This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of St Augustine, Ponte Vedra & The Beaches, Florida. All opinions are 100% mine.

New Day – Photo by AM Shehadeh

Ponce de Leon, who claimed Florida for Spain, first explored the area of Saint Augustine in 1513.  Founded in 1565, St. Augustine is the oldest continuously occupied European established city, and the oldest port, in the continental United States.

St Augustine, Ponte Vedra & The Beaches are on the eastern coast of Florida, either on the Atlantic, the intercoastal waterway or riverfront.  There are all types of lodging, from luxurious beach front suite to a cozy room in a bed and breakfast in a historic home in St. Augustine.  There are also state parks, where you may camp in a tent or RV or rent a cabin or a room in a lodge.

My choice of lodging would be to camp with our trailer in Anastasia State Park on the beach.  If that park were unavailable, I would camp in Faver-Dykes State Park, a park that is known as a birding hotspot and is only a short drive to the beaches.  If you want to be closer to the action, then I would suggest the Carriage Way Bed and Breakfast, which is located in the historic section of St. Augustine.  If you stay at the B&B, you are just steps away from sights, dining and shopping.

Once you have checked into your lodgings, look at the area map and mark points of interest to you.  Inlets, barrier islands, bays and estuaries segment the coastline, so you will want to plan your trip.  Spend one or more days exploring the historic town of  St. Augustine.  You may explore St. Augustine on foot or take a scenic boat ride, a fishing trip or an eco-tour.

The St. Augustine Lighthouse was built in 1874 on the north end of Anastasia Island.  The view from the 165 foot tower is wonderful and not to be replicated anywhere else in the area. Although the view of the inlet and harbor from the rampart of the Castillo de San Marcos is inspiring. The inlet is best seen from the north side at Vilano Beach.

Castillo de San Marcos has daily interpretive programs by the National Park Service feature authentically uniformed soldiers from the 18th century.  Live cannon firings and discussion of colonial Spanish military life are included. .

Drive to Fort Matanzas National Monument, located 15 miles south of the city on Anastasia Island.  Pack a picnic, swimsuits and towels.  A free ferry takes you to Rattlesnake Island where you will view a historic reenactment of Spanish soldiers stationed at this remote outpost.

Suggested Itinerary

Day 1 -  get maps and brochures from CVB, check into accommodations, swim and plan your days.

Day 2 – spend the day exploring historic St. Augustine, including Castillo de San Marcos, if possible.

Day 3 – take a ride to Fort Manatazas National Monument, catch the ferry to the original site.

Day 4 – cruise to Anastasia State Park, where you can rents bicycles, beach chairs, ocean toys and umbrellas!

Day 5 – explore the beaches north and south of where you are staying

Day 6 – schedule a day for an airboat ride or leisurely cruise to view alligators in the wild. Pack up.

Day 7 -Sit back and relax as you are chauffeured in an horse-drawn carriage.

All photographs courtesy of the Florida Division of Historical Resources.

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Kissimmee Tourism. All opinions are 100% mine.

Kissimmee

Most people think of Orlando when they plan their trip to Disney World and Epcot Center. However, Kissimmee is just minutes south of the city of Orlando and the Orlando International Airport.

Kissimmee is close to all of the central Florida attractions and the price of accommodations  and meals in Kissimmee are less expensive than those at the Disney resorts.

I would love to stay at Tropical Fun RV Park in our travel trailer.  In addition to RV sites, Tropical Fun RV Park offers home rentals and furnished vacation cottages. Amenities include a heated outdoor pool, kiddie pool, playground, volleyball court, basketball court, shuffleboard courts, nine-hole mini-golf course, a nature area and biking and walking trails.

Activities

There are enough activities to keep you busy at the RV park for a day or two, but you must explore the surrounding area.

Spend at least one day at the Alligator Chain of Lakes.  Kissimmee and the nearby towns of St. Cloud and Celebration have lake front parks to explore.

For some excitement, take an airboat ride, hot air balloon trip or whiz through the trees on a zipline. All of these modes of transportation will allow you to see the real Florida.

Take a trip back in time by spending an afternoon or evening in Old Town (just down the street from Tropical Palms) and enjoy the classic car parades, rock n’ roll music, thrill rides and boardwalk.  This is a great place to purchase souvenirs.

Do not forget to save one or more day to explore Magic Kingdom® Park, Epcot®, Animal Kingdom® or Disney’s Hollywood Studios™.

There are freshwater springs at Silver Spring State Park and Blue Spring State Park. If you have time, do not miss the mermaids at Weeki Wachee Springs State Park.

You might also want to visit the beaches of the Gulf Coast or the Atlantic shore or the Kennedy Space Center.

I have just touched on the many activities, parks and events in and around Kissimmee.  Below is a sample itinerary to try and put things in perspective.

Sample Itinerary

Day 1 – Check into RV park or hotel, go swimming and pick up maps and literature.  Purchase tickets for Disney parks you wish to visit.

