Amelia Island is home to Fernandina Beach, a colorful downtown area with boutiques, ice cream parlors and restaurants. Amelia is the annual host of the Concours d’Elegance on Amelia Island, the Amelia Island Jazz Festival, the Lardo Island Film Festival, the Isla de los Ocho Banderas Shrimp Festival and the Amelia Island Chamber Music Festival. For outdoor enthusiasts, Amelia offers kayaking and canoe adventure, evening boat cruises, charters and fishing trips, nature trails to explore and abundant natural animals to watch. We highly recommend kayak trips from Amelia Island for guided kayak trips on Amelia Island. And for more romantic or special outdoor occasions, Élevé Events is a new luxury picnic and micro event company serving Amelia Island and Nassau County with unique and elegant events and picnics.
The Amelia Island Maritime Museum preserves the rich maritime history of Fernandina Beach and the Amelia Island region, located in an old historic downtown ice house. Exhibitions within the museum show the maritime culture of the region among each of the eight national flags since the 16th century, with artifacts such as uniforms of the United States Navy, Spanish pirate treasures and Soviet-era wetsuits. Maritime weapons are also exhibited, along inshore charter fishing amelia island with artifacts recovered from sunken shipwrecks near the island’s waters. The museum’s guides provide personal tours for all visitors, with stories from regional divers, navy members and fishermen. All tours are family-friendly and suitable for museum visitors of all ages. Fernandina Beach is the main community on the island of Amelia and one of the most important communities in the Greater Jacksonville region, with more than 11,400 inhabitants.
You can buy a selection of contemporary fine arts along with handmade items such as hand-woven baskets, cards, sculpted pumpkins and household items. Some gallery artists periodically offer workshops, open to participants of all ages and skill levels. Every second Saturday, the studio is open to the public in the evening and shows new works by leading artists.
Riptide Amelia Island offers private and group kayak tours, CraigCat tours and boat trips. Amelia Island Charters offers family fishing trips and private nature tours. Today, this luxury resort in North Florida is perfect for nature lovers and those who thrive on sun, sand and outdoor sports. The Omni Amelia Island Plantation Resort is a community surrounded by the natural beauty of the barrier islands. The Amelia Island nature center, part of the complex, is open to the public. As soon as you enter the building, turn left just outside the door to find the middle of nature.
Private cards can accommodate up to 80 passengers, with features accessible to ADA and food and drink for participants. Backwater Cat Adventure is one of Fernandina Beach’s leading boat adventure companies, originally opened in March 2016 on nearby Hilton Head Island. The company offers expeditions aboard a fleet of 11 Craigcat ships available for guided tours or self-exploration of the region’s waters. The tours are open to participants aged five and over, with at least two participants traveling on each boat trip. The tours take about two and a half hours and explore the waters around Hilton Head, Cumberland and the Amelia Islands and see sites such as Fort Clinch State Park and Fernandina Historical Port.
Tour participants can see dolphins and seabirds and explore beautiful marshes and inland waterways around the islands. All safety equipment is offered to all tour participants, with bottled water for all guests. For those planning a luxury vacation, book a stay at THE RITZ-CARLTON, AMELIA ISLANDorOMNI AMELIA ISLAND RESORT where children are a priority. Both resorts open onto a vast beach and offer award-winning children’s programs, babysitting services, a variety of play pools, nature-led nature programs and nearby shops and restaurants.
It has the perfect combination of a peculiar yet peaceful beach community AND a small historic town to make it a bit different and unexpected. The beaches are impeccable, the historic center, Fernandina Beach, is ridiculously charming. In addition, the food is absolutely delicious and unforgettable, making it a must-see. American Beach is a historic beach community on the island of Amelia, originally founded in 1935 by Florida’s first African-American millionaire, Abraham Lincoln Lewis, the founder of the African-American Life Insurance Company.
Five more qualified golf courses are also open to the public, along with The Palace Saloon, Florida’s oldest bar, opened in 1903. Several kayak, paddle barding and off-road Segway tourism companies offer guided tours to the underdeveloped areas of the region. Every May, the Eight Flags Island Shrimp Festival hosts an annual Miss Shrimp Festival competition, an antique supplier show, live music performances and a fireworks show. Opened to the public in 1938, the park protects important sand dunes, sea hammocks, plains and estuary tide habitats, located next to Fernandina Beach and Cumberland Sound. Park visitors can explore the remains of the old fort or enjoy a variety of leisure outdoor activities, including fishing along the half mile fishing pier from the park. A few kilometers of beach are also offered, along with a six-mile walking path and birdwatching opportunities, bombing, surfing, cycling and nature observation for native animals such as alligators, dolphins, manatees and rare purple sandstones.
Private expeditions are also offered for events such as weddings, proposals, birthdays and anniversaries, including full wedding packages and dates available for visitors looking for romantic equestrian expeditions. Protective helmets are required for passengers under 15 years of age, with helmets available on request for passengers of all ages. No list of the best things to do on Amelia Island, Florida is complete without this state park. Perfect for nature lovers, this park seduces visitors with its coastal maritime forests, swamps and beautiful beaches. Little Talbot is an unspoilt barrier island with 8 kilometers of fascinating and pristine coastline. You can spend days here appreciating the marshes, dunes and maritime forests.