If you find yourself heading up or down I95 and struck out trying to find a place to park for the night, then you might want to look up to find the towering Cracker Barrel sign towering 5 stories tall that you’ll easily be able to spot from I95 a good mile or so away from the turn-off.
What are the upsides to Cracker Barrel? Well, if you’re looking for a real EZ on and off parking pad to call home for the night or, just maybe, you’ve got shopping on your mind and want to take advantage of being parking right across the street from St. Augustine Premium Outlets, then Cracker Barrel has you covered. The lot here is somewhat small though, although I can’t imagine you will have too much competition trying to find a spot to park your RV for the night as this place is located at the very end of a winding, little-trafficked lane just off the busyness of Highway 208 or I95.
Now to the downside. Well, you are just right off the highway, so noise is going to be a problem, so if the constant swoosh of passing by traffic bothers you, then I highly suggest getting a good pair of earplugs. That said, if you are looking to grab a slice of nature, you won’t mistake your surroundings for being embraced by the otherwise amazing nature that just a few miles from where you are parked, you could otherwise be experiencing (more on that below).
Insider’s tips? Here’s a few: (1) While you have to put up with parking in a rather benign, uneventful patch of concrete for the night, you will have a number of quick and EZ dining options from the likes of McDonald’s, Burger King, Starbucks, Chick-fil-A, Waffle House, IHOP, Ruby Tuesday, Sonny’s BBQ, Wendy’s and Taco Bell, however you should take note that perhaps the best part about parking here at Cracker Barrel is that you are literally parked just about a mile away from Ford’s Garage, which is arguably one of the best dining destinations in all of St. Augustine; (2) Did you take note on how I did not recommend actually eating at Cracker Barrel and instead recommended you drive a mile away to find something edible? Yeah, just wanted to make sure you didn't miss that subliminal of all hints!; (3) Unlike other parking lot outposts where you might scratch your head wondering about the sense of security, rest easy here at Cracker Barrel, where apart from offering up simply horrible food to keep people away, they also have security cameras. But if that's not enough, you are located just down the street from the Fraternal Order of Police in St. Johns and further east on 208 is a small but effective Florida State Trooper outpost, so from a safety and security standpoint … tick, tick and tick!; (4) Should shopping cross your mind, while St. Augustine is not the most premium looking outlet mall you’ll come across, it does house some decent stores such as Tommy Bahama, Ralph Lauren Polo, Nike and many other premium shops; and (5) Should you actually want to engage with nature while you are shored up on this asphalt landing pad, I highly recommend taking your kayak or canoe due east to Fort Mose Historic SP where you’ll be able to access the famous Tolomato River.
While scoring criteria may vary from one person to the next, here are the 5 most important criteria that informed my rating of this overnight location: convenience (EZ on- and off-access), safety & security, quality (of facilities), peace & quiet and amenities (either on-site or nearby). Here’s how I ranked this particular overnight spot:
Convenience: 5
Safety & Security: 4
Quality: 3
Peace & Quiet: 3
Amenities: 3
Overall, I scored this location a 3.
Happy Overnighting!
