St. Augustine Carriage Tours

Where to Book and What It Costs

The online carriage rides are private, 45 minutes and priced for the whole carriage, so a family of four pays the same as a couple. The walk-up carriages wait on the bayfront across from Meehan's Irish Pub on Avenida Menendez and set the price at the stand. Last season's Nights of Lights prices and The Tasting Tours' own rate come from the operators' pages and are labelled by season and source.

What a Ride Is Actually Like

A standard historic carriage tour covers about two miles in roughly 45 minutes between the Bridge of Lions and the Castillo de San Marcos, per Country Carriages' listing. Carriages hold up to four or five guests depending on the operator, and they are open-air, so brick and cobblestone stretches make the ride bumpy, which The Tasting Tours warns may not suit people with back problems. The online carriage rides meet at the corner of Cathedral Place and Charlotte Street, and the guide calls you on arrival to find you.

Remember that the price covers the whole carriage, not each rider, so splitting $175 across a group changes the math fast.

The 2026 Rules and the Horses

The city re-licensed the trade in 2026. In February the City Commission voted unanimously not to renew the Country Carriages franchise, which had held 10 of the city's 15 licenses since 2004. On July 13 the commission approved a rewrite of the Vehicles for Hire and Franchise ordinances, adding animal health, welfare and safety rules for carriage horses and requiring drivers to hold a valid Florida driver's license and pass background checks.

On October 12 a 3-2 vote let carriages keep operating for three more years, with 10 stalls: 7 medallions awarded to qualified applicants and 3 filled by lottery, at an annual medallion fee of $1,000. Supporters trace the carriage tradition to 1877 and the St. Augustine Transfer Company. As reported by a 2018 Flagler College student article, the code calls for 15-minute breaks between tours, water and food, licensed health care, no more than eight hours of work without a 1.5-hour break, and no work at 95°F (35°C) or higher or at a heat index of 105.

Whether the July 2026 rewrite kept that heat rule is not published. Ask the driver about water and rest breaks, and in summer book an evening slot when the heat has dropped.

Compare the Cart Tours

The table below compares the bookable golf cart and electric cart tours from their listings, with the price, ride time, group size and meeting point each listing gives. A carriage ride covers the core streets in about 45 minutes, while the cart tours run 1 hour to 90 minutes, so a cart gives you more time on the same ground.

Private or Shared

The Private Electric Cart Tour is the only private cart here. It is priced per cart for 1 to 7 people, riders must be 7 and up, and with 1,240 reviews it is the most reviewed ride in this guide. The other three are shared and priced per person.

The Waterfront Golf Cart Tour takes a small group, the Guided Golf Cart Tour seats up to 9, and the Historical Tour, Free Parking fills an open-sided vehicle of up to 10. If your party is 4 or more, compare the per-person total against the $200 per-cart price before you book.

What Each One Covers

The Waterfront Golf Cart Tour runs from the Plaza along the bayfront past Castillo de San Marcos and the Bridge of Lions to Mission Nombre de Dios, then back through downtown past Aviles Street, with photos included. The Private Electric Cart Tour focuses on the colonial walled city, taking in Castillo de San Marcos, Flagler's hotels and churches, the Oldest House, the Plaza and Aviles Street over 90 minutes. The Guided Golf Cart Tour starts at the city garage at 1 Cordova St, which makes it easy if you are already parked there, and covers Mission Nombre de Dios, the Castillo, Flagler College, the Cathedral Basilica and the Plaza.

The Historical Tour starts at 134 Riberia Street by San Sebastian Marina, where a printed ticket on your dashboard gets you all-day free parking, and covers Flagler's Hotel Alcazar, now the Lightner Museum, and the city's Catholic history.

The Hop-On Hop-Off Trolley

The Hop-On Hop-Off Trolley from Historic Tours of America sells a 1 or 2-day ticket at $41 per person on the listing. It runs 22 stops over a 90-minute loop, with trolleys every 15 to 20 minutes from 9:00 AM to 4:30 PM daily. Admission to the St. Augustine History Museum is included.

You share the trolley with other riders, so there are no private seats and no picking your own route. You hop off at any stop and catch the next trolley, which suits a full day of sightseeing.

