On a tree-lined street among grand, historic homes in the heart of the Nation’s Oldest City, a charming, eight-room inn offers visitors a stay they will long remember and cherish.
In a community like St. Augustine where tourist accommodations cater to a wide variety of tastes, Lions and Lanterns Inn occupies a niche highly prized by its clientele. With 491 reviews on Google, it maintains a solid five stars.
Owner Jocelyn Fastner bought the 1920s-era home and former bed and breakfast in August 2021 after years of travel and adventure. She had spent three years sailing around the Bahamas and the Florida Keys, two years exploring America in an RV and riding a dirt bike something like 7,000 miles across several states.
But then, Fastner — a former flight attendant — felt a need to slow down.
“I wanted to have a community,” she said.
She remembered visiting St. Augustine in her RV and returned to seek a place to call home.
“I just found this place, and I fell in love with it,” she said.
The home and yard needed some work, but after about a year, with the help of friends, professionals and neighbors, Lions and Lanterns was ready to begin accepting guests.
For Fastner, who said she has always had a love for people, these guests occupy a special place — some even becoming lifelong friends.
“I really feel like this inn has given me the capability to be the person that I always wanted to be,” she said.
Fastner lives on site with her family, which includes three older children she adopted from the Philippines and a chihuahua named Peanut who is a special favorite of her guests.
She laughs when she reveals that so many guest reviews have referenced her pet that, among the keywords listed — keywords like “romance,” “walkability” and “hidden gem” — there is one that may confuse anyone who hasn’t already been a guest: “peanut.”
“I have had just the most wonderful guests,” Fastner said, still laughing over Peanut’s prominence.
Fastner also enjoys rescuing young animals and currently has four kittens.
Lions and Lanterns Inn is located at 34 Saragossa St., which is just a short walk to St. Augustine’s various attractions.
“I always say we are close enough to hear the music in the garden, but not close enough to hear it in your room,” Fastner said.
Situated in a neighborhood where the same families have owned their homes for generations, Fastner wants to make her inn a kind of community space.
“We have classic movies in the garden,” she said. “I put a projector up and we all — guests and neighbors and whoever wants to come — we all have a happy hour outside. We do ‘Rocky Horror’ every year with props. It’s just so fun.”
To learn more about the inn or to make reservations, go to lionsandlanterns.com.
