Exploring Historic St. Augustine with Kids
The Cosmos Mariners kiddos overlooking Matanzas Bay in St. Augustine FL
Add pirates, ghosts, and forts to your next Florida family vacation with a visit to St. Augustine with kids!
The city has an incredibly deep history that spans multiple centuries, giving you plenty of opportunities to share important bits of American history with your kids.
Plus, it is also so easy to navigate on foot, so you can easily return to your hotel for a quick snack or mid-day nap.
As a kid, St. Augustine was one of my favorite places to visit, and, now that I have kids of my own, I've discovered that the intrigue of the city hasn't been lost at all since I was little.
Here are my favorite family things to do in St. Augustine for kids.
Have fun learning!
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Updated 8/2022 | Written 4/2017
What is St. Augustine Florida Known For?
Flagler College (formerly the Ponce de Leon Hotel) in St. Augustine, Florida
St. Augustine has over 500 years of European and colonial history, and it considered the first successful colony in the New World.
From the earliest Spanish explorers to those who fought for freedom during the Civil Rights Movement, St. Augustine has been an integral part of American history.
If you, like many parents, want to showcase that history to your kids but are worried that they'll get bored in a musty museum, fear not!
St. Augustine is the perfect place to cover some of the most important moments in American history in a fun, interactive way.
Is St. Augustine Safe to Visit with Kids?
Definitely!
My most recent trip to St. Augustine was just myself and my two kids (who were 5 and 9 at the time of travel).
We walked, toured, ate, and explored without any issues, and I felt safe the entire time.
We even took a nighttime ghost tour, and I didn’t hesitate at all to walk through the historic district with the kids by myself then.
The city does have a small population of transit folks, most of whom hang out along St. George Street.
However, no one tends to bother visitors as they walk up and down this stretch of the historic district.
Best Things to Do in St. Augustine with Kids
Whether your kids are into ghosts or art or animals, there’s something in St. Augustine that is sure to catch their fancy!
Take your camera and wear comfortable shoes because there’s a lot of ground to cover here.
Most of St. Augustine is pretty stroller friendly, though some of the sidewalks around the historic district might be a little bumpy.
Don’t forget to carry a water bottle with you as your family explores the city. St. Augustine can be extremely hot in the late spring through the early fall.
Castillo de San Marcos
Team Cosmos Mariners at the Castillo de San Marcos
This was one of the very first historic ruins I can remember visiting as a child: the thick stone walls, the dark powder rooms, and the stunning vistas at the top appealed to my active imagination.
Preparing for the cannon demonstration
Castillo de San Marcos, which is over 350 years old, has something to interest every kid!
There are live cannon demonstrations, tiny rooms to explore, and a Junior Ranger program.
Throughout the day, visitors will also find soldier reenactors in various areas throughout the park.
These knowledgeable volunteers will show kids various parts of life in the fort from seeing how heavy a musket was (10 pounds!) to the types of money that would’ve been exchanged here.
Kids 15 and under are free with a paying adult, which makes this a fun and low cost experience in St. Augustine.
NOTE: the fort doesn’t have air conditioning, which makes for a sweltering experience in the summer. Bring a water bottle to refill at the filtered water station, and take lots of breaks.
Working on the Junior Ranger program at Castillo de San Marcos
Old Town Trolley Tour
You’ll see two competing trolley companies carrying visitors around the historic district. I’ve done both, and I prefer the Old Town Trolley company for a few key reasons.
On the trolley tour with my 5 year old
The Old Town Trolley company has 22 stops for a hop-on, hop-off experience.
This means that you aren’t stuck on the trolley for the duration of the tour, a benefit when traveling with kids.
The cost of your trolley ticket on the Old Town Trolley also allows you to use the trolley as much as you want between 9:00 AM-4:30 PM. The other trolley tour (Red Train Tours) locks you into a single, non-stop tour around the city.
In short, you could just use it as a shuttle to get around the city, but the live tour makes the experience better that just a shuttle.
The drivers provide running commentary about the sights throughout the tour, and each driver has slightly different factoids.
You could take the tour 2 different times with different drivers and learn something new each time!
If you DID want to see the entire tour without stopping, its just over 1 hour and 30 minutes from start to stop.
