This planning post was for a trip down through the Southeast to New Orleans in January 2020.

Needing to be in Atlanta in January is a good excuse to un-winterize the Airstream and spend a couple weeks in warmer climes. Here’s what we’re thinking for maximizing sunshine, nature, food, and drink:

• St Augustine, FL
• St George Island / Apalachicola, FL
• New Orleans
• Montgomery, AL (just a quick stopover on the way to Atlanta)
• Atlanta
• Charlotte

As you know if you read this blog, our priorities include dog-friendly outdoor activities, creative food, and good beer. If you have similar interests, read on, and if you have advice, please comment!

St Augustine

We always start our research by reading travel articles, and give particular weight to NYT. Here’s a recent one on St Augustine.

Food

• Osprey Tacos
• Crave Food Truck
• The Floridian
• La Herencia for the best cafe con leche
• Mango Mango’s?

Breweries

We’re not exited about any of these, no offense:

• Dog Rose (central)
• Ancient City (central)
• Bog (slightly west) – had a hazy IPA in early Dec at least
• Old Coast (slightly east)

Cocktails

• Ice Plant
• Odd Birds (for food too!)
• Sarbez! (for beer: dive bar with craft beer and grilled cheese)

Activities

• 3 Ways to Enjoy a Healthy Vacation in St Augustine
• Tour St Augustine Distillery (every 30 mins)
• Accord Freedom Trail
• Architecture walking tour

St George Island / Apalachicola

Here’s a really old NYT 36 Hours article on Apalachicola.

Food

• Indian Pass Raw Bar – 34 mins west of our campground; from NYT article
• Oysters! (close to St Vincent Island if we go to hike)
• Owl Cafe (Apalachicola) – NYT said get reservation; not overwhelmed by web research, although Tripadvisor has it high; there is also a “Tap Room”
• Weber’s Little Donut Shop (St G) – AM only (Tripadvisor top restaurant)
• Cafe Con Leche (St G)- coffee and real food
• The Station Raw Bar (Apalachicola) – highly rated Tripadvisor and Google

Breweries

• Eastpoint – 2.5 mi from campground, on water, has hazy IPAs
• Oyster City – 9 mi from campground; hard to tell, but doesn’t look great

Activities

• Natural attractions in Apalachicola Bay
• St Vincent Island – have to rent kayak to get there (NYT article)
• Sunset at Lafayette Park
• St George Island State Park – dogs not allowed on beaches
• Except for the Julian G. Bruce State Park beach, St. George Island beaches are pet-friendly for well-behaved and leashed pets

New Orleans

Lonely Planet article

48 Hours in New Orleans

Food

lunch

• Dong Phuong Bakeshop: a James Beard winning Vietnamese bake shop
• Turkey and the Wolf: Sandwiches from a UVA grad; Bon Appetit’s 2017 best restaurant
• True Food Kitchen: healthy food

dinner

• Compere Lapin – another Beard winner
• Justine (another Beard winner) looks to be a cool French Quarter location with good ambiance; smaller plates look good
• Maypop: Asian-Cajun fusion

Breweries

These are the breweries we’re most interested, based on J’s research:

• Brieux Carré Brewing Co
• Second Line Brewing
• Beer Lab
• The Courtyard Brewery (south)
• Urban South (south)
• Miel Brewing (south)
• NOLA Brewing Tap Room

Cocktails

• Cure – James Beard winner
• French 75 – one of 5 best in US

Activities

(We’ve been to New Orleans a couple times so have done a lot of the usual tourist stuff)

• D-Day Museum
• New Orleans Pharmacy Museum
• picnic at The Fly
• drink at Snake and Jake’s dive bar
• jazz show at preservation hall
• walk thru Besthoff Sculpture garden
• visit music box village
• creepy chapel at St Roch cemetery
• run in crescent park
• walking tours