How to Spend a Weekend in Jacksonville, Florida

Jacksonville is a wonderful city to explore, located in northeastern Florida. This complete travel guide is designed to help you make the most of a weekend visit here, with ideas about the best in weekend events, things to do and neighbourhoods to visit.

Chris and I at Treaty Oak, the oldest southern oak in Jacksonville

I love visiting a city where the energy of its residents and the diversity of its neighbourhoods reflects a lot of heart. This is exactly what Chris and I felt on our weekend getaway to Jacksonville.

Jacksonville is the largest city in Florida, and the largest city by geographic size in the continental United States. It’s a city spread out across rivers, bridges, beaches and islands, but each individual neighbourhood and area of the city has its own distinct personality and reason to visit.

Chris and I were overwhelmed—in a good way—by the neighbourhoods, restaurants, cafes and different things to do in Jacksonville during our visit. Add in the many special events and concerts that often take place here on weekends, on top of its food and drink trails, and there is truly no shortage of ways to enjoy a weekend here.

Please note that this article contains affiliate links. This means that we may receive a small commission for some of the recommendations we make in this article at no additional cost to you.

How to Get to Jacksonville and Where to Stay

Views of downtown Jacksonville from our tour along the St. Johns River

Getting to Jacksonville

The best ways to get to Jacksonville are by air or by car. Jacksonville International Airport is its main airport, connecting to many cities across North America. It’s located right in the northeastern corner of Florida near the Georgia border, where the I-95 (north to south) and the I-10 (east to west) meet.

By car, it’s about a two hour drive south from Savannah, Georgia, and a two hour drive north from Orlando. Chris and I visited Jacksonville on a larger trip to the state in Tampa, Bradenton and Anna Maria Island, and it was about a four hour drive for us to come from Florida’s central Gulf Coast. And if you really want to extend your time along the Atlantic Coast, it’s a five hour drive to Miami and a little further down to the Florida Keys.

Since Jacksonville is so large, if you want to make the most of your weekend you’ll likely want to have a car. Plenty of rental options are available from the airport, or if you’re taking a larger road trip then you’ll appreciate having your car with you.

Where to Stay

Your best bet to enjoy the city to the fullest is to centre yourself close to its downtown core when you’re finding accommodation. Chris and I enjoyed staying near the Five Points and Historic Riverside neighbourhoods, and found we were walking distance to several areas and attractions we enjoyed, like the Cummer Museum of Art & Gardens, Memorial Park, Riverside Park and historic Park Street. It was also a close walk to the Riverside Arts Market, which takes place on Saturdays.

Another popular option on a visit here is to stay in the Jacksonville Beach area. The main attraction here is of course the ocean and the beach, plus it’s close to several nearby state parks and islands, which offer great walks and hiking. You can feel free to use the map below to find the best accommodation option for you during your stay in town.

Your Guide to Spending a Weekend in Jacksonville

Weekend getaways are such a great way to enjoy a city like Jacksonville. I love to start the day at a local coffee shop, get a sense for what local events and activities make the city tick on a weekend, and take a walk around its urban neighbourhoods to pop into craft breweries, restaurants and local shops along the way.

Fortunately, Jacksonville is full of all this and more, so there’s plenty that you can do to enjoy the most of your next weekend here.

Start Your Mornings on the Jax Coffee & Donuts Trail

The Greenhouse Bar is just one of many incredible coffee shops along the Jax Coffee Trail

Whether you’re bringing a good book to read or visiting town with friends, there are too many wonderful cafes and coffee shops in Jacksonville to count. Thanks to the Jax Coffee Trail, it’s easy to plan a visit to a few of these spots for a coffee or tasty treat on your trip.

One of my favourite cafes from this trip is The Greenhouse Bar. Not only do they serve up incredible coffee, but they have an excellent variety of seasonal coffees and seasonal matchas. Since Chris loves his tea and matcha and I love my coffee, we were both ecstatic to see items like White Raspberry Lattes and Banana Milk Matchas on their seasonal list during our March visit. It seems like they rotate these regularly, so I feel like you could keep coming back here with no shortage of options.

On top of having incredible coffee and delicious breakfast sandwich options, their interior space is a design, colour and plant-lover’s dream. Between the plant and coffee bundles, potted plants, natural wine selection and merch, this is a place I could see myself spending a lot of time at if I lived here. When I come back, I have my eye on their cocktails for an afternoon visit.

Some other excellent coffee shops to check out during your time in Jacksonville are BREW Five Points and Bold Bean Coffee Roasters.

