2601 Atlantic Ave, 32034; 904 277 7274 or 800 326 3521; www.floridastateparks.org/fortclinch
A fascinating fort and great freshwater and saltwater fishing draw visitors to this campground. Campers can choose between a beach and river location. Facilities include utility hook-ups, laundry, and an on-site store. Reserve well in advance.
$ • Kitchen facilities • Beach • Playground
Gainesville
Hotel
Hilton UF Conference Center
1714 SW 34th St, 32607; 1 352 371 3600; tinyurl.com/bm8oj4u
Located in the southwestern corner of the University of Florida (UF) campus, this hotel makes a superb base for visiting the UF museums and other sights. Rooms and suites are comfortably furnished. There is a fitness center, an outdoor pool, a sports bar, and gift shop on site.
$$ • Wi-Fi • Restaurant • Family rooms • Cafe • Swimming pool
Jacksonville
Hotels
Hampton Inn Beach Boulevard/Mayo Clinic
13733 Beach Blvd, 32224; 904 223 0222; tinyurl.com/bo3jnlh
A 10-minute drive from the beach, this hotel is a great budget choice for its clean airy rooms and suites. There is an indoor heated pool, an on-site convenience store, and free hot breakfast.
$ • Wi-Fi • Restaurant • Family rooms • Parking • Swimming pool
Omni Jacksonville Hotel
245 Water St, 32202; 904 355 6664; www.omnihotels.com
Located in downtown Jacksonville, a block from riverfront restaurants and shops, this four-diamond Omni boasts a roof-top pool, an upscale restaurant, and kid-friendly services.
$$ • Wi-Fi • Restaurant • Family rooms • Cafe • Swimming pool
Camping
Kathryn Abbey Hanna Park
500 Wonderwood Dr, 32233; 904 249 4700; www.coj.net
Just north of Atlantic Beach, this popular park offers a full-facility campground, with tent and RV sites as well as cabins. A freshwater lake and great bike trails are added perks. Amenities include a general store, laundry, and showers. Reserve ahead.
$ • Kitchen facilities • Parking • Beach • Playground
Jacksonville Beach
Hotel
Fairfield Inn & Suites Jacksonville Beach
1616 1st St N, 32250; 904 435 0100; tinyurl.com/82ahnvr
Steps away from the beach and local restaurants, this hotel offers suites suitable for larger families and is good for longer stays. Free breakfast.
$–$$ • Wi-Fi • Family rooms • Parking • Swimming pool
Ocala
Hotel
Courtyard Ocala
3712 SW 38th Ave, 34474; 352 237 8000; tinyurl.com/7dvptlo
Rooms and suites in this renovated hotel have flat-screen TVs and mini-refrigerators. The on-site restaurant, The Bistro, serves healthy breakfast choices and many dinner options.
$ • Wi-Fi • Family rooms • Cafe • Parking • Swimming pool • Restaurant
Orange City
Camping
Blue Spring State Park
2100 W French Ave, 32763; 386 775 3663; www.floridastateparks.org
This winter home of manatees offers 51 campsites within walking distance of the spring, in addition to six well-equipped cabins. The sites have water, electricity, picnic tables, and grills.
$ • Kitchen facilities • Parking • Beach • Playground
Cabin at the campsite in Blue Spring State Park, near Orange City
Ponte Vedra Beach
Hotel
Sawgrass Marriott Golf Resort & Spa
1000 PGA Blvd, Ponte Vedra Beach, 32082; 904 285 7777; tinyurl.com/2qbqty
A top golf resort, this AAA three-diamond property is also terrific for a beach vacation, with a quick shuttle to the oceanfront club. The hotel offers high-quality kids’ programs, a great spa, and an on-site restaurant.
$$ • Wi-Fi • Family rooms • Cafe • Swimming pool • Restaurant
St. Augustine
Hotel
Hilton St. Augustine Historic Bayfront
32 Avenida Menendez, 32084; 904 829 2277; tinyurl.com/7od9wcd
Located in the historic district, this Hilton hotel makes a great base for exploring the nearby attractions. Rooms come with mini-refrigerators.
$$$ • Wi-Fi • Restaurant • Family rooms • Cafe • Swimming pool
Bed & Breakfast
Bayfront Marin House Bed and Breakfast
142 Avenida Menendez, 32084–5049; 904 824 4301; www.bayfrontmarinhouse.com
This B&B welcomes kids with family-friendly accommodations, private entrances, and a gorgeous bayfront location. Efficient service.
$$–$$$ • Garden • Wi-Fi • Family rooms • Parking
Camping
Anastasia State Park
1340 Florida A1A, 32080; 904 461 2033; www.floridastateparks.org
A short walk from the beach, the campsites include utility hook-ups, grills, fire rings, and picnic tables. The park has a store/restaurant that also rents beach and sports equipment.
