Saint Augustine Lighthouse - An Easy Half-Day Adventure
What is the Saint Augustine Lighthouse?
The Saint Augustine Lighthouse is one of the city’s top attraction. It was built in 1874. On cloudy or rainy days, you can see the light shining from miles away, still guiding boats to safe harbor.
Today, the lighthouse is privately owned and open to guests.
Where is the St. Augustine Lighthouse?
The Saint Augustine Light Station is located on Anastasia Island just off highway A1A. It’s a very short drive east from downtown St. Augustine.
Parking
The parking lot is directly in front of the gift shop. It’s a welcoming space, with overhanging trees to block the direct sun. There is an overflow parking area directly across the street.
Admission and Price
You’ll enter and exit the lighthouse through the gift shop (shown below). Tickets are purchased at the gift shop register.
Adults (13+) - $17.95
Children - $12.95
Children under 44 inches - Free (no ticket needed, as they are not able to climb the lighthouse).
Senior - $15.95
*prices as of May 2026
After paying the entry fee, you’ll be given a wristband and a nice brochure. You’ll exit the back of the gift shop to enter the gated area where the exhibits are located.
How Long Does it Take to See the Lighthouse?
While the lighthouse is the main attraction, there are a few other exhibits on the property housed in small buildings. The largest, and the one that will take the longest to visit is the museum. It tells the history of the area, houses artifacts found in discovered shipwrecks, and informs visitors about the significance of the lighthouse throughout it’s 150 years of life. The other buildings on the property are more like small out-buildings. They house small exhibits that take 5-10 minutes to see each. I would allot around 30 minutes to go through all of them. The lighthouse itself will likely take the longest, there is a small museum on the bottom floor and the climb might take around 15 minutes each way. The top of the lighthouse is beautiful, but admiring the view and taking photos likely won’t take you longer than 20 minutes.
With all that said, the entire St. Augustine Lighthouse complex is viewable in about 2 hours. I would not expect even the slowest tourists to exceed 3 hours at this location.
The Exhibits Adjacent to the Lighthouse
The lighthouse grounds is a small complex which can be explored in any order. After leaving the gift shop, you’ll walk through a little wooded area. The most natural place to visit first is the museum (pictured below). It does a good job introducing guests to the history of the lighthouse and its significance to St. Augustine. It also provides an introduction to the many shipwrecks in the area and some of the artifacts that have been recovered.
Exiting the museum, to the right, you’ll see a number of smaller buildings. These buildings contain a variety of extra exhibits that teach about archeological discoveries in the area, daily life as a lighthouse worker, and primitive boat building techniques. There is also a small cafe. If the weather is nice, enjoying a drink from the cafe at one of several picnic benches is a nice option.
There are a few additional activities to discover on the lighthouse grounds. There is a small playground, some picnic areas, and short walking trails through the wooded areas that surround two sides of the lighthouse.
Climbing the St. Augustine Lighthouse
Of course, the highlight of this property is the lighthouse itself.
Standing at 165 ft tall, the working brick lighthouse provides a beautiful view of the island and ocean. But in order to get to the view, you’ll need to climb exactly 219 steps to the top (the equivalent of a 14-story building).
The steps spiral their way to the top in a narrowing ascent.
Don’t worry if you aren’t in the best shape, there are 8 resting platforms along the stairway where you can take as much time as you need. The resting platforms have plaques and signs that offer more interesting facts about the lighthouse’s history. For example, did you know a kid once threw a cat off the lighthouse with an attached parachute?
I reached the top more quickly than I expected, and the view was worth it!
Would I Recommend Visiting the Lighthouse - Was it Worth it?
I had an enjoyable time visiting the Saint Augustine Lighthouse, it was a nice change of pace after spending a few days at the beach. The facilities were well maintained and the environment was welcoming and relaxing.
But is it worth it for you?
If money is no object, I can recommend it. It’s a unique and pleasant 2-hour excursion and it’s one of St. Augustine’s most recognizable tourist sites.
If you’re travelling on a budget, things are a bit more tricky. I struggle to recommend the lighthouse to families that are cost conscious. $17.95 for an adult ticket and $12.95 isn’t cheap, and that is a lot of money for 2-hours of site seeing. A family of 4 is going to run over $60, and larger families will approach $100 just for admission. You can do a lot with that amount of money that will occupy a family for a longer period of time.
Ultimately, you’ll have to make that choice.
While in Saint Augustine, I took note of the fact that several of the “recommended” tourist locations had pricey entrance fees ($15-20), higher than I expected. It may be best to choose one or two that you really want to do, rather than trying to hit them all in one trip.
If climbing the lighthouse is something you really want to do, I can give it a hardy recommendation!
