Florida Mainland

Route 1 enters into Florida with little fan fair and
no town for a few miles. A small town emerges finally;
Hillard, and it is the only town you see until you get
to Jacksonville.

Finally-you are in Florida! From now on, it is going
to be hard to stay on course. Route 1 follows the
coastline, but A1A follows it closer. Be aware that
traffic on US 1 will be slow; A1A will be slower.

Jacksonville is still inland several miles; you won’t
actually be close to the Atlantic coast until St.
Augustine.

Once you get to Daytona, you will be next to the
beaches for a long, long stretch. Don’t expect traffic
to move at any great speed.

If your plans include Orlando, you will want to take
I-4 from Daytona into Orlando. Otherwise, continue
down US 1 as it hugs the magnificent wide beaches
through Titusville, Merritt Island and Melbourne.

You’ve traveled so far-stop and walk a few of the
glorious public beaches all along the coast. Jensen,
Juno and Jupiter beaches are incredible and there are
rarely any people there! As you go further south, this
will no longer be the case.

Ft. Lauderdale Beach is long, but not very wide, but
you’ll see plenty of tiny bikinis and drunken college
students. Fear not; they are all friendly and there
are many things to do in Ft. Lauderdale, including a
great IMAX theater and Riverwalk.

Between Ft. Lauderdale and South Beach are many
beaches; one blends into another. The only sign you’ll
see on the beach itself is "no glass bottles" and in
Hallover State Park, "Be aware that you may see nude
people".

To get out to South Beach, you must take I-195 or
I-395 in Miami. A nice side trip is to go out to
Biscayne National Park and go snorkeling, or go west
to Everglades National Park and see more alligators
than you ever dreamed possible. It is possible, and
enjoyable to do both of these parks in one long day.

From Miami, continue south on US 1 all the way to Key
Largo, the entrance to the incredible Keys!