Vilano Beach Homes for Sale

Vilano Beach is an unincorporated beach community in St. Johns County on the barrier island north of the St. Augustine Inlet. It is reached from downtown St. Augustine by the Francis and Mary Usina Bridge, the high-rise A1A span over the North (Tolomato) River, and historic St. Augustine is less than two miles away. The community runs along State Road A1A (the Coastal Highway, built through Vilano in 1928) from Porpoise Point at the inlet north toward South Ponte Vedra Beach, and it also takes in Camachee Island on the west side of the bridge.

The area was platted during the 1920s land boom, when a palm-log bridge first connected it to St. Augustine and the Grand Vilano Casino opened in 1926 (destroyed by a 1937 storm). Motor courts followed along Vilano Road in the late 1940s and 1950s; the 1951 Magic Beach Motel still stands. Today the nonprofit Vilano Beach Main Street works to “preserve, maintain and improve the Historic Vilano Beach community while protecting the small-town beach vibe.”

The center of things is Vilano Town Center at the east end of Vilano Road: a compact, walkable strip with Art Deco-inspired storefronts, a tiled fountain, a Publix, restaurants and hotels. On the river side is the free 600-foot Vilano Pier with the “Bluebird of Happiness” sculpture at its entrance, and on the ocean side is the beach on-ramp, off-beach parking, restrooms, showers and a pavilion. Because Vilano Beach is unincorporated county (not the City of St. Augustine), county rules govern zoning, vacation rentals and beach use.

Vilano Beach is not a master-planned community. Most of it is older platted lots with no HOA, so housing stock is mixed: 1950s cottages, elevated 1980s and 1990s beach houses, new-construction concrete-block homes, townhomes near the Town Center and a handful of condominium buildings. Broadly, the market breaks into these segments:

• Oceanfront homes. Direct-oceanfront lots along Coastal Highway (A1A) and the short side streets that dead-end at the dunes. Newer homes are built to current elevation and wind codes; older ones often sell on lot value. This is the top of the market in Vilano.
• Intracoastal / riverfront homes. The west side of A1A faces the Tolomato River and Intracoastal Waterway. Many of these parcels have private docks, lifts and marsh views, and the deep water near the inlet is a major draw for boat owners.
• Canal and interior homes. Streets a block or two from either shore, plus canal-front lots with dockage. Usually the best value for a rental with beach access a short walk away.
• Condos and townhomes. Smaller condo buildings and newer townhome projects near the Town Center and along A1A. Check each association’s rental policy before assuming a unit can be a vacation rental.
• Porpoise Point and North Beach. Porpoise Point is the neighborhood at the southern tip, north of the inlet and east of the Tolomato River, with lighthouse views across the inlet and riverfront homes with docks. Unlike most of Vilano, Porpoise Point has an HOA, and local sources report that its covenants prohibit vacation rentals, so investors should confirm the documents before offering. “North Beach” is the older name for the stretch of A1A north of the Town Center.
• South Ponte Vedra Beach. Continue north on A1A and Vilano transitions into South Ponte Vedra Beach, a mostly oceanfront strip of single-family homes and low-rise condos that share the same beach and the same county rules. See our Ponte Vedra Beach page for the areas further north.

Pricing here is driven by frontage (ocean, river, canal, interior), year built, elevation and flood-zone status, and whether the home already operates as a licensed vacation rental.

Vilano Beach is one of the most established vacation-rental markets in St. Johns County. Short-term rentals are legal here but regulated; the summary below comes from county sources, and you should confirm the current rules and fees with the county before you buy.

County vacation-rental ordinance. On May 4, 2021 the St. Johns County Commission unanimously adopted Ordinance 2021-23, now codified in Land Development Code Section 2.02.04.B.19. It applies to short-term vacation rentals in unincorporated St. Johns County east of the Intracoastal Waterway, which includes Vilano Beach. Owner-occupied homesteaded homes and units in multi-family buildings with an HOA or property management are exempt. Key requirements:

• Registration with the county for each unit, renewed every 12 months. The application package includes a sample rental agreement stating maximum occupancy and 24-hour owner/manager contact information, a St. Johns County Local Business Tax Receipt, a Florida DBPR transient public lodging license, a Florida Department of Revenue sales-tax certificate, an executed affidavit and a registration fee.
• Occupancy: two transient occupants per sleeping room or common area, up to a maximum of 10, not counting children 12 and under.
• Parking: at least one off-street space per three transient occupants, and the total number of vehicles, boats, RVs and trailers may not exceed the off-street spaces available.
• Trash: covered containers, at least one per four occupants, with rules on when cans can be at the curb.
• Posting and inspection: owner contact, occupancy limit, evacuation route, nearest hospital and sea-turtle lighting rules must be posted at the entrance, and rental agreements must acknowledge the county’s right to inspect. Noise falls under Ordinance 2015-19. A first violation draws a warning; after that the county can issue citations and fines.

