El Galeón Returns to St. Augustine

The tall ship El Galeón, a replica of a Spanish galleon from the colonial period, returns to St. Augustine for a limited visit on April 1 - 17, 2016. Its next stop after this one will be Beaufort, SC.

El Galeón will be open for tours during this visit from 10 a.m. through 7 p.m. each day. Guests are free to roam above and below decks.

Admission: $12 for adults and $6 for for kids ages 5 - 12. Discounted rates of $10 and $5 are available for St. Johns County residents. Visit here to purchase tickets.

When: Friday, April 1, through Sunday, April 17, 2016. Open for tours each day 10 a.m. - 7 p.m.

Where: El Galeón is docked at St. Augustine's municipal marina next to the Bridge of Lions, at 111 Avenida Menendez.

More about El Galeón

Ships such as this one sailed Florida's coastal waters during the 16th and 17th centuries, crossing the ocean from the Old World to the New for trade and exploration purposes. The Nao Victoria Foundation of Seville, Spain, began building this authentic replica tall ship in 2006. Since her completion, El Galeón has sailed the world and now calls St. Augustine her homeport.

The 170-foot, 495-ton El Galeón requires a crew of 28 to operate the seven sails (more than 9.600 square feet in area) on three masts in the same method used by sailors in the 16th century. The ship was used in the making of the television series "Crossbones" on location in Puerto Rico.

The first historical ship like El Galeón to arrive in St. Augustine was the San Pelayo, the flagship of city founder Don Pedro Menéndez de Avilés. It was one of the most powerful ships of its day, weighing some 650 tons and carrying 800 colonists and supplies. Menéndez and his colonists established St. Augustine, the first permanent European settlement in the United States, in 1565.