The Red Train and How It Differs

Ripley's Red Train Tours runs a 60-minute narrated roundtrip departing hourly from 19 San Marco Avenue, per Ripley's. The trains are open-air with bench seating, a free poncho is handed out in rain, and tickets must be booked online in advance. The route passes more than 100 points of interest and can go down Aviles Street.

A trolley or train differs from a carriage in three ways. You share it with other riders on a fixed schedule, it covers far more stops, and there is no horse. A booked carriage ride is private and runs 45 minutes.

Compare the Nights of Lights Rides

The table compares the rides through the lights from their listings. The private carriage rides are priced per carriage and their listings make no holiday claim, while the trolley and the cart run only in the Nights of Lights season.

The Season and the Crowds

The 2026-27 Nights of Lights runs from November 21, 2026 to January 18, 2027. One festival release gives the last day as Monday, January 18, 2027, while the city page labels the same date a Sunday, so confirm before you book a late-season ride. Light-Up Night is Saturday November 21, 2026, with the lights switched on at 6:30 PM at the Plaza de la Constitución.

More than three million white lights cover the historic district, and viewing them on foot is free with no ticket needed. Weekends are the busiest nights and the city suggests visiting Monday through Thursday for shorter waits, less traffic and easier parking. Bring warm clothes: the rides are open-air, and St. Francis Inn's blog warns winter evening temperatures can drop into the 40s or 50s F.

Getting There in the Season

The city runs a free Park & Ride shuttle during Nights of Lights, and the 2026-27 lots and schedules were not yet published. Last season it ran 1:00 to 11:00 PM on 33 days from three lots: Broudy's Lot at 198 West King St, the North San Marco Lot at 301 San Marco Ave, and the County Health Department at 200 San Sebastian View. On shuttle days last season the downtown garage charged $40.00 for entries at or after 1:00 PM, and $20.00 otherwise.

Park carefully: resident-only parking zones near downtown fine vehicles without a resident tag $100.00 during the season.

Meeting Points and Parking Tips

The table below lists where each ride meets and the parking situation at that spot, drawn from each tour listing's meeting point and notes.

The Garage, Meters and the Free Bus

The Historic Downtown Parking Facility at 1 Cordova Street holds 1,200 spaces and is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. The city prices it at $20 per vehicle per entry from 7 AM to 5 PM and $5 from 5 PM to 9 PM, though Visit St. Augustine's guide calls it $20 per day, and the off-peak $5 rate does not apply during Nights of Lights and several festivals. City meters and pay stations cost $2.50 per hour for non-residents, with 3-hour limits on streets and 4-hour limits in lots.

Meters are free before 8:00 AM and after 9:00 PM Monday to Saturday, before 1:00 PM and after 9:00 PM on Sundays, and free on national holidays. The ParkStAug app works throughout city limits on iOS and Android and lets you add meter time remotely. If you would rather not drive at all, the free STAR Circulator bus runs daily 10:00 AM to 10:00 PM.

Monthly Temperatures and Rain

The figures below are the 1991-2020 climate normals recorded at the St. Augustine Light station, giving the mean daily high, low and precipitation for each two-month span. Use them to pick between a cool winter evening ride and a hot summer morning one.

Heat and the Horses

July highs average 32.8°C (91.0°F). A 2018 Flagler College student article reports the city code gives carriage horses 15-minute breaks between tours, and that horses may not work more than eight hours without a 1.5-hour break, nor at 95°F or at a heat index of 105. Whether the July 2026 ordinance rewrite changed that heat rule is not stated.

In summer, book an early or late slot to ride in the cooler hours. The Atlantic hurricane season runs June 1 to November 30, and every listing here cancels free to 24 hours before the start. The carriage listings also refund a ride cancelled for bad weather, see the pick.

Crowds and Timing

Weekends and the holiday season are the busiest times, and carriage reservations are especially popular near Christmas. The city suggests visiting Monday through Thursday for shorter waits, less traffic and easier parking. From June through August, Thursday evenings bring Concerts in the Plaza at the gazebo, which adds foot traffic downtown.

For holiday-season planning, see Nights of Lights rides and parking. Nights of Lights brings the heaviest traffic of the year from November 21, 2026, when Light-Up Night starts at 4:00 PM and the lights go on at 6:30 PM at the Plaza.