St. Augustine

OldCity.com

Staugustine.com

St. Augustine is the oldest permanent European settlement on the North American continent, having been founded 55 years before the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock and 42 years before the English founded a colony at Jamestown. It was a sleepy place until the 1880s when Henry Flagler began to develop it as a major leisure resort. St. Augustine has an ongoing preservation effort, and many colonial structures have been restored to their original appearance. In addition to historic sights and Spanish charm, St. Augustine is a great place for playing golf and tennis, participating in all kinds of water sports, and enjoying 43 miles of beaches.

Comments:

Really gorgeous old town area and pedestrian shopping area full of old shops and such.
Old boyfriend lived in Jacksonville, and I used to visit St. Augustine a lot. I really liked it down there, but traffic could be nightmarish at times - lots of new subdivisions but no back roads. If a traffic accident messed up a main traffic artery, you were pretty much hosed.

Of course, this is from awhile ago so hopefully the situation has changed.

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Last Updated: June 2007