Old Town Trolley Tours of St. Augustine

We had fun! I have no idea why people had such a horrible time on this tour. Even if the tour guide spoke a memorized, monotone speech it would still be informative. We did the full tour our first day– start to finish then we jumped on and off at different destinations the next. All drivers were enjoyable, friendly, courteous, and informative. Our first day was the best though. The driver was hysterical and really ramped it up. We spoke with a few others riders around us since we were having so much fun. I cannot speak about other tour companies just this one– they did fine. If you are not sure give them a try. They even came and picked us up at our hotel so we did not have to drive or walk. NICE!!!

I pre-​purchased our tickets online so we avoided that line. I was traveling with my mom who is not extremely mobile so was hoping this would help in seeing some sights without a lot of walking. I was say the tour it self was great. Jimbo was our tour guide and he was GREAT! The trolley itself was extremely uncomfortable for a 1 hr. plus ride. I’m sure most people probably get on and off at the various stops but it was fairly difficult for my mom to board and unboard so we just endured the whole trip. Again, Jimbo was so good we hated to lose him as our guide as we had overheard some folks behind say they did not have a good guide earlier in the day. They do a good job of hitting all of the top spots in St. Augustine and we learned quite a bit. We did not choose to use the pass the 2^nd or 3^rd day because the ride was just so uncomfortable, especially for my mom. She had no desire to get back on the trolley again. It’s possible the wooden seat trolleys are more comfortable but I cannot speak to that. Might be nice if they have a one-​trip price and a 1 – 3 day price. A little pricey for just the one trip.

My sister rented these trolleys for her daughter’s wedding. They were to come by the bed and breakfasts the guests were staying in and ferry the guests to the reception venue and then come back at the end and take us back. They did an adequate job of the actual transportation, but the driver was really unpleasant, borderline rude. There was really no need for the attitude either.
I’m wondering if the driver was the same one that made rude comments over his PA toward an elderly woman struggling to get into the passenger side of a sedan earlier in the day. The car she was in was holding up traffic, but show some grace. She had a cane and was handicapped. He said,” we’re waiting. We’re all waiting” over his loudspeaker so we could hear him on the street. Rude. He wore a white feather in his hat.

If you don’t want to hassle with parking, you want to learn something about St. Augustine, and you want an easy way to get around, the Old Town Trolley is a great way to do it. Your ticket allows you to ride as little or as much as you want for three days. We ended up waiting, at the most 15 – 20 minutes, to pick up a trolley at one of our stops, but we found the stops were in very convenient locations and were able to get on and off close to where we wanted to be.
The tour takes about an hour to an hour and a half and allows you to see the main sights (23 in all), including: Ripley’s Believe it Or Not Museum, the Shrine to Our Lady and the place where the first Mass was held in North America, the Basilica, the Presbyterian Church build by Flagler, Flagler College, Castillo de San Marcos, and a lot more. Like the other reviewers, I’d recommend getting on the early tour (it begins promptly at 9 am) and taking the entire tour so you can learn the lay of the city and see where everything is. Then you can plan your later excursions accordingly.
The tour guides are each unique and make the ride enjoyable, sharing history, quirky jokes, and even singing. Davey Jones, one of our guides, serenaded us. Marshall, another guide, had great accents that he used in portraying various characters.
Just be aware that the trolley stops running at 5 pm. Many shops and things close then. It’s just good to know so that you don’t get stuck somewhere with no transportation back to your vehicle. If you’re staying at an area hotel, there is a shuttle service that will bring you from your hotel to the trolley visitor center.
I’d highly recommend this for any first-​time visitor to St. Aug’s.

Great, reasonably priced hop-​on, hop-​off tour. Drivers were quite knowledgeable and each had something different to contribute. There was some conflicting info in one or two spots, but I guess that’s how stories are handed down. Would highly recommend as an alternative to getting around St. Augustine for several consecutive days and enjoying the great history of this great city.

Fun trolley nice break from walking and the tickets are good for 3 days. My only complaint is that people with a wheelchair can’t ride and there were some younger kids with a stroller and it was hard for them to get on and off

