Now is the Best Time! Our 2024 Florida Road Trip (update 6/17)

[mickey916]

4/3 Traveling to Ormond Beach, stopping at St. Augustine​

We woke up early again and were on the road by 7:30 am, heading to St. Augustine. As we drove down I-95 it started to rain as hard as it could possibly rain. Driving was slow and treacherous. Our four hour drive ended up taking five. We arrived in the parking lot at Castillo de San Marcos in St. Augustine around 12:30. It was still pouring.

Here’s the view from our windshield:



We decided to make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches in the car as we waited for some relief from the storm.

My DH had recently read a biography of Henry Flagler so I booked the legacy tour at Flagler College at 2:00 to see inside his original St. Augustine hotel. After our lunch it became clear the rain wasn’t letting up and we needed to make our way to our tour. So, we donned our Tevas and raincoats, grabbed umbrellas, and made our way to Flagler College. There was so much rain that some of the streets were completely flooded and we had to wade through water at least a foot deep. It was crazy!

The tour was led by a Flagler College sophomore who was a marine biology major. She did an excellent job showing us around the “hotel”, describing in detail the symbolism of all the ornate decorations. It was definitely the Gilded Age at its peak. It was a rather inexpensive tour and definitely worth a stop if you’re in St. Augustine.

The skies had started to clear a bit so after our tour we walked around the historic district of St. Augustine. The crowds were pretty light due to the bad weather so it was easy to get around. After walking around for a bit we stopped at Peace Pie for dessert before dinner. We shared two different Peace Pies and the server cut them for us. First we had the key lime pie, ”Our Delicious Key Lime Pie Mousse with a Scoop of Vanilla Ice Cream Served Between Our Crunchy Cinnamon Shortbread Cookies.”

This was very good! The cinnamon shortbread cookies were delicious and the key lime flavor wasn’t too tart.

Next, we had the Chocolate Peanut Butter Praline, Chocolate Ice Cream, Peanut Butter Mousse, Caramel, Pecans, Chocolate Shortbread Cookies.

This was excellent! The caramel added a nice sweetness and the pecans added crunchiness. Who can argue with chocolate ice cream and peanut butter topping between chocolate cookies? Definitely our favorite of the two, but both were very good.

The rain had stopped so we walked around the grounds of the Castillo de San Marcos before heading to our car.

As we were planning our trip we knew exactly where we were headed for dinner. Last year we had attempted to eat at the Gas Full Service Restaurant but it was closed the couple days we were there. A little after 4:00, we drove to the restaurant to find it was closed but a sign said it would re-pen at 4:00. A server saw us outside and let us in. She explained that the heavy rains had caused a roof leak so they had to close for a bit to fix the damage.

We decided to try two different burgers and share them. First, the Island Burger: seared with island steak sauce, island slaw, grilled pineapple, Thai chili aioli, lettuce and tomato.

Sounds and looks incredible, right? It wasn’t. First of all, it was really hard to eat, just way too tall. Also it had very little flavor. Looking at the photo now I don’t know how that’s possible but we were both disappointed. I think the issue was lack of seasoning on the burger itself.

We also ordered the Half Tank burger: ½ pound chargrilled burger topped with housemade pimento cheese, full service slaw, applewood smoked bacon, fried pickles, lettuce, tomato and onion.

This too was very challenging to eat and lacked flavor. When we look back at these photos, we can’t help but wonder why we didn’t love these burgers but they were “all show no go”.

We had many burgers on this trip and these two ranked at the bottom of our list. The fries also weren’t great, also lacking in seasoning.

In addition, the service was very slow. Overall it wasn’t a great experience despite excellent reviews online. The only thing we can figure was that the roof damage earlier in the day had thrown things off for them a bit.

After dinner we headed to our VRBO for the next few days in Ormond Beach. We are usually “hotel people” but I couldn’t find too much in the Ormond Beach area. Last year we stayed in the Hampton Inn Palm Coast which was awful. (See details here: 2023 Road trip). VRBOs make us a little nervous as you never know what to expect, but we decided to give it a try.

