Tallahassee

Tallahassee is the capital city of Florida, in the Florida Panhandle region of the state. In addition to housing the state government, it is a university town home to Florida State University, Florida A&M University, and Tallahassee Community College. Tallahassee has a good selection of restaurants for a city of its size. The universities' theater, art, and music programs, in addition to an active Council of Culture and Arts, also make for an unusually vibrant arts scene.

Understand

History

Visitor information

Get in

By plane
  • 🌍 Tallahassee Regional Airport (TLH  IATA), 3300 Capital Cir SW (5 miles south of the Florida State University campus (west side of town) via Lake Bradford Rd), ☏ +1 850 891-7800. There are non-stop flights to Tallahassee Municipal Airport from Atlanta, Dallas-Ft Worth, Washington DC and South Florida with the following airlines: 

Click here for list of taxi companies, car rental companies and shuttle companies at the airport. Star Metro (local public transportation) does not serve the airport.

By car

Tallahassee is on:

  • Interstate 10 Tallahassee is accessed from exits 199 to 209
  • Tennessee St
  • Monroe Ave & Apalachee Pkwy
  • Capital Pkwy goes around town along the east and southside of town. It connects Thomasville, Georgia, through Tallahassee to US Hwy 98 on the Gulf Coast.

By bus
  • 🌍 Greyhound Lines, Flixbus, (bus station) 112 E Tennessee St (W Tennessee & N Adams St), ☏ +1 850-222-4249, toll-free: +1-800-231-2222. Connects Tallahassee to Atlanta (via Moultrie GA, Albany GA, Unadilla GA, Macon GA); Nashville (via Dothan, Birmingham, Montgomery, Huntsville); Jacksonsville (via Lake City); Orlando (Via Lake City, Gainesville, Ocala); and Houston (via Panama City, Ft Walton Beach, Pensacola, Mobile, Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Beaumont-Vidor). Passengers transfer in Orlando to reach Miami (via W Palm Beach, Ft Lauderdale); Naples (via Tampa/St Petersburg, Ft Meyers); and to other cities. Some buses continue to Miami (via Orlando, W Palm Beach, Ft Lauderdale) from Tallahassee but without transfer in Orlando. Nearest connection points to Amtrak trains are in Orlando, New Orleans, Jacksonville and Atlanta. Check schedules. The Greyhound bus station is located across the street (W Tennessee St) from C.K. Steele Bus Plaza for connections to local city buses (See below under 'Get around'). (updated May 2021)
  • Redcoach, (bus stop) 1021 St Augustine St (St Augustine & Walker St at Parking Garage #6 on FSU campus), ☏ +1 407-851-2843, toll-free: +1-877-733-0724. Service from Tallahassee to Miami via Ocala, Gainesville and Ft Lauderdale. One branch go from Ocala through Orlando, Ft Pierce, W Palm Beach, Pompano Beach and Ft Lauderdale. Another go through Tampa, Ft Myers, Naples & Ft Lauderdale. They also have another stop at 329 Marriott Dr in downtown. (updated Sep 2017)

Get around

By foot

Tallahassee is not as pedestrian-friendly as some cities. Some areas of the city are more conducive for walking than others. Downtown, Midtown and Lake Ella are probably the most picturesque and convenient for walking.

By bus
  • STAR Metro. Tallahassee's public bus system typically runs from about 6AM to 7 or 8PM during the week and about 7AM to 7PM on weekends. Routes and hours are limited after 7PM and on Sundays. To get anywhere other than Downtown or one of the university campuses typically requires at least one transfer. Their "central bus station" or hub is at the downtown 🌍 C.K. Steele Bus Plaza, across the street (W Tennessee) from the Greyhound bus station. There are no longer ticket vending machines at the bus plaza, but tickets, passes and cards can be purchased at a kiosk by cash or credit card during business hours. $1.25. (updated Dec 2023)

By taxi

There are several taxi companies serving Tallahassee. Outside of the airport there are not many taxi stands around the city, so it is better to call and arrange for a pick-up.

