Vilano Beach

Located to the north of St. Augustine, Vilano Beach is a large beach with brown sand. This beach is situated in a town (also named Vilano Beach) and has a backdrop of oceanfront residential houses. A pier named Vilano Beach fishing pier is also present near this beach. 

Vilano Beach has many lifeguards including lifeguards (on a seasonal basis), restrooms, showers, pavilions, and picnic tables. Dogs are allowed on Vilano beach on a leash. 

Vilano Beach offers many activities including sunbathing, beachcombing, wildlife watching, fishing, beach-driving, swimming, kayaking, horse-riding, canoeing, surfing, skim-boarding, paddle-boarding, windsurfing, kitesurfing, boating, jet-skiing, surf-skiing, water-skiing, and parasailing. If you are planning to enter the water near this beach, we recommend being careful as the water here is known to have considerable depth and strong currents and waves. However, despite the unfavorable water conditions, surfers and skim-boarders often enter the water here as it offers fun and thrilling surfing waves. Depending on the time of the year, you can view many kinds of animals in the water here including dolphins and sea turtles. You can also drive your vehicle on Vilano Beach between March and September. However, if you are planning to drive your vehicle on Vilano Beach, please note that only four-wheeler vehicles are allowed here and you also need to pay a fee for doing so. You can visit St. Johns County’s website for more information regarding the beach driving-fees, along with rules for the equestrian permit (which is required for riding horses on this beach). If you are planning to fish in the water near Vilano Beach, please make sure that you follow the local fishing regulations. Vilano Beach and the area around it hosts many fun events throughout the year including Florida Skim-boarding Pro/Am Tournament (which is held in August) and the Pro Watercross National Championship Tour which is organized in May.

The Vilano Beach Fishing Pier present near the beach offers amazing Instagram-worthy views of the Tolomato River. This pier has a retro decor and is also an amazing fishing spot. While many interesting events are held on this pier, the most prominent one is the Sunset Celebration which is held from 3 pm to sunset on the first Saturday of each month. This event sees live music performances being organized around the pier, along with plenty of food options. In addition, street vendors are also present around the pier during this event.

Getting to Vilano Beach is easy - the main access point for this beach is present near 2725 Anahma Drive, which is easily accessible from Florida State Road A1A and a parking lot is also present nearby. In addition, you can also access the beach from 3070 Coastal Highway.

There are many attractions near Vilano Beach. The Fountain of Youth Archaeological Park is a privately owned park that is spread over 15 acres. This park has many interesting exhibitions that offer a unique insight into Florida’s Pre-Columbian and Colonial history. In addition, the park also has exquisite peafowl. As an interesting fact, the park’s eastern part is known to be the spot where Pedro Menéndez de Avilés established a colonial settlement nearly 500 years ago. Castillo de San Marcos National Monument is centered around a 16th-century fort named Castillo de San Marcos which was built by the Spanish to protect their trans-Atlantic trading route. This fort is the oldest masonry fort in the continental United States and is a part of the United States’ National Register of Historic Places. This fort offers a unique insight into Florida’s and southern United States’ vibrant history. You can learn more about this fort’s military and historical significance via guided tours. In addition, historical re-enactments are also conducted on the fort’s premises in order to demonstrate the lives of the fort’s military and civilian residents. The fort also organizes cannon firings on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays at 10:30 am, 11:30 am, 1:30 pm, 2:30 pm, and 3:30 pm. However, please note that cannon firings are subject to weather conditions. If you are looking for another attraction near Vilano Beach, Old Jail is a former jail that was active between 1891 and 1953 and was designed in the Romanesque Revival architectural style. Visitors can explore this popular historical landmark via guided tours which are available between 9 am and 4:30 pm every day and offer an interesting insight into the prison’s history and the lives of its notorious inmates. In addition, the prison also offers thrilling night tours as a part of the larger city-wide Ghosts and Gravestones Tour.

If you get hungry, there are many great nearby restaurants near Vilano Beach. Raintree Restaurant is an upscale restaurant which is set in a beautiful 19th century building. This restaurant serves amazing gourmet dishes with Mediterranean, Asian, and American culinary influences. In addition, this restaurant also has been awarded Wine Spectator magazine’s Award Of Excellence and OpenTable’s Diners’ Choice awards in 2016. Beaches at Vilano offers an amazing waterfront dining experience. In addition, the restaurant also serves amazing seafood, steaks, salads, sandwiches, tacos, wraps, burgers, and soups. If you are looking for another good and affordable restaurant near Vilano Beach,Hazel’s Hot Dogs serves amazing hot dogs and fries.

If you are looking for a hotel near Vilano Beach, there are many great nearby options. The 4-Star Renaissance St. Augustine Historic Downtown Hotel offers many amenities including a fitness center, a pool, and a coin-operated laundry. A more affordable hotel is the 3-Star Hampton Inn & Suites St. Augustine-Vilano Beach which offers many amenities including a fitness center, a pool, a coin-operated laundry, complimentary breakfast, and weekend breakfast bags. If you are looking for another good and affordable hotel near Vilano Beach, the 2-Star Ocean Sands Beach Inn offers many amenities including complimentary breakfast, and a pool.