Travel

Jekyll Island

September 16, 2020
Welcome to Jekyll Island

While we were vacationing in St. Simons, we made a day trip to Jekyll Island. It is a small island about 30 minutes from St. Simons. There are lovely restaurants, beautiful hotels on the water, and many outdoor activities for the family to enjoy. We enjoyed visiting the beach, exploring a little area with cute local shops, and seeing sea turtles. We had lunch in the downtown area and took our time playing in the open areas. Like St. Simons, masks are required for all indoor areas and cannot practice social distancing.

Georgia Sea Turtle Center
Activites at the sea turtle center

The Georgia Sea Turtle Center was the highlight of our day trip. We arrived around 11:00 and had about a 20-minute wait until we could enter. They were letting small groups and families in at a time so it would not be crowded inside. This also was to keep your distance and look around the information center safely. We learned different facts about sea turtles, how trash affects their habitat, where the turtles lay their eggs, and sea turtles’ life span. We also saw a veterinarian and techs working on injured sea turtles in the surgery center they have on sight. They allow visitors to watch through a large glass window and view check-ups, surgeries, and other services to help the turtles.

Inside the Georgia Sea Turtle Center

After we walked through the activity center and learned about sea turtles, we made our way outside to the sea turtle hospital. This outside area houses sea turtles the center is currently rehabilitating and has the baby sea turtles growing in a safe area waiting to be released into the wild. We saw the more massive sea turtles in pools swimming around. We also learned you could adopt a sea turtle to help with their recovery, future treatments, and “keep in touch” when released. An enjoyable experience you can participate in is the release of a sea turtle. You can also join the volunteers on the beach when the turtles are hatching from their nest. This event is a once-in-a-lifetime event, and only a certain number of people can join.

Sea turtle hospital

While we were there, no turtles were released into the wild; however, we hope we can witness a release the next time we visit. If you want to experience a release or see the turtles hatch, call the center ahead of time and ask for dates. They can also give you more information for future dates, other events, and it would be a great activity to plan your future family vacation around.

Down town area.

After visiting the Sea Turtle Center, we walked around the shopping area and explored the locals’ shops. Our kids loved the open field under the Spanish moss-covered trees. They were able to climb on the low lying branches and cooled off with some ice cream. We also enjoyed learning about the history of the area and seeing the DuBignon Cottage built-in 1884 when Jekyll Island was purchased as a winter island for the elite in the 1800s. It was a getaway for those who loved to horseback ride, hunting, and needed a private retreat to escape vacations.

Driftwood
Sand Dunes

After self touring the area by the sea turtle hospital, we enjoyed lunch in the historic site. We enjoyed walking around, visiting more shops full of beach and pool clothing and toys, and letting the kids run on the grass. We walked down to the beach, and the views were breathtaking. There were very few people on the beach, and the sand was sugar white. I was blown away by the dunes that lined the sand and welcomed you as you walked down the ramp to the beach. One of my favorite things about Jekyll Island is all the natural driftwood that washes up on the beach, creating picturesque scenes along the coast.

Spanish moss covered trees

Our next vacation down to the Golden Isles will be to stay out on Jekyll Island. This small secluded island has many things to offer, such as nature trails, museums, beach days, and fishing. A day trip is just a tease to all the fun you can have as a family and the memories to make.

DuBignon Cottage

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