jlab89

My parents (60s) are planning a road trip from Miami area up towards Savannah (and possibly on to Charleston). They have 6 days and on the 7th day fly out of Orlando (so need to be back down towards Orlando then). They are quite happy driving for hours per day as love a good road trip!

Can anyone suggest any places that they should stop by?

They are thinking possibly Daytona Beach, Jacksonville, and then up to Savannah.
Are there any cute fishing towns, historic landmarks or places of interest along this route?
They don't like overly busy places.

Any suggestions would be great and we can look into them further.

Thank you!

Daniel_Williams

hi jlab89

St. Augustine can be busy, but it's got its charm; definitely worth it for the energy and historic landmarks there! Castillo San Marcos if they stop there is a must; amazing how long that fort has lasted!

Best wishes, D. Williams

schmerl

I agree. If they are looking for history St. Augustine is the place to go.
Also lots of cute shops and restaurants there.

ekscrunchy

Mayport, Florida.

jeffergray

You will find a lot of helpful information at the topic below:

http://www.fodors.com/community/unit...needs-help.cfm

I have a very extensive post about halfway down that discusses the drive north from St. Augustine in detail.

Given what you say about your parents' interests, I would largely skip over Daytona Beach and Jacksonville, and concentrate on St. Augustine, Fernandina and Amelia Island, the Georgia Sea Islands (Brunswick is also beginning to see restoration of a good number of Victorian houses), Savannah, and maybe Beaufort, South Carolina. Charleston is spectacular, but it merits at least three days on its own. Savannah is another of America's great gems, with lots of interest along the road up from the south and in its immediate vicinity. I would recommend the restaurant Elizabeth's on 37th there.

If you run searches on Sapelo Island and Little St. Simons Island, you can see posts with links to photo albums on Flickr that I've put up.

Gretchen

I thought I had posted to this thread. They have 6 days with one to get back to Orlando.
To do Savannah and charleston justice, just drive straight to Savannah--a driveby of St. Augustine maybe. That is one day. Stay in Savannah 2 nights. Drive to Charleston and stay 3. Drive back to Orlando.

genxer711

I would skip Daytona Beach unless you ride a motorcycle and like to get drunk. I would also skip Jacksonville, whatever you can do here, you can do in South Florida.
You may want to stop at Kennedy Space Center in Titusville and take a tour at the complex. For lunch or dinner go to Dixie Crossroads for Rock Shrimp (only 20 minutes from the Space Center). Miami has Stone Crabs (I miss them so much), Titusville has Rock Shrimp, they are delicious and hard if not imposible to find anywhere else but call ahead to check if they are in season. You can also stop at Fort Matanzas National Monument on your way up.
In St. Augustine you can visit El Castillo De San Marcos, a fort build in 1695 by the Spanish Empire.
In Savannah a visit to Forsyth Park and Fountain are a must. And go to The Cotton Exchange Tavern & Restaurant for the Shrimp and Grits. It is a regional dish and one of the best I have ever tried.
I would definetly recommend Charleston and a tour to Fort Sumter National Monument, where the first shots of the Civil War were fired. The only way to get to the Fort is by ferry. When you are hungry and if you want to try some regional delicasies go to Gilligan's Seafood Restaurant and try the Fried Green Tomato & Crab Cake Stack, the She-Crab soup and the Frogmore stew (it is a seafood dish, no frogs in it at all). Also go to Mamma Brown's BBQ for the Chicken Perlo (chicken and rice dish) another local delicasy.

jlab89

Thank you all for your suggestions, jeffergray your extensive post about the drive from St Augustine north to Savannah was a great help- you have amazing knowledge of the history- I've printed all of your notes out and handed them to my parents so they can be sure not to miss anything.

They have decided to spend their nights at West Palm Beach (mainly just a pit-stop not too far drive from FLL), Cocoa beach (to visit the space centre), St.Augustine, Amelia Island, then 2 nights in Savannah before driving to Orlando. Charleston was all too much of a rush/too far to spend just one evening there when it sounds like you need a few days there.

Thanks again for all of the comments!

Gretchen

I know it depends on their likes, but the road between Savannah and Charleston also has some lovely things like Beaufort.
Is Amelia Island a big thing to them--and Cocoa. Just wondering since they are "here" on the southeast coast and might not return? For me 1 day in Savannah and 2 in Charleston wouldn't be so bad.