$ • Restaurant • Kitchen facilities • Parking • Beach • Playground
>>Hotels Map
< Exploring Florida
The Panhandle
The Panhandle has much to offer families besides miles of dazzling white beaches. This was where the Spanish first attempted to colonize Florida, and the region is rich in Spanish and Native American history. This northwest area, bordering the states of Georgia and Alabama, is also more Old South in spirit, with charm galore in cities such as Tallahassee and Pensacola, along with museums and aquariums for rainy days.
The Blue Angels flight demonstration team performing over Pensacola Beach
Highlights
Grayton Beach
The oldest town on the South Walton, the lanes here are paved with oyster shells and lined with historic cottages and modern beach homes (see South Walton).
Seaside
Admire pastel-colored cottages with picket fences in the town that was the film location for The Truman Show (see South Walton).
National Naval Aviation Museum
This museum, in Pensacola’s Naval Air Station, traces aviation history with exhibits and hands-on training sessions (see National Naval Aviation Museum).
Gulf Islands National Seashore
Pick a spot to sunbathe on this 150-mile (240-km) paradise of pristine beach and dunes that can be accessed from Pensacola or Fort Walton.
Mission San Luis
A mission dating to the 1600s is brought to life by re-enacters at this site that was shared by the Spanish and the Apalachee Indians (see Mission San Luis).
Wakulla Springs State Park
Take a riverboat tour or stand on the observation platform at this park, which has one of the world’s deepest springs (see Wakulla Springs State Park).
The Best of The Panhandle
National Naval Aviation Museum, Pensacola
A driving tour is one of the best ways to sample the Panhandle’s many fascinating facets. Families can choose between busy beach towns, serene villages, or cities that exude Southern charm. Tallahassee, the state capital, is steeped in history; Pensacola has a marvelous military museum; and Apalachicola offers the ambience of a traditional fishing town. The region’s scenic state parks have pristine beaches, and are meccas for wildlife.
Outdoor action
The Panhandle’s state parks contain unspoiled beaches and a rare feature – coastal dune lakes, 15 of which are found in the region. The lakes provide beautiful vistas, an abundance of bird life, and opportunities for canoeing or kayaking. Lake Powell, near Panama City, is the largest of the lakes, Western Lake in Grayton Beach State Park is one of the loveliest, and Topsail Hill Preserve State Park, near Santa Rosa, boasts five scenic ponds. The state parks have miles of trails for hiking and biking. The Panhandle also has uncrowded beaches to escape to. Shell Island, reached by ferry from St. Andrew’s State Park in Panama City, is pure bliss for shell collectors. St.
George Island State Park, a barrier island near Apalachicola, has 9 miles (14 km) of tranquil beach and dunes, and the many miles of the Gulf Islands National Seashore offer plenty of peace.
Historic highlights
This area provides many opportunities to see some of the best-preserved traces of Florida’s first inhabitants. Indian Temple Mound Museum in Fort Walton marks what was once the center of one of the largest Native American communities. The mound, 17 ft (5 m) tall and 223 ft (68 m) long, is one of the biggest ever found. More Native American lore awaits at Lake Jackson Mounds Archaeological State Park near Tallahassee. A few miles away is the Letchworth-Love Mounds Archaeological State Park in Monticello with the tallest recorded ceremonial mound.
Saluting the military
Two major military bases in the Panhandle are home to museums with great family appeal. The National Naval Aviation Museum, at Pensacola’s Naval Air Station, has historic planes on display. In addition, there are flight simulators which offer visitors of all ages the thrill of experiencing air combat and stunt flying. For a slice of Pensacola’s early military history, visit Fort Barrancas, which dates from the Civil War, and Fort Pickens, once a prison for Apache chief Geronimo. Located at Eglin Air Force base in Fort Walton is the Air Force Armament Museum, with fighters, bombers, and spy planes.
Southern comfort
Visitors looking for Southern charm can head to Tallahassee and Pensacola, which show the influence of their southern neighbors. A city of rolling hills and canopy roads, Tallahassee has antebellum homes dating from its cotton and tobacco plantation days, such as Goodwood Museum and Gardens, as well as the Park Avenue Historic District, with parks and elegant pre-Civil War architecture. There is no mistaking the Southern sway in the accents and genteel tempo of Pensacola, as seen in the historic district’s architectural styles, and in entertaining museums with unusual and educational exhibits.
Rotunda of the Florida State Capitol, Tallahassee
< The Panhandle
The Panhandle
Family exploring the Seaboard Air Line caboose, Tallahassee Museum
The Panhandle stretches for some 300 miles (483 km) across the northwest corner of the state, between the Gulf of Mexico and the southern states of Alabama and Georgia. Most families head straight for the beach resorts that extend in an arc between Pensacola and Panama City, but the less-explored interior – a hilly, pine-forested landscape unusual in Florida – also offers plenty of recreation. Though the region is large, excellent highways make it easy to navigate by car: I-10 links Tallahassee and Pensacola, and Highway 98 serves the beach towns.
