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Vilano Beach is the closest beach to the nation's
oldest city, St. Augustine. Beach
combers have declared Vilano Beach as one of the
best shell beaches in the state of
Florida.
Located at the end of a barrier island connecting
Jacksonville to St. Augustine, Vilano
Beach is just two miles northwest of St. Augustine,
Vilano Beach is a community dating
back to the 1920's when developer August Heckshire
saw the potential. Heckshire built
the first bridge to connect the barrier island
to the mainland.
After becoming a local playground in the roaring 20's
with casinos, restaurants and
speakeasy's, Vilano Beach evolved into a quiet
community of summer homes.
Today, Vilano Beach has become a suburb of St. Augustine
with year round residents and
beach loving vacationers. Unlike St. Augustine
Beach, with its high rise hotels and
abundant condominiums, the island has maintained
its nostalgic small beach town
attitude.
Vilano Beach is a great place to fish, whether by
boat, on the beach or from the Vilano
Beach Fishing Pier. Deep water charter boat fishing,
excursion boats, parasailing and
personal watercraft rentals are available on the
Peninsula. There is also four great
restaurants on the island. Fiddler's Green was
voted St. Augustine's favorite restaurant
and Vilano Beach also has two Italian restaurants,
Benito's and Barrancotto's. For casual
dining, Castnet's is a favorite for locals and
visitors alike.
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