Up next…how was our trip’s first VRBO rental at Ormond Beach?

Edit to add: Total step count: 13,646

 

[suse66]

I love road trips and Disney (of course!) so am happily following along.

 

[mickey916]

I love road trips and Disney (of course!) so am happily following along.

Welcome!

 

[ThreeBoyMama]

Those burgers look like they should have been amazing, too bad that wasn’t the case. Your pre dinner dessert looked great though!

 

[mickey916]

Those burgers look like they should have been amazing, too bad that wasn’t the case. Your pre dinner dessert looked great though!

They really should have been! All we could figure was they forgot to season the beef. Pre-dinner dessert is always great!

 

[CrawfordMom]

I am loving your report! I am a big fan of road trips and packing a cooler and dessert, so you are my people. You cannot beat chocolate and peanut butter!

 

[mickey916]

I am loving your report! I am a big fan of road trips and packing a cooler and dessert, so you are my people. You cannot beat chocolate and peanut butter!

Aw, thank you so much! We love road trips too. Someday we plan on taking one across the country to the West Coast, once our schedule allows.

 

[mickey916]

4/3 Our VRBO rental in Ormond Beach​

We were very pleased with our condo rental directly across the street from Ormond Beach.

It was clean, quiet, well-stocked, reasonably priced and had great beach access.

Here’s a look inside…

We even had a little balcony with a view of the beach.

We only had two minor complaints. One was that the electronic lock for the unit didn’t work well so sometimes it took a few tries to get it to lock. The other was that there wasn’t much parking. Luckily, the owner did tell us we could park in one spot presumably in front of their garage door. Overall we enjoyed our stay here. It was definitely an improvement over the Hampton Inn Palm Coast and we would stay here again.

Up next…starting our morning in Deleon Springs.

 

[DJFan88]

I will definetly be following this and reading your other trip report right after this post. From Massachusetts, DH and I will be retired in 3 yrs but are starting our reconisense (sp?) looking next year as we’re not exactly sure where we want our probably 8/4 split. East coast or nearer to Orlando, but will also venture up back up the SC coast area. We usually autotrain down, so then we will do that, stay at Dis maybe 4 nights, then make a 1 1/2 week mission on the way back up. (We will need more trips of course!
I want to stop in St Augustine, just for the purpose of checking it out, as i heard its beautiful.

 

[mickey916]

I will definetly be following this and reading your other trip report right after this post. From Massachusetts, DH and I will be retired in 3 yrs but are starting our reconisense (sp?) looking next year as we’re not exactly sure where we want our probably 8/4 split. East coast or nearer to Orlando, but will also venture up back up the SC coast area. We usually autotrain down, so then we will do that, stay at Dis maybe 4 nights, then make a 1 1/2 week mission on the way back up. (We will need more trips of course!
I want to stop in St Augustine, just for the purpose of checking it out, as i heard its beautiful.

The retirement research trips are very fun! We learned even more on this trip about where we like to stay. We've found that St. Augustine is fun for a day trip, as there's a lot of history to explore but it's not a place we would want to visit for more than that. The historic section is very touristy. Thanks for following along!

 

[DJFan88]

The retirement research trips are very fun! We learned even more on this trip about where we like to stay. We've found that St. Augustine is fun for a day trip, as there's a lot of history to explore but it's not a place we would want to visit for more than that. The historic section is very touristy. Thanks for following along!

Thanks!!! Treasure coast is of particular interest as i have friends there.
As a side, just finished your other report and took notes!!! Esp helpful were your final take-a-ways!! Thanks again for posting!

 

[mickey916]

Thanks!!! Treasure coast is of particular interest as i have friends there.
As a side, just finished your other report and took notes!!! Esp helpful were your final take-a-ways!! Thanks again for posting!

You're welcome and thank you for reading! I have some final take-aways on this trip too, more personal to our style but lessons learned not the less.

