Colonial Quarter — Attraction in Saint Augustine

Nestled within the ancient cobblestone streets of America's oldest city lies a treasure I stumbled upon with my family last summer—the Colonial Quarter of St. Augustine. What a revelation it was! June 30th, 2023 marked our first visit, though certainly not our last.

The Quarter doesn't merely display history; it breathes life into it. Blacksmiths hammer red-hot metal into submission while musket fire cracks through the air unexpectedly—startling my daughter into fits of delighted squeals! Time bends here. One moment you're wandering through a 16th-century Spanish garrison, the next you're examining British military tactics that once dominated these very grounds.

We devoured authentic colonial-inspired cuisine that burst with flavors forgotten by modern palates. Heavenly! The maritime exhibits particularly captivated my husband, who lost himself for nearly an hour examining shipbuilding techniques.

St. Augustine has captured my heart so completely that I dream of making it my forever home. The Colonial Quarter stands as testament to why—it's where education becomes adventure, where history isn't just remembered but experienced viscerally through all five senses. You'll leave changed, carrying pieces of centuries past within you, already planning your return before you've even departed. Trust me, this living museum deserves every accolade it...

I came here to see about admission to the reenactment space, as well as looking for souvenirs for the kids. The admission was higher than I wanted to pay and it was later in the day, so I only visited the gift shop. After browsing and making a selection, I waited in line behind another patron who was attempting to purchase tickets for one of the train tours. The customer in front of me was a native Spanish speaker and the employee, Mary Ann, acted like he would better understand her if she just continually increased the volume of her complicated explanation. She turned to her coworker in exasperation asking if he spoke Spanish. He was trying to help the customer, who simply wanted the tour materials and map in Spanish, but apparently they don't make them. Mary Ann didn't acknowledge that I was standing there waiting, nor did she ask another employee to assist me. When she finally sent the dissatisfied customer in front of me away, she rang up my purchase. I handed her the money, and when she brought my change over, my hand was out for her to place it back in kind. She chose to drop my change and receipt on the counter. She turned away from me again without acknowledging me, and didn't even thank me for my purchase. I will never spend money or visit this place again because of the rudeness I first observed, then experienced firsthand,...

First time I was here was back in 2002. I was very impressed and enjoyed my visit. There where a lot of things to learn and see with people dressed in original colonial clothing that where very knowledgeable and engaging . The tour was all about bringing you back to how life was in the old Spanish settlement and showing what everyone was doing in every trade. Today, 16 years later I thought it would have been a good idea to bring my 12 yo son to live an historic experience in a great setting. Here comes the disappointment, the tour is introduced by a very nice and knowledgeable gentleman who is nice with kids and truly does his best to give you a good your. The problem is that some company bought the location and cut down all the stages locations only to open FOUR restaurants and so half of your tour you will be introduced to the restaurants instead of what the carpenter was doing or how a local kitchen was organized and so on. Bottom line, you will spend a lot of money to be part of a restaurant commercial with few few historic notes that you can get anywhere else in town. On top of that their gift shop, (of course they have gift shops) are the only stores in town to sell bottled water at $3.00 where everyone else sells it for $1.00. Never...