Day 2 – Pack a picnic lunch and enjoy the day at one of the chain of lakes.  Look into making reservations for a boat ride, balloon ride or zipline experience for the next day

Day 3 – Boat ride, balloon ride or zipline.  Visit Old Town in the afternoon/evening.

Day 4 – Disney

Day 5 – Disney

Day 6 – Visit Weeki Wachee Spring State Park. Take your swimsuit and enjoy Buccaneer Bay water park, located right next door to Weeki Wachee SP. Drop off your film to be developed on the way home.

Day 7 – Relax, pack and pick up your photographs.  Return home.

On the way to Florida, we had stayed at Fontainebleau State Park on Lake Pontchartrain for one night in the rain.  We wanted to return and explore the park in better weather.  We were rewarded with two days of sunshine on the return trip.

The park is surrounded on three sides by water (Lake Pontchartrain, Bayou Cane and Bayou Castine). The Tammany Trace, a 31-mile scenic trail, forms the other boundary of park.  The paved hiking/cycling trail with a parallel equestrian trail is the first of the Rails to Trails program in Louisiana.

The size of the lake and the sandy beach were surprising, as were the huge pavilion and an even larger fishing pier on the shore.  The power of hurricanes was demonstrated by a portion of a brick wall lying on the beach, part of the ruins of the sugar plantation that once stood nearby.

At the interpretative center, we met a ranger who asked if we wanted to see Bald Eagle hatchlings.  She met us outside and set up a spotting scope.  There is a photograph of the nest above, taken through the scope.  If you can spot the hatchlings, you have better eyes than mine.

This park has everything a RVer or camper might want.  There are 23 camp sites with full hookups, 103 with electric and water, 37 unimproved sites, 10 cabins, a lodge and group camping areas.  Add playgrounds, trees with grape vines large enough to swing, lots of shade and picnic areas and you have everything needed for family fun.

These pictures were taken in Louisiana in late February and during the first week of March. At the time, it was snowing just north of Interstate Highway 10, from Texas to Florida.  We seemed to find pockets of sunshine as we traveled from Fontainebleau State Park on Lake Pontchartrain to Lake Fausse Pointe State Park in the Atchafalaya National Heritage Area to Sam Houston Jones State Park just outside of Lake Charles.

I looked up one day and saw buds on all the trees and little flowers bursting out everywhere.  I was amazed as it appeared to happen overnight between cold snaps.

George Island is on the Forgotten Coast of Florida off the Big Bend Scenic Byway, Hwy. 98.  When you reach the town of Eastpoint, look for the 4-mile bridge to St. George Island.  St. George Island is a 28-mile long barrier island with little development.

There is a small town in the middle of the island, with beach homes, some small inns, a few restaurants, and canoe, kayak, bicycle and golf cart rentals.  Mostly there are white sand dunes and beautiful beaches on both coasts of the island, the coast on the Apalachicola Bay and the coast on the Gulf of Mexico.

The park covers 1,962 acres on the east end of St. George Island.  Here you will find sandy coves, salt marshes, slash pines, wild rosemary and windblown oaks.  There are tall dunes, covered with scrub, rosemary, sea oats, tree roots and tiny creeping and blooming flowers.

There is primitive camping at the end of the East Slough Nature Trail, which ends at Gap Point.  The RV sites in Sugar Hill Camping Area are easily accessed from the Park Road.  They are all sandy, spacious back-in sites with table, fire ring and two poles for stringing a drying line.

The first day, we parked and then rode our bikes on the East Slough Nature Trail and explored the beach on the Gulf coast.  There are nine miles of beaches, four that are in the main park and include boat ramps, parking, shaded picnic tables, swimming areas and restroom facilities.

The next day we decided we would explore the sensitive protected area eastern portion of the island.  There was a rough road in place, so we decided to bike it.  We had no idea how long the road was, but it did not look that long on the map of the park.

After about two miles, the road worsened, so we decided to leave our bikes and walk the rest of the way.  It was a beautiful sunny day and we enjoyed the walk that went on for three more miles.  When we reached the end of the Island, where the bay met the gulf, we decided to visit the Gulf beach.

It was a beautiful white sand beach on the Gulf of Mexico.  Our footprints were the only ones on the beach.  As we explored, we found seashells, dead horseshoe crabs, driftwood and empty turtle eggs.  We sat in lee of a dune and ate our picnic lunch.  We could have easily taken a nap after our lunch, but the sun was going down and the wind was turning cold.

We walked most of the way back on the beach, finally cutting across the dunes to find the road.  Luckily, we had plenty of drinking water or we would not have made it back to our bikes.  When I was about ready to drop, we found our bikes.  We peddled with all we had, but it was cold and dark by the time we reached the campground.

We were freezing, with windburns on our faces and hands.  We hurt–bad.  After loading up on anti-inflammatory drugs, we fell into our bed and slept for ten hours.  So, we survived the ten-mile-round trip walk/bike marathon, with no lasting damage.