 

[mickey916]

4/4 Spending the Day at Deleon Springs and Bulow State Park​

Originally when I planned this trip we had 5 nights scheduled for Ormond Beach. However, about a month prior to our trip, our two adult sons told us they would like to come for part of our Orlando portion and arrive the evening of 4/5. This meant cutting two nights off of our Ormond Beach portion and adding a few days into our Orlando trip…fine by me! This also meant we had to narrow down our plans for the Ormond Beach area.

One thing we knew we wanted to do was go to the Old Sugar Mill restaurant at Deleon Springs for breakfast.

We headed there to arrive early, as we had read that sometimes there is a long wait. As we paid the $6 state park fee, there was a sign that said there would be a 45 minute wait for the restaurant. However we were actually seated as soon as we arrived at a table with a griddle in the middle. For those unfamiliar with this restaurant, it is an all you care to eat, make your own pancake restaurant. We were given a choice of two different batters and various mix-ins such as fruit, chocolate chips, or nuts as well as sides. We decided to order the standard buttermilk batter with no mix-ins. Our server brought out plates, a spatula and a pitcher of batter.

My DH poured his pancake and then I poured mine.

Our server also brought out our sides. I ordered bacon.

The bacon was nice and thick but I would have preferred it to be a little more crispy. I even put it on the griddle to try and crisp it up but it didn’t really help.


My DH ordered ham.

He thought this was very tasty.

Here’s our first completed pancakes.

The pancakes were absolutely delicious and it was a really fun way to have breakfast. Our server was excellent, checking back with us often to see if we needed any refills on water, coffee, or pancake mix. We did order a refill of pancake batter so we ended up probably eating about 5 or 6 pancakes each. Of course my DH had to make one final pancake for us:

Overall this was a fantastic time! It was fun and tasty and the service was excellent. We plan to do this again next year.

In addition to breakfast, I had also booked the Deleon Springs River Boat Tour through Viator. I originally booked the 11:00 tour since I wasn’t sure if there would be a wait for breakfast. Since we got in and out of breakfast quickly, I went over to the tour boat area and asked if we could switch to the 10:00 tour. They changed our ticket to 10:00 and we boarded the boat with only one other couple.

This was a great tour down the Spring Gardens Creek with views of Spring Garden Lake, Jones Island, and the Lake Woodruff National Wildlife Refuge.

The boat captain was extremely knowledgeable about the wildlife and history of the area. It was fascinating and we saw all kinds of waterfowl, birds, and a few alligators.



We even saw a bald eagle.

We were so glad we changed to the 10:00 tour as when we pulled back into the dock, there was a huge group of people waiting for the 11:00. We definitely had much more opportunity to ask questions and have our own semi-private tour at 10:00. This is another activity I would highly recommend. It only cost us a total of $25.60.

After our tour we walked some of the trails around Deleon Springs State Park. Then, we headed over to the Lake Woodruff National Wildlife Refuge and walked the trails there as well. We didn’t see much in terms of wildlife there, with the exception of a few ducks and birds.

After our walk, we then headed to Bulow Creek State Park. We walked the trails stopping to look at the sugar mill ruins and other historic landmarks of the former Bulow plantation.

After all of our walking we finally worked off our delicious breakfast and decided to head to an early dinner at D.B. Pickles.

Up next…dinner at D.B. Pickles.

 

[mickey916]

4/4 Dinner at D.B. Pickles Deli & Bakery​

Before our trip we had watched a couple YouTube videos of various restaurants and liked the looks of D.B. Pickles Deli & Bakery Restaurant in Ormond Beach.

The restaurant is famous for its bakery, deli, and pickle bar. Our server told us we could pick a complimentary item from the pickle bar for our meal. We didn’t realize we could each pick an item and we don’t agree on our pickle preference...he likes sweet pickles and I like dill. So, in the interest of marital compromise, we ordered the broccoli pasta salad. Had we known we could each get an item we would have definitely ordered our own pickles.

We actually really enjoyed the broccoli pasta salad though.