See
  • 🌍 Florida Historic Capitol Museum (Old State Capitol), 400 S Monroe St (Monroe Street at Apalachee Parkway), ☏ +1 850-487-1902. M-F 9AM-4:30PM, Sa 10AM-4:30PM, Su Noon-4:30PM. The state government has moved to the new skyscraper capital building nearby, and the old building has been made into a museum, restored to how it looked in 1902. free. (updated Dec 2023)
  • 🌍 Florida State Capitol, 400 S Monroe St (S Duval Street between S Monroe & Pensacola Streets, behind Capitol Museum (old capitol).), ☏ +1 850-488-6167. 8AM-5PM. Security screening is required prior to entering the building. Visit the 22nd floor for a panoramic view of Tallahassee. Stop on the 5th floor to see Florida's Legislative chambers. free. (updated Dec 2023)
  • 🌍 National High Magnet Field Laboratory, 1800 E. Paul Dirac Dr, ☏ +1 850-644-0311. The NHMFL at Florida State University houses the most powerful magnets on Earth. Tours available. 
  • 🌍 Tallahassee Automobile Museum, 6800 Mahan Dr (a short drive on Interstate-10 East of the main part of the city). $20/adult, $17.50concession, $11.75/student, $8/child. Large collection of classic and antique cars and other curiosities. 
  • 🌍 Goodwood Museum & Gardens, 1600 Miccosukee Rd. The plantation home is now a historic house museum known as Goodwood Museum & Gardens that features original family furniture, porcelain, textiles, glassware, art and personal effects. The rooms have been decorated to appear in the years surrounding World War I. The house is visited by guided tour. The grounds cover 16 acres (65,000 m2), and the gardens also feature an early 20th-century design. Admission to the gardens is free. (updated Sep 2016)
  • 🌍 Museum of Florida History, 500 S Bronough St (temporarily closed for renovations), ☏ +1 850-245-6400. "The Museum of Florida History collects, preserves, exhibits, and interprets evidence of past and present cultures in Florida, and promotes knowledge and appreciation of this heritage.". free. (updated Sep 2019)
  • 🌍 Knott House Museum, 301 East Park Ave (temporarily closed for renovations), ☏ +1 850-922-2459. Historic home constructed in 1843. free. (updated Sep 2016)
  • 🌍 Lake Jackson Mounds Archaeological State Park, 3600 Indian Mounds Rd, ☏ +1 850-922-6007. 8AM til sunset. The park encompasses six of the seven known ancient Native American earthen temple mounds, with two available for viewing by the public.There are two hiking trails, 0.75mi and 2.2mi. suggested $3/car, $2/pedestrian, cash only. (updated Dec 2023)
  • 🌍 Lake Talquin State Park, 14850 Jack Vause Landing Rd, ☏ +1 850-922-6007. 
  • 🌍 Letchworth-Love Mounds Archaeological State Park, 4500 Sunray Road, South, ☏ +1 850-922-6007. 
  • 🌍 Natural Bridge Battlefield Historic State Park, 7502 Natural Bridge Rd, ☏ +1 850-922-6007. 
  • 🌍 St. Marks River Preserve State Park, 11950 Tram Rd, ☏ +1 850-922-6007. 
  • 🌍 First Presbyterian Church, 102 North Adams St. Completed in 1838, this is the oldest church in Tallahassee and the oldest building in Florida that's still being used for its original purpose. (updated Jul 2021)
  • 🌍 Mission San Luis de Apalache, 2100 W Tennessee St, ☏ +1 850 245-6406. Tu-Su 10AM-4PM. Site where a Spanish Franciscan mission was built in 1656. The mission was destroyed in 1704 but some buildings have been reconstructed as a living history museum. $5/adult, $3/senior, $2/child, military free. (updated Dec 2023)
  • 🌍 Tallahassee Museum, 3945 Museum Rd, ☏ +1 850-575-8684. M-Sa 9AM-5PM, Su 11AM-5PM. A 52-acre site by the lake featuring native Florida flora and fauna (including Florida panthers and red wolves), cypress swamp, hiking trails, zip-lines, adventure courses, a live 19th-century farmstead reconstruction, and an outdoor exhibition of Jim Gary's 20th Century Dinosaurs. $14.50/adult, $13.50/concession, $10/child. (updated Jun 2022)