The 22 stops are scattered all over the city, so there’s sure to be one convenient to your hotel if you’re staying in the historic district.
If you’re traveling from outside the historic district, park at the Old Town Trolley main depot next to the Old Jail on St. Marco Avenue.
If you’re wondering how much your kid will get out of the tour, I can share that my 9 year old found it fascinating.
My 5 year old didn’t pick up as much (which I expected), but he LOVED zipping around the city in the green and orange trolley.
St. Augustine Pirate and Treasure Museum
The feared Cosmos Mariners pirates have been captured!
The St. Augustine Pirate and Treasure Museum wasn't around when I was a kid, so the first time I had the chance to explore it was on a press trip a few years back.
I wasn't super excited about it since I figured it just had to be hokey, but I'd been given press passes and had some free time to kill.
I was completely wrong about this place, and it now comes as one of my most recommended things to do in St. Augustine with kids!
Not only does it have more than a dozen exhibits, the Pirate Museum is also packed with artifacts and information on different pirates, ships, and political conflicts.
As an adult, I loved reading the well-researched blurbs next to the artifacts, and my kids loved all of the interactive elements throughout.
Your kids will get a treasure map at the start of your adventure, and they’ll need to seek out the answers in a series of hidden drawers throughout the museum.
Their reward is a piece of pirate gold!
Additionally, kids can try their hand at lighting a replica cannon, complete with a big “boom!”
There’s an audio experience in the Below Deck section, which my kids were too scared to try.
It is fun for older kids since this audio-based experience puts you into the middle of a battle with Blackbeard, but the small, dark room might be too much for younger kiddos.
Entrepreneur and former Philadelphia 76ers president Pat Croce is the curator and owner of the Museum, and much of what you see in the museum is from his private collection.
His passion for history and artifact recovery is evident in every nook and cranny of the place.
Your kids will love every nook and cranny! Plan to stay at least an hour or so to fully experience everything, but your ticket will allow you to get in and out for a day.
>> Get your tickets for the St Augustine Pirate and Treasure Museum here. <<
The Colonial Quarter
Over the years, the historic district in St. Augustine has ebbed and flowed in its offerings.
The Colonial Quarter been around, in one form or another, since the early 1960s, and I can remember it as a kind of outdoor living museum where you could visit different areas from the Spanish colonial period.
In 2011, the property was shut down temporarily for renovations, and, under the direction of Pat Croce (yep, the same guy from the Pirate Museum!) completely reworked it.
Today, the property is massive, and allows visitors to travel through the different periods in St. Augustine's history.
At each station, there are interactive exhibits and demonstrations.
You'll learn how to fire a musket to protect the English settlement, make nails to fix the Spanish ships, and differentiate between all of the flags that have flown over this storied town.
Your guide—and all of the other live demonstrators—are dressed in period costume, which lends an air of authenticity to the tour.
This is hands-on, personal learning at its best, and your kids will come away with an amazing understanding of the day to day life of colonial St. Augustine.
Oldest Wooden Schoolhouse
In this era of iPhones and tech-based everything, you wouldn't think that a one room schoolhouse would intrigue kids.
Yet, it does!
When my daughter visited for the first time when she was 3, it was all my parents could do to coax her out of it.
She even came away with a small chalkboard from the souvenir shop--the same trinket I picked up on my first visit many (many) years ago.
The Lightner Museum
The Cosmos Mariners kids in the courtyard of the Lightner Museum
The Lightner Museum is fantastic for both older and younger kids since the glasswork, shell collections, statues, antique furniture, and artwork is unlike anything they've probably encountered before.
Start in the building’s courtyard, where you can listen to the babbling fountains.
Feed the koi fish in the pond by buying a handful of fish food in the dispensers for $0.25.
Among the incredible things to see here is the stuffed lion that was given to Winston Churchill by the London Zoological City following victories in Northern Africa during World War II (bottom right).
You’ll also see many examples of the fine furniture that was used when this building was the Alcazar Hotel in the 1920s (upper middle photo).
It was the second hotel built in St. Augustine by railroad magnate Henry Flagler and played host to the rich and famous of that era. [The first was the Ponce de Leon Hotel, now Flagler College, right across the street from the Lightner Museum.]