We decided we would need to get some sort of pickle however so we ordered the Pickles’s Fried Pickles appetizer.

These are made with garlic pickles that are breaded, fried and served with their house special sauce. We both thought they were very good. They had a nice seasoning and weren’t overly greasy. We also liked the special sauce which was a spicy Thousand Island. We ate the whole thing!

For his entree, my DH ordered the Pork Chops & Applesauce with corn and mashed potatoes.

He thought the meal was fine but nothing special. The pork chops were a little dry.

I ordered the stuffed peppers with mashed potatoes and corn.

I actually really enjoyed this. It has been a long time since I’ve had stuffed peppers in a restaurant. I thought the tomato sauce tasted homemade and the filling in the peppers was well seasoned.

This was really just basic home cookin’ meals but we had no complaints. Our server was very attentive and friendly. He spent some time talking to us, sharing his thoughts on the benefits of living in Florida.

We didn’t have room for dessert but couldn’t pass up all the delicious items in the bakery. We decided to get two things to go.

First we ordered a key lime pie slice.



This was a very good slice of key lime pie. Not the best we ever had (that’s at Blue Heaven in Key West) but it was good.

We also ordered the Trifecta slice which is a triple layer of chocolate cake, red velvet cake, and carrot cake.



This was just okay. The best part was actually the carrot cake. We’ve been spoiled by Gideon’s cake so unfortunately this wasn’t nearly as good.

Overall, we thought this was a pretty good restaurant. Next time I think we may try their deli sandwiches as those looked really good. There were also lots of other desserts that might be fun to try.

After dinner we returned to our rental and went for a long walk along the beach. We also sat out on our balcony for a bit, enjoying the perfect weather.

Total steps: 17,871

 

[mickey916]

4/5/24 Early Morning Rocket Launch then Flagler Beach​

We found out there was going to be a SpaceX launch at 5:30 in the morning so we got up early and headed to the beach across the street from our condo. It was very dark out! This made for incredible views as the rocket appeared on the horizon.

Even though this looks like a sunrise, it is actually the rocket.

This was our first of several rocket launches we saw on this trip and it was a particularly spectacular one.

The moon over the water was also beautiful.

After our early morning adventure, we ate breakfast on our balcony at the condo and then headed to Flagler Beach for the day.

Our first stop was the Betty Steflik Preserve.

We enjoyed seeing all the wildlife as we walked the trails in the preserve. It is a beautiful place for a walk.

Up next…lunch in Flagler Beach.

 

[suse66]

We were very pleased with our condo rental directly across the street from Ormond Beach.

The condo looks lovely!

Overall this was a fantastic time! It was fun and tasty and the service was excellent. We plan to do this again next year.

In addition to breakfast, I had also booked the Deleon Springs River Boat Tour through Viator. I originally booked the 11:00 tour since I wasn’t sure if there would be a wait for breakfast. Since we got in and out of breakfast quickly, I went over to the tour boat area and asked if we could switch to the 10:00 tour. They changed our ticket to 10:00 and we boarded the boat with only one other couple.

This was a great tour down the Spring Gardens Creek with views of Spring Garden Lake, Jones Island, and the Lake Woodruff National Wildlife Refuge.

The boat captain was extremely knowledgeable about the wildlife and history of the area. It was fascinating and we saw all kinds of waterfowl, birds, and a few alligators.

That sounds like a perfect morning! Yummy food, an informative and picturesque tour and time in nature. Right up my alley!

After our tour we walked some of the trails around Deleon Springs State Park. Then, we headed over to the Lake Woodruff National Wildlife Refuge and walked the trails there as well. We didn’t see much in terms of wildlife there, with the exception of a few ducks and birds.

Lovely!

After dinner we returned to our rental and went for a long walk along the beach. We also sat out on our balcony for a bit, enjoying the perfect weather.

You are basically describing my perfect day!

This was our first of several rocket launches we saw on this trip and it was a particularly spectacular one.

Wow!

