America's oldest city - St. Augustine offers an antidote to malls and amusement parks.
Randall Denley, The Ottawa Citizen

As winter drags on, it's difficult not to think about escaping and heading to someplace where they don't need snow shovels. Florida is an obvious choice, but what if you are the kind of person who wants something more than outlet malls, golf and amusement parks? Florida's cities have a not entirely undeserved image as endless strip malls that lack the history and style one can find in cities in South Carolina and Georgia. Florida is great if you want to take the children to the fantasy land of Disney World, but what if you are an adult, looking for something real?

You can find it in St. Augustine, a city of just 12,000 people high on Florida's Atlantic coast. Founded in 1565, St. Augustine bills itself as America's oldest city and it still retains the feel of the Spanish outpost it once was.

My wife and I first visited St. Augustine years ago, a brief stop on our way to the amusement parks. Memories of the place stuck with us ever since and we finally returned this year. We had spent a week in a gated community in Fort Myers, and we were looking for the antidote.

If you choose one of the chain hotels on the outskirts of St. Augustine, you will miss the sense of place that is the city's main attraction. We knew we had to stay right in the old quarter and we were looking for a bed and breakfast. A place called the St. Francis Inn sounded like the most promising one in the CAA book, but as our car slowly bumped down the cobblestoned streets of the historic downtown, I was reminded that there was a downside to my preference for winging it when it comes to accommodations. It was getting dark and already suppertime. If the St. Francis was full or unattractive, it would mean poking our way through a confusing series of one-way streets looking for an alternative. The fact that the building dated from 1791 made it sound intriguing, but I wondered, had they ever renovated?

When we finally found the inn, my concern level went up: it doesn't have the curb appeal of many B&Bs. But the exterior gave no hint of the charming hospitality inside. They had only one room left, and it was a beauty featuring a four-poster bed, big ceiling fans and balconies on two sides. There was a bottle of sherry decanted and a complimentary CD of piano music.

Our host informed us that the evening hors d'oeuvres had just wrapped up, but that they would keep the dining room open for us. We eagerly made a meal of the crab dip, crackers and vegetables. There were several bottles of wine open for guests and we did some serious damage to a surprisingly good Chardonnay produced by San Sebastian Winery right in St. Augustine. Our dallying over the appetizers led nicely into the evening dessert, all part of the welcome. You won't get any of that at the Holiday Inn.

The morning's breakfast didn't disappoint, either. Where else would you get citrus pancakes?

The most obvious thing to do in St. Augustine is check out the shops on St. George Street, an easy walk from the inn. The street is strictly for pedestrians for most of its length, a kind of outdoor mall featuring a wide variety of restaurants, art galleries, clothing shops and perhaps just a few too many places selling souvenirs.

The one thing you really have to see in St. Augustine is Flagler College, which for most of its life was a grand luxury hotel. This remarkable structure was the pet project of Henry Flagler, one of John D. Rockefeller's Standard Oil partners. Constructed in just two years starting in 1887, the intricate woodwork, ceiling murals and original Tiffany windows reflect a craftsmanship that simply doesn't exist today.

The hotel was the first building in this part of the world to have electricity and the fixtures were designed and installed by Thomas Edison himself. In its heyday, guests were invited to come for the season and hobnob with the richest people in America. When Flagler realized that the limited access by steamer would restrict his business, he built his own railroad, opening up much of Florida to tourism. Today, it is a liberal arts college and you can tour some of the principal rooms for $6. It's a bargain.

St. Augustine is blessed with a wide array of unique restaurants, but I would particularly recommend the Columbia on St. George. We enjoyed the lunch so much that we came back for dinner. The Columbia, which has been in business since 1905, bills itself as a Spanish restaurant but there is a strong Cuban influence in the widely varied menu.

The appeal of St. Augustine is not dramatic world-class tourist attractions. Instead, it is the city's charm, all the little details and discoveries that one makes as a visitor. It has a laid-back southern style, where it's not unusual for shops to open at 11, if the shopkeeper feels like taking a slow start or maybe hitting the beach before work. There are about 60 kilometres of beach at St. Augustine, by the way, if that's what you are looking for. There's outlet shopping too, thankfully on the outskirts of town.

For me, the great attraction of the American south is not the weather, but the sense of history. Sitting on the balcony of the St. Francis Inn, reading a James Lee Burke novel and listening to horsedrawn carriages clip-clop by, I knew I had found my corner of Florida.

IF YOU GO...:

Where to stay: St. Francis Inn, 279 St. George St., St. Augustine. Rates vary from $99 U.S. to $279 U.S., depending on season and room. See www.stfrancisinn.com or call 1-800-824-6062.

Where to eat: Columbia Restaurant, 98 St. George St. See www.columbiarestaurant.com or call 1-904-824-3341.