The tiny mummy on the ground floor is another exhibit that captured my kids’ imaginations.
A recent scan showed that the mummy was a 4-6 year old Egyptian child who likely died from a rapid onset infectious disease.
My kids also liked the Russian and Turkish baths on the 2nd floor, where we could see the remnants of this once thriving option for hotel visitors (upper right photo).
Looking into the Cafe Alcazar in the old pool of the Alcazar Hotel
Finally, head to the Cafe Alcazar at the back end of the museum via the entrance on Cordova Street.
While this small restaurant isn’t recommended for younger kids, it is a tasty and refined choice for older kids and teens.
Even if you don’t eat here, walk along the floor and look up. You’re currently standing in the deep end of the massive pool built for the Alcazar Hotel.
At the time of its construction, was the largest indoor pool in the world!
Admission for kids under 12 is free with a paying adult, making this another low cost thing to do in St. Augustine with kids.
St. Augustine Ghost Tour
Our tour guide Rob shares stories about Tolomato Cemetery
I love to take ghost tours when I’m traveling!
It’s fun to be a little scared, but mostly I love learning about the legends in different places as they shed light into that’s area’s unique history and culture.
On our most recent visit to St. Augustine, my kids went on their first ever ghost tour, and they loved it.
I’d been on several of the ghost tours in St. Augustine before, but I wanted one on this trip that was family friendly.
My 5 year old is adventurous but easily scared, and I wanted him to have fun without being so terrified he wouldn’t be able to sleep that night.
For this reason, I chose the 7:40 PM tour with A Ghostly Encounter.
The younger Cosmos Mariner kiddo with his EMF reader
Our guide, Rob, was an enthusiastic storyteller, who managed to weave together St. Augustine history with some spooky stories from around the historic district.
My kids are still talking about the creepy mourning doll uncovered at the Potter Wax Museum, the ghost sentry at the Castillo de San Marcos, and the little girl who guards the original city gates on Orange Street.
This tour doesn’t have any quick scares, and is reliant on the guide’s ability to weave a good tale.
It was fun, historical, creepy, and definitely family friendly.
NOTE: if you have a younger kid who needs something to focus on during the 1.5 hour walking tour, I highly recommend renting the $5 EMF reader.
I got this for my 5-year-old to hold, and he loved the idea that he was “ghost hunting”!
Ask at the check-in building desk for one before your tour starts.
Fountain of Youth Archeological Park
If you're not a kid anymore, perhaps you'll find the key to returning to your youth here!
Entrance to the Fountain of Youth in St. Augustine
For more than 150 years, people have been coming to the Fountain of Youth, making it the oldest tourist attraction in the state.
Don't miss the daily firing of the 6-pounder cannon from the 1500s and the crossbow exhibition.
Kids will also like visiting the replica Timucua village and learning about the people who were here before even the Spanish arrived in the 1500s.
The planetarium and lookout tower are also must-visits for families.
Make sure you get a photo with one of the 30 resident peacocks.
You can often find them walking around with their full plumage on display!
Explore more ideas for kid friendly fun on nearby St. Augustine Beach, one of the best East Coast islands for family vacations!
Best Kid Friendly Restaurants in St Augustine FL
After all of that family fun and touring around town, your kids are sure to be hungry!
If your family is anything like mine, they want to eat at local restaurants with quality food and a laid back atmosphere.
All of the suggestions below have been tried and tested for families of all ages, but they’re particularly friendly for the younger kiddos thanks to a combination of kid friendly menu options and welcoming dining areas.
Pizzalley’s Chianti Room
3 cheese tortellini at Pizzalley’s Chianti Room
We found Pizzalley’s Chianti Room on our most recent visit to St. Augustine when my older kid was set on having pasta for dinner.
Located in the historic district, Pizzalley has 2 areas: one part that houses a cocktail and dessert bar, and another that has the main dining area.
Head into the main dining room for some of the most delicious pasta you’ve ever tasted.
After much discussion, we decided to get several items and split them between us.
The caesar salads were fresh with homemade dressing, and the garlic breadsticks practically melted in our our mouths.