After our early morning adventure, we ate breakfast on our balcony at the condo and then headed to Flagler Beach for the day.

Nice! Can't wait to read all about it!

 

[mickey916]

4/5 Lunch at Flagler Beach and Our Last day in Ormond Beach
​

After leaving Betty Steflik Memorial Preserve we spent some time walking around Flagler Beach. We stopped by the Historical Museum. It is a very small museum but has some interesting displays.

When it was time for lunch, we decided to try the Java Joint Beachside Grill in Flagler Beach.

We shared two sandwiches. First we ordered the Cuban sandwich with hash browns (fries weren’t an option).

My half:

This was an excellent Cuban sandwich. One of the best we’ve had. It had tons of meat, lots of melty cheese, pickles and mustard.

Our second sandwich was the Sweet and Nutty wrap with grilled chicken. It comes with lettuce, tomato, cucumbers, feta cheese, walnuts and honey mustard. We also ordered hash browns as our side.

My half:

This was also a delicious sandwich. We were very happy with our meal and you can’t beat the view! Service was also excellent.

For dessert, we headed to a favorite spot from our 2023 trip, Sally’s ice cream. We each ordered a cup with two flavors. I ordered double fudge brownie & triple peanut butter. My DH ordered salted caramel and triple peanut butter. Since the triple peanut butter was on the top of both of our dishes, I only took one picture.

Sally’s ice cream is very fresh tasting and creamy . It is one of our favorite places to get ice cream.

For dinner we picked up salads at Publix to eat out on our balcony during our last night. We added some popcorn chicken for extra protein (and yumminess). I bought the Mediterranean salad.

My DH got a harvest salad with nuts and dried cranberries (and added popcorn chicken).

We enjoyed our salads. They were very fresh tasting with lots of vegetables and toppings. We went for another walk on the beach, as we enjoyed our last night in Ormond Beach.

Our sons (25 & 27) were scheduled to fly in from Boston and land around midnight at MCO. Since they were getting in so late, I found a reservation for them at the Springhill Suites near the airport with a free shuttle. Our plan was to pick them up the next morning and start our 10 days in Orlando.

A funny story about our sons’ flight: They were so late purchasing their flights on Delta that there were only middle seats left with the exception of the very last row across from the bathroom, unless they wanted to upgrade their seat. My DS-27 was fine with the last row but my DS-25 said he didn’t want to be across from the bathroom in a seat that didn’t recline and last off the plane. (I can’t say I blame him). So, DS-25 opted to upgrade to a window seat in the middle of the plane for an additional $89 and my DS-27 chose the middle seat next to him (non-upgrade). They arrived at the airport and checked in. Turns out my DS-27’s employer has a rewards program with Delta and when they checked in they discovered that he’d been automatically upgraded to business class. So, my poor DS-25 paid an extra $89 to sit in a window seat in coach class while his brother got upgraded to business class. My DS-25 was a good sport and just laughed about it. It’s a really good thing he hadn’t agreed to the bathroom row and been stuck back there by himself! Things like this happen to my DS-27 all the time. He always seems to get free stuff and upgrades.

Up next…Orlando!

Total steps: 15,371

 

[mickey916]

The condo looks lovely!

It was very nice!

That sounds like a perfect morning! Yummy food, an informative and picturesque tour and time in nature. Right up my alley!

We loved this so much we plan to do it again next year.

Nice! Can't wait to read all about it!

Sorry to make you wait so long! Hoping to get back to updating more regularly again.

 

[rdkeim]

Enjoying your TR! Nice you're taking your time getting to Orlando and enjoying things along the way. Last time we drove there was no fun stuff - just lots of driving to get there. Now that we're both retired, your way of travel sounds good!

 

[mickey916]

Enjoying your TR! Nice you're taking your time getting to Orlando and enjoying things along the way. Last time we drove there was no fun stuff - just lots of driving to get there. Now that we're both retired, your way of travel sounds good!

Thank you! It's nice being retired and not always feeling like you have to rush to get everywhere.