Do
  • Tallahassee Skate Park (between James Messer Fields and TalTran Administrative Offices Jackson Bluff Road at Appleyard Drive). Sunrise to midnight. A 26,000 square foot facility. (updated Jun 2020)
  • 🌍 Lake Ella (in north central Tallahassee on US 27 just south of Tharpe Street). Lake Ella has an area of 12 acres (49,000 m²). Lake Ella is attached to 6.5 acre (26,000 m²) Fred Drake Park. The park has picnic shelters, a site for community activities and a paved walking trail that completely encircles the lake. The lake is bordered on the west side by quaint little shops and cafes. One vendor is the Black Dog Cafe where joggers can get a cup of coffee for their morning run around the trail. Visitors can walk, skate, or skateboard around the lake. (updated Jun 2020)
  • 🌍 Maclay Gardens (Alfred B. Maclay Gardens State Park), 3450 Thomasville Rd (in north Tallahassee near I-10 and Capital Circle), ☏ +1 850-487-4556. Alfred B. Maclay Gardens State Park has at its heart the winter home and gardens of Maclay and his wife Louise. The house is open to the public as an interpretive museum. The surrounding gardens are known especially for their camellias and magnolias. Other than the gardens, the park offers biking, hiking and equestrian trails as well as kayaking, canoeing and fishing among other activities. The park is open all year round during most daylight hours. The gardens are open all year round 9AM-5PM. 

Buy
  • 🌍 Governor's Square, 1500 Apalachee Parkway. 
  • 🌍 Centre of Tallahassee, 2415 N Monroe St, ☏ +1 850-385-7145. Formerly known as the Tallahassee Mall. (updated May 2021)
  • 🌍 Railroad Square (Railroad Square Art Park), 567 Industrial Dr (between the FSU and FAMU campuses on Railroad Ave.), ☏ +1 850-224-1308. The Railroad Square Art Park is a collection of studios, galleries and other unique shops. On the first Friday of each month Railroad Square hosts a gallery hop called First Friday. Businesses stay open late and offer live music and even food. 
  • Bradley's Country Store, 10655 Centerville Rd, ☏ +1 850 893-4742. Sausage and grits since 1927. (updated Jan 2024)

Eat

Drink
  • Bullwinkle's, 620 W. Tennessee St. 
  • Leon Pub, 215 E 6th Ave, ☏ +1 850-425-4639. A smoking-friendly pub with dozens, if not hundreds, of beer selections from all over the world. 
  • Bajas Beachclub (at the intersection of Pensacola St and Ocala Rd). A trendy, yet sketchy, night club. 
  • Fermentation Lounge (All Saints District). A hip, but still down-to-earth lounge featuring a wide selection of wines and beers and even harder to find items such as mead, sangria and ciders. 
  • Proof Brewing Co, 1320 S Monroe St, ☏ +1 850 577-0517, . W-F 4PM-10PM, Sa 2PM-10PM, Su 2PM-8PM. A very large brewpub with beer garden. $1 off Proof pints at happy hour (W-F 4-6PM). (updated Dec 2023)
  • Amicus Brewing Ventures, 717 S Gadsden St (right by Cascades Park in the NRHP-registered old city waterworks building). Th 4PM-10PM, F-Sa Noon-10PM, Su Noon-8PM. Brewery. Beer garden and flights available. $6-8/pint. (updated Dec 2023)

Sleep

Go next
Routes through Tallahassee
Pensacola ← Quincy ←  W  E  → Jct N S → Lake City → Jacksonville
Columbus ← Bainbridge ←  N  S  → Ocala → Miami
Pensacola ← Quincy ←  W  E  → Lake City → Jacksonville
Apalachicola ← Crawfordville ←  SW  NE  → Thomasville → Tifton


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