Things to do / Travel Guide
There's more to this region's water activities than just kayaking or canoeing. When there's this much water, there are lots of opportunities to take advantage of more of the different, fun and/or relaxing types of boating.
Down in Daytona Beach, a very popular tourist destination located on Florida's coast, there are lots of possibilities for renting and riding sailboats, chartering a private yacht, or finding a cruise. For all these cruises, rentals, and so forth, prices and terms vary from place to place and from dealer to dealer, so it would be best to shop around a bit before booking a pleasure boating excursion to find the best deal.
For a more urban water adventure, you can also try out Jacksonville's St. Johns River. This slow-moving and very wide river is excellent for sailing. In fact, the world's longest sailboat race, the Annual Mug Race, is from Palatka, 45 miles south of Jacksonville, to the city's beach.
If you're looking for an excellent and relaxing way to experience the mythic St. Johns River, take a river ride on an authentic side-wheel paddleboat. Would you like to see a sleepy alligator in the noonday sun, or a family of manatees cooling under a saw palmetto? Touring on the slow-moving, north-flowing St. Johns River is an excellent way to connect and commune with nature. Most of these tours depart around the area of Lake Beresford and Deland, a bit south, which you can reach via a 20-mile trip on I-4.
Amelia Island, with its lagoons, surrounding islands, and plethora of wildlife, is an excellent place to rent a motorboat and explore. Fortunately, there are places on the island where you can rent a boat. Furthermore, you can easily motorboat the whole route of the Intracoastal Waterway, which in northern to central Florida runs between the barrier islands and the mainland.
On the Panhandle's fabled Emerald Coast, there are opportunities to rent a pontoon boat, a sailboat, or a yacht at any of the resort cities. Many outfitters also offer sailing lessons for the as-yet uninitiated. These cities, from Panama City to Pensacola, are great for pleasure boating excursions because of their white sands and emerald-green waters.
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