Casa Monica Hotel

She’s a Grand Dame who has witnessed the best and worst of times.

Opening Jan. 1, 1888, only three guests were registered at the elegant Casa Monica Hotel.  Cost: $3. per night. Henry Flagler, financier and railroad magnate, purchased her four months later for $325,000. For the next 14 years, Casa Monica hosted the rich and fashionable in luxury and opulence.

The 1932 Depression changed everything: Casa Monica was forced to close her doors. For the next 30 years, the legendary Belle of the Ball remained quiet.

 In 1997, hotelier Richard C. Kessler invested $17 million to return this historic property to her original grandeur. Casa Monica Hotel re-opened December 10, 1999, as one of St. Augustine’s premiere properties.

We feel like we’ve entered a European castle. Moorish columns and arches abound; gilded iron tables, antique chandeliers, bubbling fountains, luxe velvet and tapestry fabrics in cobalt blue, deep red, and shimmering gold create a stunning ambiance. Amenities are modern: expansive meeting rooms, a 24/7-business and fitness center, boutiques, galleries, even a Starbucks coffee shop.

Guests enjoy sandwiches, salads, and desserts in the Café Cordova.

At the hotel’s award winning 95 Cordova Restaurant, guests feast on spicy lobster soup, Moroccan duckling, and goat cheese encrusted lamb.

Our spacious room features a wrought-iron bed with a cozy down comforter.

The window overlooks a private terrace with graceful palms and an inviting swimming pool.  We’re eager to head out though, because Casa Monica is in the heart of St. Augustine’s shops, galleries, and museums. We can walk to historic attractions or enjoy a leisurely horse drawn carriage ride. America’s oldest city invites us to travel back in time.

The Lightner Museum

“In the late 1800’s, St. Augustine was considered The American Riviera, Playground for the wealthy,” says Barry Myers, curator of The Lightner Museum.

“This 1888 building was formerly one of Henry Flagler’s grand hotels, the sumptuous Alcazar. It cost $1.5 million to build, and guests often stayed for three months. Can you imagine?”

Nor can we imagine the variety of the astonishing collection housed here. In 1948, publisher/hobbyist/entrepreneur Otto C. Lightner bought The Alcazar from Henry Flagler for $125,000. Mr. Lightner had amassed thousands of items, which he had purchased from Depression estate sales. We wander among Victorian memorabilia, crystal, stained glass art by Louis Tiffany, paintings, toys, sculptures, porcelains and furniture. There are some 5,000 salt and peppershakers, matchbook covers, walking canes, buttons, seashells, a five-foot marble Cleopatra, as well as an 1873 Renaissance piano. I’m amazed at the massive lion, given to Sir Winston Churchill to commemorate British victories in North Africa. There’s even a 2500-year-old mummy.

We spend a morning browsing Lightner Museum and decide it’s a fascinating exploration through America’s gilded age.

Henry Flagler’s Legacy

Henry Morrison Flagler, the 19th century financier and railroad builder, built The Alcazar and The Ponce de Leon Hotels in St. Augustine in 1888. Flagler, born in 1830, was the son of a Presbyterian minister. He worked in the grain and distillery business, as well as in salt production. At age 36, his life dramatically changed when he met John D. Rockefeller. They founded the Rockefeller, Andrews and Flagler Oil Company, the predecessor to Standard Oil.

Flagler visited St. Augustine in 1885 with his second wife and fell in love

with the city at first sight. He became determined to build hotels to lure wealthy sun deprived northerners onto his railroad and into sunny historic St. Augustine. Flagler built his Ponce and Alcazar Hotels in grand style, to fit the city’s Spanish character. The Alcazar became Lightner Museum in 1948, and the stately Ponce became Flagler College in 1968, one of the top private colleges in the U.S. Visitors touring the College are awed by magnificent architecture, the Tiffany windows, and electric chandeliers designed by Thomas Edison.

By the early 1900’s, Flagler had established St. Augustine as a popular vacation

for art, luxury, and sunshine connoisseurs. St. Augustine became famous, due in no small part to Flagler’s brilliant plan to create both a railroad and fabulous hotels. By his death in 1913, the man from humble beginnings had amassed a $100 million fortune for himself and his heirs.

St. Augustine

After a splendid tour of Lightner Museum, Flagler College and a Moorish Revival style house called Villa Zorayda, we visit St. Augustine’s contemporary artists, busy in their studios and galleries on Aviles Street.

Worley Faver welcomes us to watch him fashion one of his unique pots.

Hand coiled, hand carved, Faver fires his Native American inspired pots in 1000-degree heat.  His tools are a smooth stone for polishing, a walnut for texture, 25 pounds of Georgia red clay, and his hands. “Most of my ideas come from my dreams,” Faver tells me. “The Anasazi Indians inspire me, their history and creativity.” Each pot may take three weeks to create by hand, then another four weeks to dry before firing. “When a new pot emerges from the sawdust and smoke, that moment is both exciting and humbling,” Faver said.

A few doors down, we enter The Aviles Street Gallery, where 22 local artists show their paintings and photographs. We meet gallery owner Bill Puckett, who began pursuing his love of watercolor painting after he retired as general director of the St. Augustine Alligator Farm.  Puckett has always been an artist, having studied architecture at the University of Florida, and at the Ringling School of Art. After serving in the Army, then working as advertising art director for the Florida Times-Union, he began painting from the sketches he’d make over forty years. Now Puckett creates watercolors of his beloved St. Augustine. His Aviles Street Gallery is an oasis of unique art by his many creative friends.

After exploring St. Augustine’s contemporary art scene, Warren and I walk back to Casa Monica for our dinner at 95 Cordova. On the outdoor terrace, we discover a haven of graceful palms alongside a shimmering swimming pool.  Lured into a black and white chaise lounge, soft bosa nova tunes soothe us into oblivion.

Yes, the art and luxury of America’s oldest city beckons. But under Casa Monica’s spell, this is our idea of real luxury.

If you go

St. Augustine, the oldest city in the U.S., features more than 60 historic sites and attractions, national monuments, and churches. Sightseeing tours are conducted from open-air trolleys or trains and horse drawn carriages. Nearby Ponte Vedra Beach is home to the PGA tour, world-class golf and tennis; spas, boutiques and 42 miles of beautiful beaches. Located on Florida’s northeast Atlantic coast, St. Augustine is a 4-5 hour drive from Charleston.

We loved our stay at Casa Monica Hotel, offering 138 guestrooms and 14 multi-level suites, an outdoor pool, award winning 95 Cordova Restaurant, and heart of the city location. 95 Cordova Street. 1-904-827-1888. www.casamonica.com.

We recommend the excellent cuisine at J.P. Henley’s, 10 Marine Street, 904- 829-3337,  www.jphenleys.com;  Columbia Restaurant, 98 St. George Street, 904-824-3341;The Reef Restaurant, 4100 Coastal Highway, 904-824-8008, or www.TheReefSt. Augustine.com; and The Seahorse Grill, at The Ponte Vedra Inn and Club, 200 Ponte Vedra Blvd. Ponte Vedra, FL. 904-285-1111, or www.pvresorts.com.

Visit  The Lightner Museum, 75 King Street, 904-824-2874,  or www.lightnermuseum.com; and The Aviles Street Gallery, 11C Aviles St. 904-823-8608.

More Info: St. Augustine, Ponte Vedra & The Beaches Visitors and Convention Bureau, 88 Riberia St. Suite 400, St. Augustine, FL 32084. 904-829-1711, or www.Getaway4Florida.com.    

( © 2008 Sharon Spence Lieb and Warren Lieb)

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