Come for the beaches, stay for the shrimp festivals and pirates.
BetweenKey West , Everglades National Park , Miami , andan adorable gnawer named Mickey Mouse , Florida predominate as the quintessential summer vacation address . But amidst all the well - trod destinations , one comparatively muted island on the state ’s northernmost glide is an pelagic crosstie hit with all the “ fun in the sun , ” minus the hordes . In fact , Amelia Island is so far northwards — about 45 min northerly of Jacksonville — that it ’s much Georgia , with aboriginal flora that looks more Savannah than South Beach and with historic lore and nautical noshes to cope with .
Part of the same cosmic string of barrier islands that hug Georgia ’s slide , Amelia Island is the first of that chain to bilk the country credit line . reckon its geographic proximity , it ’s no wonder that the 13 - mile - long island is drape in Spanish moss and is refreshfully cooler than the rest of the sweltering province . It ’s a place of aboriginal American news report and swashbuckling account , of tortoises and gingerbread pirate ships , and of shrimp festivals and CBD - infused spa treatment . Amelia was populated for centuries by the Timucua mass before Spanish explorers , pirate ship , and Civil War fort came barging in , and long before the island ’s Fernandina Beach became a citadel of brick - trace sidewalks , prim building , fudge shop , and saloons .
Unlike the palm tree - lined calamity of South Beach , the swarming melodic theme parks of central Florida , the burnt pencil eraser of Daytona Beach , or eventhe surprising New Orleans - y vibraphone of Pensacola , the repose of Amelia Island , weave with trout - fill waterway and lined with sumptuousness hotels , feels like a cut of Floridian animation all its own .
Fewer people, yet so much to do.|The Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island
Where to stay on Amelia Island
Rising like a castling on the sandy shores , The Ritz - Carlton , Amelia Islandis the pouf of the island . And like any purple queen , the property keep its 30th anniversary in 2021 in style , with a exhaustive glow up . The tip jewel of Amelia Island glistens even more brilliantly these day , with refresh balcony - equipped rooms , design touches and tones inspired by the fence in instinctive landscape painting , and enough high - quality restaurants to ply a jubilee .
Steps from the beach , the property is the ultimate oceanfront oasis , equipped with Floridian essentials like an 18 - hole golf game course of study , a in full laden health spa with CBD - infused massages and their signature zero - gravitational attraction touch therapy in hand - woven hammocks , and heated kitty with chic , shaded cabana . Guests can embark on the resort hotel naturalist course of study , taking a leisurely walking enlistment around the property to learn about the flora and fauna , including the rarified luck to see both sand - digging gopher tortoises and marsh rabbits on the same sand dune , sure as shooting contemplating a footrace . With a swelled engrossment on the culinary ( more on that later ) , the hotel offers monthly “ chef ’s theatre ” cooking monstrance , as well as “ Hook , Line & Cruise ” outings , where guests embark on fishing excursions , culminating with ceviche prepared by a chef back on the dock .
For something a bit more intimate , Amelia Island boasts quaint inns likeElizabeth Point Lodge , a Nantucket - style cottage B&B right on the beach . Their smattering of suite and guest rooms are equipped with four - post-horse bed , balcony , and a charming front porch lined with rock chairs . Closer to downtown Fernandina Beach , Williams Houseis a B&B that oozes romance and magic spell , with two - course breakfast each morning and 10 rooms dissipate across three baby buggy house and Antebellum residence .
The Ritz-Carlton gives you the ritziest of views.|The Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island
Binge on shrimp and blackened fish tacos
Say what you will about Florida , but the state has good seafood — some of the in effect in the country , in fact . Amelia Island in particular is the kind of marine nirvana where chef go fishing too soon in the morning and then attend their pinch at lunch , or even filet it on the marina tail right before your eye .
On the casual remnant of the spectrum , Timoti ’s Seafood Shackin downtown Fernandina Beach is the sort of place that slings Spongebob - worthy crabby person patty burgers , fry huitre hoop , hush puppies , and blackened mahi tacos — and hang signage that read “ No shoes , no shirt , no shrimp ! ”
Nestled under a bridge at a marina , Down Underhas become a dockside origination all its own . Formerly a Pisces coterie that sold bait to fisherman before being turned into a seafaring eating house in 1982 , it ’s become an iconic stop . Anglers looking to throw away anchorperson at the dock hunker down on the Brobdingnagian deck for creamy crab dip , peel - and - exhaust shrimp , and grouper Monterey , oven broil under a layer of molten Monterey Jack cheeseflower and caramelized onions .
Fried seafood, blackened seafood, broiled seafood, ceviche seafood…|Timoti’s Seafood Shak
On the high-pitched end , seafood shines at the myriad restaurants at The Ritz - Carlton . Coastis the most locally inspired , offering an lofty take on Florida ’s bountifulness . They source fish and seafood from local fishermen for dishes like shrimp Louie salads , garlic - pantry shrimp buhl ( basically a kind of shrimp chowder in a fresh bread sports stadium ) , and blackened flounder sandwiches , alongside pimento - filled arancini and deep-fried unripe tomato slathered in gooey Burrata . PoolsideCoquinatakes a Latin approach path , with bracingly fresh arrest - of - the - day ceviche , blue shrimp aguachile , and whole roasted Pisces wrapped in banana leafage and spritz with lime .