Head to the Riverside Arts Market

Saturdays are market days at the Riverside Arts Market

This weekly community market takes place on Saturdays from 10am to 3pm under the Fuller Warren Bridge on the St. Johns River. It runs rain or shine, so you can almost guarantee you’ll be able to spend some time wandering between its stalls of local artisans, farmers, food trucks and other small businesses from Jacksonville on your weekend trip.

Chris picked up some tea from Tranquilitea Steeping Co., I had my eye on some beautiful floral bouquets and jewellery, and we both enjoyed walking around and getting a sense for the tastes, sounds and smells of this bustling, community-centred city. Sometimes there are special events taking place on market days, which you can learn more about on their website.

Visit the Oldest Southern Oak in Jacksonville

Taking the time to admire the multitude of southern oaks in Jacksonville needs to be prioritized on any weekend trip here. While walking around some of the city’s more mature neighbourhoods like Riverside Avondale is a great way to immerse yourself in them, a visit to Treaty Oak in downtown Jacksonville a highlight.

Standing in its own dedicated park surrounded by urban buildings, Treaty Oak’s gated entrance is framed by a beautifully ornate iron gate. Since it’s estimated to be about 250 years old, Treaty Oak is technically Jacksonville’s oldest resident (how cute is that?!). Although you won’t need long to visit, you’ll find yourself in awe of its curving, winding and weighted branches that have stood here for centuries.

If you’re a sentimental person like me, you may even find yourself getting a little overwhelmed thinking about how many versions of Jacksonville this tree has seen over the years. It’s been here longer than the city of Jacksonville has even held its name, since it was alive and well before Spain even ceded the Florida Territory to the United States in 1821. No matter what moves you when you visit this tree, it’s also an excellent place to take photos.

tAKE A wALK OR hIKE AT A pARK

Boneyard Beach in Big Talbot Island State Park

Jacksonville’s geographic size makes for an abundance of amazing neighbourhoods to wander around, but it also means there’s a lot of space to enjoy an abundance of nature.

There are trails and hikes in so many of the surrounding parks, but one of our favourites was taking a half-day trip to Boneyard Beach in Big Talbot Island State Park. This famous beach got its name from all of the southern oak and cedar “skeletons” that have been overtaken by the waters on shoreline of the Nassau Sound. On the day we visited, there were low clouds which made it all the more dramatic. It’s really a beautiful place to visit.

To access Boneyard Beach, park at The Bluffs Trailhead in the park. There’s a small entry fee per vehicle ($5 at the time of our visit), and the park has some covered picnic tables and bathrooms on site. The trailhead is to the left of the parking area as you enter, and it takes you along a flat path to the beach. Depending on the time of year and weather the trail can be muddy, so make sure you have the right footwear. Once you reach the beach, to your right is where you’ll find the bulk of the “bones”, and you can continue as far up the beach as you like all the way to Black Rock Beach.

After visiting Boneyard Beach, you can take the St. Johns River Ferry to Mayport on your way back to the city and enjoy a tasty lunch on the Mayport Shrimp Trail. Other great places to go for a nature walk or hike in the city include the trails in Kathryn Abbey Hanna Park and Tillie Fowler Regional Park.

Visit a Museum

Some of the beautiful gardens at the Cummer Museum of Arts & Gardens

Although it’s always nice to count on good weather, sometimes you can’t always plan on it. Museums are great to visit rain or shine, but during our trip there was a large storm passing through, so we were grateful that Jacksonville is home to some excellent museums.

Our favourite was definitely the Cummer Museum of Arts & Gardens. Chris and I loved this museum, and would recommend it to anyone looking for worthwhile things to do in the city. It was once the private home of Ninah Cummer, who had a passion for art and gardens and donated her home to become a museum in 1958. Between its tranquil outdoor gardens along the St. Johns River and its 5,000+ works and rotating galleries housed inside, it’s a great place to come to better understand some of the history of Jacksonville while enjoying art and nature.

Other worthwhile museums to visit while you’re in town include the Clara White Mission/Eartha M.M. White Museum and the Beaches Museum.

Take a River Tour of The City

This is a nice way to learn more about Jacksonville’s history, and see its downtown core and countless bridges from the water. St. Johns River Taxi tours operate on the St. Johns River, and pick up from various places. They offer a variety of different tours, but we enjoyed the Downtown Sightseeing Cruise and hopped on at the Doubletree Hotel Dock. They also run sunset cruises, which would be a great way to cap off a day in the city.

You can also use their ferry services for transportation around the city, which is a nice way to get from place to place while you’re in town.