Tourist development tax. Rentals of six months or less are subject to the county Tourist Development Tax, 5% since October 1, 2021, on top of Florida state sales tax. Owners or their agents register with the St. Johns County Tax Collector; returns are due on the first of the month following collection and delinquent after the 20th. Booking platforms may collect some taxes for you, but the owner remains responsible for compliance.

What buyers should verify before closing:

1. Whether any HOA or condo declaration restricts rentals (Porpoise Point, for example).
2. Whether the seller holds a current county registration, DBPR license and TDT account, and whether those transfer or must be re-applied for (the county’s online registration portal was offline for a software transition as of this writing).
3. Bedroom count as recorded by the county, because it caps occupancy, and off-street parking count, because it caps vehicles.
4. The flood zone and elevation certificate (see FAQs); insurance is usually the biggest variable in a beach STR pro forma.
5. Actual booking history and expense statements rather than projected numbers.

Sources: St. Johns County Short Term Vacation Rentals page and ordinance guide; St. Johns County Tax Collector Tourist Development Tax page.

The beach. Vilano’s beach is coarser and steeper than Anastasia Island’s, with a shell-and-coquina mix popular with surf anglers and surfers. It is a driving beach: four-wheel-drive vehicles enter at the on-ramp at the east end of the Town Center, with seasonal hours (8 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. May through September, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. October through April) and a permit fee from March through Labor Day; access depends on tide and conditions. Leashed dogs are allowed. The main access has off-beach parking, restrooms, showers, picnic tables and seasonal lifeguards, and there are seven oceanfront parks along the community’s stretch of A1A.

Porpoise Point and the inlet. At the south end, the beach wraps around to face the St. Augustine Inlet. The jetty and a sandbar create calm tidal pools that draw swimmers, paddleboarders and kayakers, and the point is a favorite spot for launching jet skis and for fishing.

Boating. The Vilano Boat Ramp is on the west side of the bridge, and Camachee Cove Yacht Harbor is on Camachee Island. Riverfront and canal homes with docks are minutes from the inlet and open Atlantic, and several tour and charter operators run from the Vilano side.

The pier and events. The 600-foot Vilano Pier is free for fishing and sunset watching, with a Sunset Celebration the first Saturday of each month. A marsh boardwalk with mosaic art runs under the Usina Bridge, and the Dolphin Bay Scenic Shuttle links the Town Center with downtown daily.

Vilano Town Center. Daily needs are covered by the Publix at Vilano Beach Town Center (55 Ava Way), with a pharmacy and adjacent liquor store. Restaurants within a short walk of the beach access include Beaches at Vilano (254 Vilano Rd, live music on weekends), 180 Vilano Grill, Surfside Kitchen, Michael’s, Fire Wok and Anchor 28, plus coffee, ice cream, surf and gift shops.

Waterfront dining north on A1A. Cap’s on the Water, Aunt Kate’s and The Reef are the well-known Intracoastal and oceanfront restaurants a few minutes north, most with docks or outdoor seating.

Nearby. Across the bridge are the San Marco Avenue and Historic District restaurants and shops; big-box retail and the outlet malls are along US-1 and State Road 16, roughly 10 to 15 minutes away.

Vilano Beach is served by the St. Johns County School District. Real-estate school listings for the Vilano Beach neighborhood show Ketterlinus Elementary School (67 Orange St, downtown St. Augustine, grades PK-5), Sebastian Middle School (2955 Lewis Speedway, grades 6-8) and St. Augustine High School (3205 Varella Ave, grades 9-12). Zone boundaries are set by address and the district redraws them periodically (new zones took effect for the 2026-2027 year), so confirm any specific property with the district’s official Attendance Zone Locator at stjohns.k12.fl.us/zoning before you rely on it. Flagler College is just across the bridge downtown.

• Downtown St. Augustine / Historic District: less than two miles across the Usina Bridge; about five minutes by car outside of event traffic, or take the Dolphin Bay Scenic Shuttle.
• Ponte Vedra Beach and Jacksonville Beach: north on A1A through South Ponte Vedra Beach and the Guana River preserve.
• Jacksonville and I-95: west via A1A/San Marco Ave to US-1 or State Road 16 to I-95 (about 15 minutes to the interstate). Downtown Jacksonville and the Southside/St. Johns Town Center office corridors are generally 45 to 60 minutes, depending on route and time of day.
• Airports: Jacksonville International (JAX) is roughly an hour to an hour and a quarter by car via I-95; Northeast Florida Regional Airport (general aviation) is on US-1 about 10 minutes from Vilano.

Note that Vilano is a barrier island with A1A as its only through road, so county evacuation orders for the beaches apply here during tropical events; the St. Johns County iMap shows evacuation zones and routes by address.