1. South Walton
2. Air Force Armament Museum
3. Gulf World Marine Park
4. ZooWorld Zoological & Botanical Conservatory
5. Pensacola
6. National Naval Aviation Museum
7. Tallahassee
8. Mission San Luis
9. Tallahassee Museum
10. Alfred B. Maclay Gardens State Park
11. Wakulla Springs State Park
12. San Marcos de Apalache Historic State Park
13. Apalachicola
>>Practical Information
>>Sights Map
>>Where to Stay
< The Panhandle
1. South Walton
Sparkling beaches and village charm
Grayton Beach, a charming beach town
Lying between the high-rise buildings in Fort Walton and Panama City are 26 miles (42 km) of the finest beaches in Florida. The South Walton shoreline boasts sand that is almost pure quartz crystal, dazzling white to the eye, and soft underfoot. Lined with a string of low-rise, quiet villages, the beaches are great for families. Just under half of the region is preserved as state parks and forests, and opportunities for recreation are plentiful.
Key Sights
1. Baytowne Wharf This lively enclave along the shores of Choctawhatchee Bay has boutiques, eateries, and the Baytowne Wharf Adventure Zone with a climbing wall and a zip line for adventure-lovers.
2. The Artists at Gulf Place This cooperative artists’ colony and open-air market in Santa Rosa Beach is one of many colorful spots in South Walton where local art is featured.
4. Grayton Beach State Park Award-winning beaches, pine forest, and a nature trail through the dunes with views of scenic Western Lake make this park a special retreat.
5. Eden Gardens State Park The restored, antique-filled Wesley House, a typical Southern mansion of the 19th century, inspires visions of hoop skirts and Scarlett O’Hara in Gone With the Wind. Picnic along Tucker Bayou, and explore a nature trail and lush gardens shaded by moss-draped live oaks.
6. Seaside Developed in the 1980s, this planned village has quaint pastel-colored cottages, and lanes laced with sandy paths that lead to the beach, shops, and restaurants.
7. Timpoochee Trail Running the full length of Scenic Highway 30A, this superb 23-mile (37-km) bike path winds through the beach communities, along coastal dune lakes, and through picturesque scenery with views of the Gulf of Mexico.
8. Rosemary Beach Inspired by the Seaside model of a walkable village, this town has a mix of architecture, some with a New Orleans influence, and a wide village green.
Left Seaside village Middle Sculptures at Eden Gardens State Park Right Rosemary Beach
>>Practical Information
>>More Things to Do
>>Eat and Drink
>>Kids' Corner
Kids’ Corner
Beach fun
Digging in the sand, playing in the waves, and building sand castles are some of the popular activities on the Panhandle’s beaches. What else would you add to the list?
>> Answer
Trial by kite
Around 300 years ago, judges in the US flew kites above people accused of crimes. They believed that the kite would dip down over a guilty person.
Taking off
South Walton’s beaches are perfect for kite-flying. Probably the most famous kite-flyer in history was American politician Benjamin Franklin, who, in 1752, flew a kite into a storm cloud to see if electricity would be conducted down its string. A key was attached near the bottom. The kite was struck by lightning and, when Franklin moved his hand toward the key, a spark jumped across and he felt shock, proving that lightning was electrical. Don’t try this at home – it could be fatal!
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< The Panhandle
2. Air Force Armament Museum
Take flight
Inside the cockpit of an aircraft at the Air Force Armament Museum, Fort Walton
This museum is located on the Eglin Air Force Base, home of the Air Armament Center (AAC), which is responsible for the development of air-delivered weapons. Start outside the building, where there is a lineup of over 20 military planes to inspect. These date from World War I to the present, and include the SR-71 Blackbird, the fastest plane ever built. It can fly at over 2,200 mph (3,520 km/h)! Inside the museum are four more vintage aircraft and an amazing collection of bombs, missiles, and rockets, as well as interactive displays including one that works the controls of a mock cockpit. Check out other fascinating exhibits, such as “bunker busters,” bombs that can hit targets deep underground. There is also a 30-minute film that illustrates the AAC’s history and accomplishments.
>>Practical Information
>>Letting Off Steam
>>Eat and Drink
>>Kids' Corner
Kids’ Corner
Find out…
How fast is the fastest plane in the world, the SR-71 Blackbird?
How high can the SR-71 Blackbird fly?
What is the name of the bomb that can hit targets underground?
What is the name of the radar-guided missile that can fire at many targets at once?
>> Ans
wers
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< The Panhandle
3. Gulf World Marine Park
A kiss from a seal