Catch One Of Jacksonville’s Many Weekend Events

Natural Life Music Festival in Jacksonville Beach

It seems like there’s always something going on in Jacksonville. Given its sheer size and location, it’s a hub for events and activities. Sports is big in Jacksonville, and it’s most notably the home of the NFL’s Jacksonville Jaguars. Their home turf, EverBank Stadium, is in the midst of being renovated. This $1.4 billion project will give them a new place to play by the 2028 NFL season, and will offer many more opportunities for concerts and events to be hosted in the downtown core.

During our visit, we headed to the Natural Life Music Festival—a free, ticketed music and arts festival taking place at the Seawalk Pavilion in Jacksonville Beach. It was great to see so many families and groups of people out to enjoy good local food, and see performances by acts like Pony Bradshaw and Moon Taxi.

The monster truck rally, Monster Jam, was also taking place during our visit. While we didn’t attend, we could see by the sheer volume of people visiting that events like this are huge for Jacksonville. To get a full sense of annual events taking place in Jacksonville, you can find more information here.

Hit the Beach

When you’re visiting for a weekend, you can’t forget that Jacksonville Beach is a part of the city. Jacksonville is home to more than 35km of beaches, after all. This part of town is known for its Atlantic coastline, long, white sand beach and plenty of restaurants, hotels and entertainment during you trip.

If you’re looking to focus a little more on the beach during your trip, there are plenty of accommodation options in this part of town. The weather wasn’t cooperating very well during our visit, but we’d love to come back and spend more time in Jacksonville Beach next time.

Celebrate a Great Weekend Away Over Incredible Food and Drinks

Sampling a flight of craft beer at the bustling Springs Sports Brewery

Of course you can’t forget that a great weekend away calls for at least one nice meal out. There are great places to dine across the city, but here are a few highlights to consider checking out while you’re in town:

Breakfast & Brunch: Chancho King in Murray Hill is an Ecuadorian diner known for Ceviche Sundays—their ceviche bar has all sorts of Ecudaorian seafood dishes available until they sell out on Sundays. Biscotti’s in Riverside Avondale is another great option, serving up unique takes on breakfast staples. Just down the street, The Fox is a classic diner, perfect for a comforting American style breakfast.
Lunch: What better way is there to celebrate Jacksonville’s history of commercial shrimping and delicious seafood than by checking out any of the stops on the Mayport Shrimp Trail? Closer to downtown, River & Post offers beautiful panoramic views of the St. Johns River with American fare. Five Points is another a great area to go for lunch, with Taqueria Cinco for tacos and Prospect Five Points for tapas being favourites.
Dinner: If you’re looking for a casual night out with incredible food, The Bearded Pig BBQ near San Marco serves up delicious southern BBQ—their platters are an excellent way to try a variety of their specialties. Another great option in San Marco is Town Hall Restaurant, or you can head to Springfield and head to Othello or The District SPR.
Brews: Jacksonville is home to a growing number of craft breweries along the Jax Ale Trail. Some favourites that we visited during our trip were Strings Sports Brewery in Springfield (they have excellent BBQ, too), and Aardwolf Brewing in San Marco.
Cocktails: Our favourite place to come for a cocktail was Grape & Grain Exchange in San Marco, but Fore Score Golf Tavern is another excellent option—complete with golf simulators—in the same neighbourhood.

Don’t Forget to Appreciate Jax’s Neighbourhoods

Views of downtown at night from the Friendship Fountain

As you explore Jacksonville for your weekend away, don’t forget to enjoy its neighbourhoods. Since there are so many different pockets of the city worth visiting, if you head to one neighbourhood for a restaurant, go for a stroll around and see what else you can check out nearby. There are some great local shops to pop into across town, and you never know what you’re going to find.

I hope you’ve found this guide to Jacksonville helpful. We have plenty of other detailed travel guides like this here on our website. For the latest in travel news, don’t forget to subscribe to our travelingmitch newsletter, or Bri’s weekly travel newsletter, The Weekly Traveller!

I’d like to thank Visit Jacksonville for hosting Chris and I as media during our trip. All opinions expressed are completely my own.

Bri Mitchell

Bri Mitchell is a travel writer and content creator from Toronto, Ontario. She loves to highlight all things nature, food, wellness, sustainability and adventure in her work. Bri writes and shares her travel experiences from across Canada, the United States and around the world on Instagram and TikTok (@brimitchelltravels), and in her articles for travelingmitch, Ultimate Ontario, and We Explore Canada.