Then there’sSalt , the ritziest of the restaurants at The Ritz , so name for its emphasis on infused ocean salt . Expertly deployed by veteran chef Okan Kizilbayir , the regal eatery feature ever - changing tasting menus inspired by both land and sea , served up in artful presentations with sauce pullulate tabular array side and dainty grievous bodily harm of deoxyephedrine cream gild with edible gold . Whether a la carte or prix fixe , Kizilbayir ’s fare commute constantly , from a squid ink paella with lobster soffrito to a Wiener schnitzel - attend melanise skate with a lustrous butternut escabeche stock . If you may snag a reservation , it ’s all well enjoyed at the two - soul chef ’s table in a wine-colored - filled room inside the kitchen .
For something more sugar than saltiness , hit up the aptly dubbedFernandina ’s Fantastic Fudge . This precious and soppy sweet workshop is still stirring fudge , pralines , caramels , and other treats the old fashioned way . They churn the goods with farsighted wooden paddle , then close down and interchange the cooled concoction with so much gumption that there are fudge stains on the ceiling .
Just a little caviar, why not..|Salt at The Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island
Drink with buccaneers and ghosts
Indoor - outdoor bars with live medicine are a popular pastime on the island , exemplified by local cornerstone likeGreen Turtle Tavern . The Brobdingnagian bar looks like a lowcountry cabin , or like a real life version ofTrue Blood ’s Merlotte ’s . But instead of vampires and bottled pedigree , it ’s land band and reggae musicians with a side of rooted strawberry margarita .
Just around the corner , Palace Saloonpeddles a unlike sort of kitsch — the type that involves boozy punch and ghost story . Established in 1903 , it ’s one of the oldest ceaselessly operating bars in Florida , even discreetly making sales through Prohibition . In its other heyday , this rustic watering hole was a veritableCheersfor thirsty ship maitre d’hotel . now , it ’s a preserved - in - time relic equip with a cold jukebox , mosaic - roofing tile floor , and an ornate wood barroom that looks like something out of Hill House — which makes sense , considering the saloon may or may notbe haunt by the John Barleycorn - loving ghost of a former barkeep . The drink of pick ? The misleadingly sottish Pirate ’s Punch , made with banana liqueur , ternary sec , white rum , Amaretto , grenadine , orange succus , and pineapple juice .
Back at the encompassing Ritz - Carlton , The Lobby Bar , despite its modest name , wow with punctilious mixology . Their roster include honest-to-god fashioneds smoked in an luxuriant glass box that bet like an A+ science labor , alongside jaw - drop sushi platters turgid enough to satiate a great white .
Some people call it a hook, some people call it a handy beer opener.|The Palace Saloon
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Lounge on beaches full of history
In addition to aforementioned ocean - to - board sportfishing excursions , Amelia Island is teem with outside diversion for the naval historian , the boat paddle boarder , and everyone in between . Naturally , beach - going is a primary pastime here , with 13 Roman mile of flaxen shoreline and more than 40 public approach point with liberal parking . ( Pro lead : If you have a Florida license plate , you ’re allow to drive your vehicle right onto the beach in select areas , for optimal first light vibes . )
The island ’s beaches are divvied into three main sections : the Main Beach , Central Amelia Island , and American Beach . The former is nickname the “ phratry geographical zone ” for its beachfront restaurants , mini golf game , volleyball game courts , playgrounds , and field day shelter . Whereas Central Amelia Island has more recreational options , like paddle board rentals , kayaking , and walking and biking trail through marshyEgans Creek Greenway . Then there ’s American Beach , a package of shoreline set up aside in 1935 by the Pension Bureau of the Afro - American Life Insurance Company to combat the state ’s sequestration laws . Over the class , it served as an oceanic getaway for famed sunbather like Ray Charles and James Brown , and today it ’s a full stop on Florida ’s Black Heritage Trail .
Party like a pirate
As manifest by the kitschy taverns , fudge - flinging confect workshop , and the omnipresence of wooden sea rover statues dot throughout Fernandina Beach , Amelia Island is n’t shy about getting outlandish . Indeed , it ’s prime territory for some of the quirkiest fete in Florida , like the wildly popularIsle of Eight Flags Shrimp Festival . A celebration of one of the island ’s most pop provisions ( as see on every restaurant fare in the neck of the woods ) , the festival is like Lollapalooza for shellfish . Celebrations are comprise of parade , art shows , artisan vender , elaborately decorated shrimp sauceboat , pirate - theme costume contest , and the Miss Shrimp Festival Pageant . Held per annum in recent - April and/or early - May , it ’s not rare to see giant shrimp swim bladder roving through business district Fernandina Beach and dogs trotting by in shrimp costume , past a sea of food vendors sling all personal manner of shrimpy speciality .
address of pirates , their swaggering traditional knowledge inspires another seasonal pastime here on the island . The deep waters at Port Fernandina were once an easy retreat for pirate ship , and therefore used to be a harbour for the likes of Blackbeard and Luis Aury . The island is now a haven for another kind of pirate ship — one made of gingerbread . The S.S. Amelia is an annual holiday tradition at The Ritz - Carlton , where a giant gingerbread pirate ship drops anchor in the lobby for the season , complete with cooky cannon , a confect - filled treasure chest of drawers , masts and sail , and of course , a pirate captain who is technically edible .
Other happenings include the annualRight Whale Festival , held every November as an altruistic celebration of the giant that add up to northeast Florida to give birth . The family - friendly event is designed to lift awareness for the endangered mintage , offering edutainment component alongside solid food truck , springy medicine , and ocean - theme activities for shaver .
Then , fare young yr , you wo n’t be surprised to learn that alternatively of a ball drop-off , Amelia Island hosts a runt fall in downtown Fernandina Beach . A heavyweight dazzle shrimp is lowered at the shot of midnight , beckon a whole newfangled year of fishing , ceviche - feeding , and gingerbread plagiarization .
You could by laying where Ray Charles got his tan on.|The Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island
Pack your tricorn hat.|Amelia Island
