking District, predate the 20th century and are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. For a walking tour, pick up a free brochure at the visitors center on the waterfront. The Amelia Island Museum of History hosts interesting, specialty walking tours based on the town's historic ghosts, Centre Street and other themes.
For alternative car-free, feet-resting transportation, take a historic tour via horse-drawn carriage. Biking is another popular mode of transport and rentals are available from resorts and shops. Many B&Bs offer complimentary use. From downtown, Fort Clinch State Park is an easy pedal and plenty worthwhile with its scenic beach and historic and natural attractions.
Parking Zone
Many of Fernandina Beach's frilly Victorian homes downtown today house bed-and-breakfast inns. Some of the favorites include Amelia Island Williams House, 1857 Florida House Inn (where Grant once stayed), and Fairbanks House. Hampton Inn & Suites also lies within the historic harbor-front district.
Walk This Way
I like to begin my downtown Fernandina Beach explorations at Florida's first cross-state railroad depot and end at Florida's oldest continuous saloon, which are only steps away from one another. In between, I've looped through and around main Centre Street and its architectural eye candy.
The Chamber of Commerce Visitor Center, a good place to arm yourself with maps and info, resides in the pretty little depot, steps away from the harbor where pirates used to dock and shrimp fleets still do.
The Amelia Island Museum of History hosts interesting, specialty walking tours based on the town's historic ghosts, Centre Street and other themes.
To get your bearings historically, head up Centre Street and take a right on Third Street South to check into the old county jailhouse, now home to the Amelia Island Museum of History. Take a guided tour through the island's history of 450 years and eight sovereign flags. Stop across the street at the rustic-looking Florida House Inn for burgers and seafood at the Frisky Mermaid. Then wander to Beech Street and follow it east to Central Park, taking side streets where it suits you to admire residential homes and B&Bs. South Seventh and Eighth streets hold a particularly nice collection dating from the 1870s. Stop in at Trinity United Methodist Church on Eighth and Ash streets. The white clapboard First Baptist Missionary Church sits across the parking lot on Ninth Street.
After a pause in Central Park, head back down Centre Street toward the harbor. Or, if you're ambitious and beach-drawn, walk the 1.5 miles to the main beach at Wolf Park.
Heading east on Centre Street, you'll pass the awe-inspiring St. Peter's Episcopal Church and, just off Centre, the First Presbyterian Church, one of Florida's oldest, built in 1858. The handsome county courthouse and post office were built, respectively, in 1891 and 1912. Other historic brick commercial buildings hold a medley of interesting shops selling books, jewelry, artisan wares, antiques, Florida-style Christmas decorations, ice cream, coffee, toys and other uncommon gifts and necessities.
Continue to wander off along side streets between shopping to discover more architectural gems. Fourth Street North leads to the Romanesque St. Michael's Catholic Church, circa 1872.
Then it's time for just reward and live music at the inviting circa-1903 Palace Saloon, erstwhile haunt, legend has it, of the Rockefellers, Carnegies and a bartender-turned-ghost named Charlie. Hoist a cold one among murals depicting pirates and Shakespearean characters and toast a pleasant day spent in Florida's decidedly un-musty attic.
You'll find more about Fernandina Beach bygones and byways at www.ameliaisland.org.
With 17 restaurants and lounges, 30,000-square feet of meeting room space, a full-service European-style spa, 22 retail shops and 11 nightclubs in a complex known as Seminole Paradise (whew!) why would you need to leave the premises?.
The unique refuge was established in 1931 to provide a wintering habitat for migratory waterfowl and is one of the oldest in the National Wildlife Refuge System.
