Jacksonville Florida
Lots of beaches, city life, and outdoor activities
Jacksonville, Florida, is a natural water paradise. There are lots of waterways, parks, and ecological areas where you can get away from it all and relax in nature. The city has more than 80,000 acres of parks and more than 35 kilometers of undeveloped, white-sand beaches. It is the biggest urban park system in the country. Around all of this natural beauty is the country’s biggest city by land area, a modern and lively metropolis full of authentic restaurants, exciting attractions, world-class museums, beautiful hotels, fun events, a lively downtown, and unique neighborhoods where people are friendly and welcoming.
This “River City by the Sea” is all about water, from the beautiful beaches to the exciting Intracoastal Waterway and the sparkling St. Johns River. Get some exercise or work on your tan. You can take lessons in kiteboarding or surfing, rent kayaks and paddleboards, fish from the pier, or go on a fishing tour boat trip. When you stay at a resort by the beach, you can watch the sunrise over the Atlantic beach every morning. The Intracoastal Waterway is less than three miles from the beaches. It is made up of 64 kilometers of calm rivers and natural inlets where people can take an airboat ride and see dolphins, manatees, and hundreds of different bird species. In the middle of downtown, the St. Johns River is the main attraction. You can go on a brunch cruise on the river, walk the 4.8-kilometer RiverWalk, or check out the Riverside Arts Market, all while taking in the stunning views of the riverfront and city skyline.
Because Jacksonville has so many parks, green is the color of the city and adventure is its game. The Timucuan Ecological and Historical Preserve is a wild part of the city that is only minutes from downtown. This 18,615-acre park is perfect for people who want to enjoy nature. You can swim, boat, hike, fish, and visit historical places like Kingsley Plantation and Fort Caroline National Memorial, which is sometimes called Florida’s “Atlantis.” Kingsley Plantation has the former slave quarters, barn, plantation and kitchen houses, and garden that are now part of an ecological preserve. The Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens have more than 3,000 rare and exotic plant and animal types for you to see. You can feed lions, tigers, and other big cats by hand at Catty Shack Ranch Wildlife Sanctuary. You can also combine romance and excitement by riding horses on white-sand beaches on Amelia Island with Kelly Seahorse Ranch.
Jacksonville has the Jacksonville Symphony, the Museum of Contemporary Art, the Museum of Science and History, the Cummer Museum of Art and Gardens, and a Broadway Series. It is always ranked in the top 25 arts destinations in the country. The Alhambra, one of the few remaining dinner theaters in the country, is still open, as is Theatre Jacksonville, one of the oldest community theaters that has always been open. Every Memorial Day weekend, the Jacksonville Jazz Festival brings a great group of musicians and more than 130,000 jazz fans to downtown Jacksonville. Jacksonville has fun things to do and see every month of the year, from January to December.