I’ve done the Old Trolley Tour in various locations in the past, including Key West and Savannah. I’ve had good experiences there, so when we visited Saint Augustine for a day, we felt this would be a good way to to for being able to visit the city and its sights on February 27, 2016.
The «fun» began before we got our tickets. We ended up going through three of their parking locations in order to even find a single parking space available. Once we finally found somewhere to park (the US 1 Welcome Center), we got the tickets and waited for the next trolley to come by. It was about ten minutes later when the trolley arrived and was time for the tour to begin. Finding a seat at that time on the trolley was pretty easy as it wasn’t full… yet. After the next few stops, which were also additional welcome centers, the trolley was now pretty much at capacity. As we started into the actual locations, our plan was to stay on to go all the way around before getting off at the various locations. By the time we got to the sixth stop, the trolley was full to capacity and people were now having to wait for additional trolleys to come. This happened at every stop along the way of our route. Along the route, there was some festival going on that day and it made traffic a nightmare during this tour. The tour itself should have taken about 90 minutes or so; however, due to all the traffic congestion, the tour lasted about 2.5 hours. I ended up not having the chance to stop off at any of the locations because the trolley came back so late. I want to point out that I don’t blame this on the driver/​guide at all. This was strictly due to all the traffic issues around the city that day. However, seeing how many people were waiting at the various stops, that just tells me that their management didn’t manage the day properly, as they really needed more trolleys in service than what they had out. I could hear the driver talk on the radio to control who kept asking him why he was later than what it should be; I could tell the driver was frustrated at them for asking every 5 – 10 minutes where he was. Management should have been well aware of the traffic issues and planned better accordingly.
How the tour is laid out is good. You do have the chance to get on and off at the various stops and hop back on. I think part of the reason I was reserved about getting off was that I might not be able to get back on seeing how busy the trolleys were. Had we been able to get all the way around and then be able to get off at the few spots I wanted to, I would have done so, but alas, that was not the case.
Overall, based on this experience, I do feel that I really didn’t get anything for what was paid. Everyone was packed like sardines on the trolley, everyone was afraid to get off because they thought they wouldn’t be able to get back on (some actually said that to me), and just overall not as enjoyable as I’ve had at some of their other locations. It was hard to hear at times since others on the trolley were complaining to one another as to how crowded and uncomfortable the trolley was. Management needs to plan better when events are going on around the city; they should have known about the festival that was going on and should be familiar with traffic issues; I know I’m familiar with traffic issues here where I live, so why don’t they? I can’t really give this experience more than two stars.

We had really awesome tour guides. However at 3:45 we were at the fountain of youth parking lot waiting on a trolley, we had three full trolleys come in and were unable to board any of them. By the time the last one came we missed getting on the last trolley. I feel like if a group of people had been passed that many times then the company might make provisions for a final trolley tour. We have always had a great experience with this company but this instance that was a large hiccup.

First of all, I’m staying at Castillo Real, and there is a bus that picks me up at the front of the hotel, and drives me to Stop 16 on the trolley tour. THEN, the trolleys scoot around town ALL DAY until 4:35 in the afternoon, really easing the amount of walking you’d have to do to see the entire 5 mile radius, or roughly 200 acres of historic euphoria.
I’ve taken the bus and trolley around town three days in a row, now. Not only do I have the enjoyment of not driving, I can’t get enough of the history discussed in the tours. Each driver has a few different facts that the others don’t, and I find it intriguing.
The whole tour on the trolley through the city is about an hour and a half. I recommend doing that on the first day. The rest of the week I am here, I am taking the trolley for transportation, and I’m able to get off as I please at those things I discovered the first day, that sound intriguing to me.
My favorite tour guide/​trolley driver was Eliott. He had SEVERAL facts that the other drivers didn’t, he recognized me on Day 2 and said «welcome back,» AND he was the most humorous.
My husband is currently deployed, and I can’t wait to bring him to St. Augustine when he returns home. The trolley ride is essential to exploring the city!

Didn’t take Trolley Tour but had a run in with a snotty employee. Parked in lot for $ 15. Sign CLEARLY said discount on parking with Trolley Tour. Did not say for Trolley Tour parking only. Employee comes out and says this is parking for tours. I replied, ‘That isn’t what the sign says’. She replies «Look, I argue and fight all day with people I really do not feel like arguing with you!’ I said I’m not arguing I’m just telling you what the sign said. She continued to have a snotty attitude when we asked for her to point us in the direction of Al’s Pizza. Not the best image to have for a tourist driven company.

It was just ok. Half of the stops were within a minute or 2 of another stop or were at an information center or a trolley ticket area. The trolley ended up going in circles sometimes in the same area. It would be like déjà vu… we were just here but across the street… made no sense. The driver also stopped multiple times for several minutes at a stop because he was a few minutes ahead of schedule and knew the ‘boss’ would get mad if he got back early. Sometimes our driver was so monotone, it was hard to understand what he was saying.
On the other hand, I did like the concept itself, that is, a open trolley taking us to the highlights of St Augustine. I just think the company could have done a much better job. Based on aforementioned reasons, I think that the price we paid was too much.
I do want to give a special thumbs up to the gentleman dressed in black who helps people board the trolley and hands out the maps. He was very nice.

As far as tours are concerned, this is a good one! The guides are very informed, don’t sound robotic and are pleasant. I liked the flow of the tour and that it went to over 20 places.
Rich in history, I feel St. Augustine has such a great story, actually many amazing stories. This comfortable tour is not super expensive and makes enough stops. One really gets a great picture of this 450 year old gem via the trolley tour.
Reminds me of the one in #KeyWest

One piece of advice: TAKE A BLANKET! Overall I enjoyed myself and would donit again…

This trolley costs about $ 24 per person and you can hop on/​hop off as you like. If you go the whole loop it takes 90 minutes for a 3ish mile area. the total ground covered is very walkable if you are all able bodied. Since we had seniors with us we took the trolley.
The driver does give you information as you ride about the town. However, half the time our driver did not say which side of the trolley the item she was talking about was on.
Overall if you have people who can’t handle walking 2 – 3 miles total then the trolly is a good idea. It is also a way to get an idea for what is around there if you have never been.

