Amelia Island is the last in the string of sea islands along the U.S.'s southeast coast. Only 13 miles long and two miles wide, the little island offers visitors an eclectic mix of things to do. This quick travel guide highlights the top five.
Beachy Keen! Amelia Island's beaches are ideal for families, couples, solo travelers and dogs. The wide beach gives everyone room to stretch and find their own place. Parking is free with plenty of public access. A favorite pastime of Amelia Island beachgoers is collecting fossilized sharks teeth.
American Beach is a must-see. It was originally an African American community founded during Jim Crow-era segregation. Today, American Beach is on the National Register of Historic Places. It's funky, kitsch and a nice contrast against the chichi resorts. During its peak, Ray Charles, Cab Calloway and Hank Aaron were some of the celebrities who visited American Beach.
Get Spooked.A few spirits lurk in Amelia Island's Fernandina Beach. Tales of the supernatural are revealed year-round on ghost walking tours. Tour participants may come face to face with one of the salty sea captains who navigated through Amelia Island's waters during the 1800s. Or, they learn about some of the 30 ghosts believed to be haunting the Florida House Inn, which happens to be Florida's oldest continuously run hotel. The Amelia Island Museum of History offers tours each Friday and Ghost Tours of Amelia offers tours every Friday and Saturday.
Fernandina Beach travelers wanting to spend quality time with the island's spooky inhabitants can spend a night at the Florida House Inn or the Williams House Bed & Breakfast. President of the Confederacy, Jefferson Davis, slept at the Williams House but it's the spirit of a friendly ghost with a disdain for candlesticks who haunts, err, entertains, inn guests.
Go Equestrian. Fernandina Beach's historic district is reminiscent of a Victorian village and it’s only befitting to see horse-drawn carriages. Thirty-minute tours take visitors through neighborhoods to look at historic landmarks and listen to tales of ghosts, pirates and other characters from Amelia Island's past. Amelia Island Carriages offers tours year-round.
Amelia Island is one of the few places in Florida to ride a horse on the beach. Kelly Seahorse Ranch fulfills the romantic dream of riding a horse along the surf. The one-hour tour in Amelia Island State Park is appropriate for beginners and riders must be at least 13-years-old and four-feet-six-inches tall.
Tee Up. Amelia Island may only be 26 square miles but the little sea island packs a punch with 117 holes of golf divided among four courses. The two public courses are the Fernandina Beach Golf Club and the Royal Amelia Links. The only PGA Tournament Course on Amelia Island is the Golf Club at Amelia Island at Summer Beach. The courses with the most spectacular views are found at Amelia Island Plantation with courses designed by Pete Dye and Tom Fazio.
Uncover the Past. Flags of eight nations have flown over Amelia Island, the only U.S. territory with this claim. The French, Spanish and English have shaped the island into the eclectic destination it is today. While walking the streets of Fernandina Beach, it's easy to imagine the rogue pirates and Victorian ladies who called the city home.
Housed in an old jail, the Amelia Island Museum of History shows and tells the island's history. In addition to ghost walking tours, other historical walking tours are offered. Fort Clinch State Park preserves Amelia Island's Confederacy Civil War history. The fort was later used as a World War II outpost and today is a state park.
For additional information on Amelia Island and Fernandina Beach, visit their Web stie.
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