Fort Matanzas National Monument

Fort Matanzas is the Castillo’s little sibling and, for many visitors, the more memorable of the two. It stands on Rattlesnake Island at Matanzas Inlet, fourteen miles south of town, where Spain built it in the early 1740s after learning a hard lesson: the Castillo guarded the main harbor, but enemy ships could slip in through the southern inlet and approach the town from behind. The fort is small — roughly fifty feet on a side with a thirty-foot tower — and a handful of soldiers could work its five cannons, but it did its job, turning back British ships in 1742 and controlling the inlet for decades. The name is older and darker: matanzas means slaughters, and it recalls 1565, when Pedro Menéndez de Avilés executed several hundred shipwrecked French Huguenot soldiers near this inlet, ending France’s bid for Florida. Getting there is half the pleasure. The National Park Service runs a free ferry from the visitor center on Anastasia Island across the river, a short ride with a ranger narrating the history and pointing out the wildlife — dolphins, ospreys, pelicans, wading birds — and once ashore you climb onto the fort’s gun deck and into the soldiers’ quarters for a ranger talk. Back on the mainland side, the visitor center has a short film, and a boardwalk trail winds through a maritime forest of live oaks. Everything here is free.

The ferry is the one thing to plan around. It runs Thursday through Monday only — no ferry on Tuesdays and Wednesdays — with hourly departures from 9:30am to 3:30pm. Each trip, including the crossing and time at the fort, takes about 45 to 55 minutes. Boarding passes are free but required for everyone, babies included, and are handed out first come, first served at the visitor center on the day of travel only; they often run out before 11am on busy days, so arrive early and pick up passes before doing anything else. Be at the dock five minutes before departure or your seat may be given away. The ferry is suspended for lightning and high winds, which can happen without notice in summer, and the site closes on Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day.

While you wait for your departure, the visitor center film and the boardwalk trail through the live oaks fill the time, and the parking areas on both sides of A1A give access to a quiet river beach and an Atlantic beach. Fort Matanzas is one of the best low-key beach stops in the region — no fees, no high-rises, and often good shelling and birding. Pets are not allowed on the ferry except service animals; the boats and ramps are designed to be accessible.

Plan it as the southern half of an Anastasia Island day, or as a stop on the drive to Marineland, which is about ten minutes farther south on A1A. Combined with the Castillo, it tells the complete story of how Spain defended St. Augustine — the great fortress at the front door, the small outpost at the back — and the ferry crossing at mid-morning, with the light on the water and the fort rising out of the marsh, is one of the quietest, loveliest hours you can spend on this coast. Bring water, sun protection, and insect repellent, especially in summer, because the boardwalk trail and the beaches have little shade and the marsh can be buggy. Binoculars are worth packing for the ferry ride. Rangers also lead occasional special programs, so ask at the visitor center desk about any talks scheduled on the day of your visit.