I recently visited St. Augustine with my daughter’s school and they used Old Town Trolley Tours as their tour guides.
So, I’ll start with the bad. Our tour guide a the fort (Dennis, I think) apparently does not like children. Especially wiggly little 4^th graders. Next time there is a group of 4^th graders, it would be best to not stick poor Dennis with them. He did, however love the fort, and he was pretty knowledgeable. I probably would not do this tour again though. I’ve been to the fort several times with my family and got just as much out of the experience as we did with a guide.
And then there’s the trolley tour. The trolley had two cars and we were in the rear one. I couldn’t hear a thing the guide was saying. And it wasn’t because I was in a car with a group of kids either. It was a combination of street noise plus the volume of the speaker just wasn’t loud enough at all. At some point the teacher in our car just took over and started narrating the ride for us.
So, overall I was really disappointed just from a tourists point of view. I do think that they are extremely organized in handling school groups, and that’s the huge bonus here. I would actually recommend them to other schools visiting St. Augustine, because the whole experience was very smooth, everything was on schedule, it was easy. But I would absolutely say to request a kid-​friendly guide and make sure the speaker on your trolley works before you board.

I took a Old Town Trolley Tour of St. Augustine, FL on 4÷20÷2015. It was my 1^st time in St. Augustine, FL. A great way to get an overall view of the town and its history. The trolley makes more than 20 stops to complete a full tour. It’s a hop on, hop off bus (I was told they run about 15 minutes apart), so you can complete a whole loop or get on again later. Jimbo was my driver for most of the time and he was very good. Plus, I took photos.

We chose Old Town Trolley Tours because we were just in St. Augustine for a day and we wanted to take in as much of the city as possible and the hop out-​hop in option is always helpful in this kind of scenario. I was also pleased to find out that the drivers also serve as tour guides. I love learning about history and/​or a local’s intake so I was really looking forward to this.
However, Old Town Trolley Tours left me a bit disappointed. The ride is bumpy and the audio is not very clear so the driver/​tour guides’ narratives are barely heard. We are, however, able to take advantage of the hop out-​hop in thing so that was appreciated. Looking for parking is never fun, especially when you have very limited time to explore an area.
We were able to check out the museum on their premises with a group of school children so we had a curated tour, which was pretty nice as we knew very little about Florida history.
If you are looking to save yourself the hassle of looking for parking and have limited time to explore, they are a good option. But if you have more time to spend in St. Augustine, I would suggest looking elsewhere.

Worst experience of our entire vacation. Multiple times on multiple days, we’ve had to wait for 30 or more minutes as Trolleys have passed our stops completely full, with no room, but each one promising that there is another one «right behind me that has room». They take our money, but don’t provide the promised service. Don’t buy from them!
Note: we did talk to a manager at the beginning of our second day of using the trolley, and we were assured that it wouldn’t happen again that day — but it did. And after 2 days of the same problems, I called the number posted to speak to someone about our problems, but only got a recording. When someone finally did call me back, he apologized, but he only offered to help us out with more tickets to local attractions. Since we were leaving the next day, that did us no good, and he would not do anything else for us unless we went back to their main sales site the next day. I explained that we were driving home the next day, but he wouldn’t do anything else for us unless we came in person, which he knew we could not do. So the money back guarantee was apparently not available to us, in spite of the promises.

We had a lot of fun on the «Holly Jolly Holiday Trolley» christmas lights tour. Though we were on the fence as it sounded a bit cheesy AND it was nearly an hour wait during the Thanksgiving holidays, we’re so glad that we did it! We were given special 3-​D glasses that when you put them on, every single light (including car taillights and traffic lights) all seemed to pop out and dance, making the 3 million lights look even more magical and amazing. We were told that St Augustine is ranked one of the top ten places in the WORLD for their lights display by National Geographic.
They also had Christmas music playing and it was just so festive and happy… we were all singing along and cheering as we went by passersby and people dining outside. The driver had us say «Merry Christmas» on his command every now and then which yes was a little annoying but I put away my bah humbug and played along and just had a grand old time! At the end there are free sugar cookies and hot chocolate waiting for you. The tour is only about 45 mins which is perfect – you don’t get too cold or bored of seeing the lights come to life. A must-​see if you’re in the St Augustine area during the holidays!

During the holidays, they run the «Jolly Trolly» at night around the historic district which is decked out in Christmas lights. The already impressive light displays are taken to the next level with the special glasses they give you. They turn each individual bulb into a large complex star, and the displays look amazing. It’s open air, which was in the 40s for our trip, so pack accordingly. They play carols and the driver makes some small talk, but you really should come with a group of friends to make it an event. A smuggled bottle or two of airline sized adult beverages doesn’t hurt either.