We had such a wonderful time in Amelia Island! When we set out to make plans for a getaway, my only criteria was that it was somewhere we could relax, and that’s exactly what we found in Amelia Island! We were looking for a place within driving distance, and Amelia Island came recommended by several friends and family members (and it’s just under 4 hours driving distance from Charleston!).
I thought I’d share a bit about our time there…
My favorite part about road trips are all of the sights and stops along the way. We’ve visited Savannah several times, and each time we make the trip, we stop at the Carolina Cider Company’s store on the way. It’s a classic country store where you can find homemade jams, souvenirs, and some really great pastries and sodas!
We considered several hotels when booking our trip, but ultimately ended up staying at the Omni Amelia Island Plantation Resort, and were happy with our decision! The Omni is oceanfront, and on the resort, there are miles of walking/biking trails, shopping, restaurants, and several beautiful pools. Though I enjoyed many aspects about the hotel, my favorite part may have been breakfast at Sunrise Cafe. The buffet has just about everything you could possibly want in a breakfast, and enjoying coffee with an ocean view made it extra special!
dress (sold out – same style in another color here) | bag | sandals
Our first night there, we ate at Verandah restaurant, which was located on-site at the resort. While I didn’t take any photos, our dinner was delicious, and the food presentation was outstanding! Ask for the popcorn after dinner… hard to explain, but you won’t be sorry!
dress | sandals | bag | sunglasses
The following day, we spent some time at the pool, then headed to downtown Fernandina Beach to explore the area. It’s a cute, quaint town, and we loved our time there! There are boutiques, excellent dining options, and ice cream shops – my kind of place!
We stumbled upon Island Time, which is an ice cream/smoothie shop, and I had the best smoothie I’ve ever had in my life! We ended up going back the next day, it was so good.
Florida’s oldest bar, the Palace Saloon.
Pearl – a cute boutique that features resort wear, including Lily Pulitzer!
On our second night, we dined at Le Clos, a French restaurant housed in a cozy cottage. The menu features French comfort food, and both Michael and I loved our meals. We would definitely visit again!
The next day, we set out on a bike ride around the resort (there are miles of trails!). We snapped a few pictures along the way. How beautiful is this view?
dress (sold out – same dress in a different color here)
Later that afternoon, we decided to explore Fort Clinch State Park, a state park on the northern side of Amelia Island. Beautiful live oaks draped with Spanish moss lined our drive into the park. We headed to the beach first, which was very quiet (and how I prefer it – there were only a few other visitors there when we went). We then went on to see the actual Fort Clinch, a fort dating back to the 1700’s, and utilized during the Civil War. We made it there right as they were closing, but managed to spend a few moments inside the fort, and loved our time there! It was amazing to see and learn about the history of the site.
On our last night in Amelia Island, we hadn’t made dinner reservations, so we ended up trying several different restaurants and had somewhat of a ‘progressive’ dinner (very casual style)… chips, guacamole, and queso at Pablo’s Mexican Cuisine, and pizza at Pi Pizza.
There were a few restaurants that we heard great things about, but didn’t make it to on this trip, such as Timoti’s Seafood Shack and Gilberts Underground. That just means we’ll have to make another trip back! Overall, we loved our time in Amelia, and hope to be back very soon.
Thanks for reading,
-The Beach Belle
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Amelia Island looks beautiful!! Hope you had a fun trip!!
xo, Hillary | hillheady.com
Thanks, Hillary! It was beautiful there, and so relaxing! 🙂