Castillo de San Marcos

One of our favorite attractions is the Castillo de San Marcos National Monument.  The Castillo was built by the Spanish over 300 years ago of coquina, a stone made of cemented seashells.  Cost was $5.00 per person and is good for 7 days.  The monument is over 20 acres in size.

The Castillo is the oldest European fortification remaining in the United States.  Since the construction of this fort, it was never taken in battle.  Wood forts had stood in the area prior to the construction of this masonry fort.  After having a couple wood forts burned to the ground, the Spanish monarchy finally decided to have a more permanent structure built.  

The fort recently underwent a renovation and has since been outfitted with some of the original cannons like those pictured at left.  There are many National Park Service Rangers available to answer questions about the fort.  A ranger program is given every couple of hours that is very informative as well.

Thoughts and Recommendations

• Support the Park Service and check this out.  It was definitely one of our favorites in St. Augustine.    
• Listen to a ranger program on the history of the fort.  It's only about 10 minutes long, but you learn a lot!