The 3 cheese tortellini was creamy and delicious, and we now want to try ALL of the combinations in the make-your-own pasta section!
The kids menu had plenty of tried and true favorites on it, including chicken fingers, a kids’ pasta bowl, and mozzarella moons.
The atmosphere is warm and inviting, and there was a great buzz while we were there for dinner.
Sweetwater Coffee and Gallery
Waiting for our food at Sweetwater Coffee and Gallery
This adorable coffee shop is located right next to the Lightner Museum and stop 10 on the Old Town Trolley route.
I’ve popped in here a few times on my visits to St. Augustine, and it never disappoints.
My kids loved the massive PB+J on brioche.
They also couldn’t get enough of the Waffle Things sandwich, which is named after Stranger Things and is a spin on their sausage, egg, and cheese bagel sandwich. Instead of a bagel, the contents are sandwiched with freshly made waffles!
I love their iced coffees and the Great White Bagel, which is a spin on a caprese salad.
Their bagels are brought in fresh daily, so you’ll have multiple flavors to choose from. My favorite is the garlic bagel, but the cheddar cheese and the onion bagels are also yummy.
My kids loved to listen to the carillon bells over at Flagler College while we ate. Your family will also enjoy looking around at the colorful artwork everywhere inside.
Columbia Restaurant
My husband and I first were introduced to the Columbia Restaurant at their flagship location in Ybor City in Tampa.
While the St. Augustine location doesn’t have the flamenco show, the food here is just as delicious as the one in Ybor City.
Adventurous kids will love to try the traditional Cuban food here.
I love the signature 1905 salad, which is creamy, zesty, and cheesy.
Get a selection of tapas for the entire family, which will allow your kids to try a bunch of different flavors and textures.
The Hyppo
This isn’t a restaurant, but a delicious ice pop store!
If your kids have eaten well at dinner—or if you need a midafternoon snack—head over to Hyppo pops to select one of their unique and delicious flavors.
From PB+J to Strawberry Basil to Blueberry Cheesecake, your kids can try new flavor combinations in the most familiar form possible (ice cream!).
If you have older kids or adventurous eaters, check out the best downtown St. Augustine restaurants!
Best St. Augustine Stays for Families
When traveling with my kids, I’m always on the lookout for unique properties that are close to our chosen activities.
Over the years, we’ve tried many of the hotels in St. Augustine, and the two below are our two favorites.
St. Francis Inn
St. Francis Inn at the corner of St. Francis and St. George Streets
This historic inn is also one of St. Augustine’s haunted hotels!
Dating back to the late 1700s, this property is one of the most unique places you’ll ever stay.
The courtyard has tables for al fresco breakfasts, and the interior is cozy, creaky, and luxurious.
There are a wide variety of room types, including a 2 room suite that is perfect for families who need a little more space.
The St. Francis Inn costs about what the local Hilton and Hampton Inn do, and I highly recommend St. Francis Inn over the chains.
Plus, you’ll get a free nightly dessert while staying here, and the owners might even pop in to tell you about the resident ghost who runs around on the 3rd floor!
The inn is located deep in the heart of the historic district and is next to the Oldest House Museum on St. Francis Street.
It’s also steps away from stop 15 on the Old Town Trolley tour.
>> Read my full review of the St. Francis Inn, the best bed and breakfast in St. Augustine FL. <<
Marion Motor Lodge
Show your kids a bit of Old Florida with this classic motor lodge!
Located across the street from Mantanzas Bay and less than a block from Constitution Plaza and Aviles Street, the Marion Motor Lodge is in an excellent location in the historic district.
While the exterior of this property will take you back to the 1970s, the interior is super modern with tiled showers, flat screened TVs, and spacious rooms.
We opted for a 2 queen room, but there are rooms with 1 queen bed, 1 king bed, or 3 queen beds, too.
My kids loved the novelty of not having elevators to our second floor room, and they enjoyed popping in to say hello the man who ran the front desk every day.
The pool is small but great for an evening swim.
Plus, there is free on-site parking, which means you can leave your car here and explore the city.
If you’re using the Old Town Trolley, stop 16 is less than a block away.
Have you visited St. Augustine with kids? Let me know what your favorite family activities were!
