ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. — The historic city of St. Augustine is jam-packed with visitors celebrating July 4th. While they’re waiting for Tuesday night’s fireworks display, they are filling local shops restaurants and tourist attractions.
St. Augustine boasts one of the largest fireworks displays on the East Coast over the historic fort on the city’s bay front. The tens of thousands of visitors who view it provide an essential boost to the local economy.
Dave Chatterton of Old Town Trolley Tours is a shuttle service partnering with the city to provide complimentary rides to the fireworks.
“One of the most amazing, memorable experiences that you’ll ever have,” Chatterton said. “It’s just absolutely beautiful, standing on that bayfront, watching the fireworks over the Castillos de San Marcos. It’s truly magical.”
The shuttle picks up at three locations: Anastasia Baptist Church, St. Augustine Amphitheatre, and R.B. Hunt Elementary School and drops riders at the Bridge of Lions.
University of Florida student Kennedy Cox came to check out the show with Lorena Ragonesi, a neuroscience student from Brazil, who will experience her first Fourth of July in the U.S.
“We wanted to do something for the Fourth of July,” Cox said, “and we heard that St. Augustine has really beautiful beaches and sand and is a very historic town, so we spent the last two days on the beach and then we decided to come and tour the town and history.”
The fireworks show kicks off at 9:30 p.m. leaving plenty of time for visitors to check out the area, shop and grab a bite to eat.
Chatterton has a tip for those who plan to ride the shuttle.
“Don’t rush back to the shuttles,” Chatteron said. “Instead of standing in line, waiting to get on a shuttle, enjoy the town. There’s so many things going on, so much going on downtown. I don’t know about you, but I’d rather be doing all that than standing in line, waiting to board a shuttle.”
The shuttle gets rolling at 6 p.m. and runs until midnight.