If you have been following our previous posts for our KLOVE Cruise 2024 trip, you might be wondering what happened to Day 4 to Day 7? These have been covered separately in our KLOVE Cruise 2024 Review post. This is why, this post starts with Day 8 as we disembark and commence our drive to Jacksonville – home of craft beers in Florida!
USA Trip 2024 Day 8 – Driving from Miami to Jacksonville
On our disembarkation day, we woke up at 5:30am and aimed to disembark as early as possible to avoid the crowds. Breakfast started at 6am and we had some bagels, muesli and pancakes before disembarkation at 7:30am. The disembarkation process was surprisingly smooth. Facial recognition was used during our arrival and there was no need to show our passport. No need for specs removal as well.
Lyft (Uber/Grab in US) took quite a while actually. This was because the first driver cancelled on us while we waited for the 2nd driver from Miami city. After 20 minutes, the transport eventually came and the ride from Miami Port to Miami Airport Car Rental Centre costs about $18USD. During the ride, as the driver changed the station several times, trying to find a suitable station, we introduced him to KLOVE radio station (89.7FM) in Miami.
Retrieval of our car at the Car Rental Centre at Miami Airport was relatively smooth as well. All we had to do was to provide our last name and our reservation (done beforehand) was pulled up. As usual, the staff would ask us to get full coverage – which we declined. All in all, the 10 days of car rental was about $700USD which was not too bad.
We left at about 915am and reached Inter Miami (aka Chase Stadium) at 10am, our first stop this morning…
When we arrived, we were told by the staff that the souvenir/jersey shop would open only at 11am. However, after we parked our car, we saw that the store assistants had pulled out the store sign. When we checked in with them, we were very thankful that they were about to open at 10:20am!
We bought an authentic Inter Miami jersey for $187USD, inclusive of tax. The reason why it is so expensive (or we were told) is because of the material. The version that we bought is the actual player jersey which uses a different material as compared to the fan version. We could actually see and feel the difference ourselves. Especially in terms of breathability, you can see that the authentic jersey has a breathable engineered mesh back with AEROREADY technology that keeps you cool and dry. The player jersey, does not have this technology and lacks the jocktag signoff on the bottom left too. The difference in price is about $50USD.
Enroute to Jacksonville, we also stopped by Buc-ee’s at Daytona Beach Florida!
One of the reason why we visited Buc-ee’s was because during KLOVE Cruise, one of our dinner mates shared that Buc-ee’s as a petrol station, actually boasts of having the world’s largest convenient store. This, we’ve got to see…
Inside, Buc-ee’s is just like a supercharged petrol station convenient store. You’ll be able to find souvenir items such as trail mix, chips, popcorn and beaver nuggets. There was so much to choose from and we soon found our little basket to be full of souvenir snacks from Buc-ee’s. We also tried out some food such as the beef brisket slice sandwich ($9) and the strawberry cheese kolach, both of which are signatures at Buc-ee’s. We also pumped up the car with 8 gallon of petrol for $24USD. That’s about 30 litres at $33SGD. Yup, cheap by SG standards. Overall, we were pleasantly surprised by the size of Buc-ee’s and is definitely a nice experience to see how HUGE petrol station convenient stores can get.
USA Trip 2024 Day 8 – Arriving at our Airbnb at Silver Street Jacksonville
For our stay at Jacksonville, we chose to stay at an Airbnb at Silver Street for about $150 SGD per night. It was part of the house that was segregated from the owners. We entered by the main entrance while the owners will enter via a smaller side gate to enter their entrance round the back. We found the premise to be spacious and clean. There’s a living space, a bedroom, a toilet with bath tub and fridge along with coffee amenities…
Kate loved the Airbnb because of the colours used and interior decorations. As for Tom, he enjoyed the Lazy Boy rocker armchair as well as the dedicated HGTV app where we were able to watch past seasons of all HGTV episodes!
USA Trip 2024 Day 8 – Checking Out the Craft Beer Scene at Jacksonville
For dinner, we originally wanted to visit Intuition Brewery but turns out, there was a fire next door and police along with the fire department were in the vicinity, cordoning off the area and barricading the place. Hence, we went to the waterfront where we took some photos with a veteran destroyer (USS Orleck – Jacksonville Naval Museum). Complete with a beautiful sunset in the background. Thank the Lord!
As an alternative, we headed to Ruby Beach Brewing instead…
Parking was free after 6pm near to Ruby Beach Brewing Company by the road side. This evening, we had the Double Ditch Imperial IPA ($7) , Ode to the Abyss Imperial Stout ($7) as well as the Fling Saucer American Lager ($5). There was a 7.5% Florida tax and we gave a tip as well. There was no food available at Ruby Beach Brewing Company but they have a collab with a Thai food truck next door known as The Hungry Owl. We ordered the Spicy Basil with grilled chicken which turned out to be very flavourful and the rice was so fragrant! Excellent even by SG standards. The only thing was that it was a little too spicy for us – but still shiok. As for the beers, they were pretty good. Especially the Lager, which was more robust than usual.
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We returned to our Airbnb in the even and the owner’s cat was waiting for us at the porch. Almost wanting to enter into the house with us! Thankfully, it caught our message of “No!” and stayed on the porch. 😅
Stay tuned as we check out the rest of Jacksonville on Day 9 of our USA travels in 2024!
Related Posts from KLOVE Cruise 2024 USA Trip
2024 KLOVE Cruise USA Travel Itinerary Day 1: Flight from Singapore to Miami via Doha
2024 KLOVE Cruise USA Travel Itinerary Day 2: Flight from Doha to Miami Ponce De Leon Hotel
2024 KLOVE Cruise USA Travel Itinerary Day 3: Immersing in the Cuban culture at Little Havana Miami
2024 KLOVE Cruise USA Travel Itinerary Day 8: Disembarkation and Drive to Jacksonville…
2024 KLOVE Cruise USA Travel Itinerary Day 9: Checking out the Food and Craft Beers in Jacksonville!
2024 KLOVE Cruise USA Travel Itinerary Day 17: Returning Back from Miami to Singapore
Miami
Hotel Ponce De Leon Miami Review: Where to Stay for Cruisers departing from Port of Miami?
Sanguich Little Havana Review: Amazing “Cuban Sandwiches” in Little Havana Miami!
Havana Classic Cigar Little Havana Miami Review: Be Educated in Cuban Cigars and Coffees!
Jacksonville
Crispy’s Springfield Review: Fresh Pizzas in the heart of Jacksonville!
Springfield Scoops Review: Rich, Creamy scoops of ice cream in Springfield Jacksonville!
Hyperion Brewing Company Jacksonville: Cozy venue with an outdoor beer garden…
Our Experience at Aardwolf Brewing Company Jacksonville…
We went to Bold City Brewery in Jacksonville: Here’s what we found out…(A Review)
Engine 15 Brewery Review: Continuing our Craft Beer Journey in Jacksonville…
Artessence Coffee Shop Review: A Casual Venue in Jacksonville to Chill, Chat and Appreciate Art…
Ruby Beach Brewing Review: Craft Beers & Thai Food Takeaway in Jacksonville Florida!
Charleston
Discover Charleston South Carolina: Top 5 Experiences You Can’t Miss!
Patriots Point Naval and Maritime Museum Review: Visit the USS Yorktown Aircraft Carrier!
McLeod Plantation Charleston Review: Learning the truth about lives of slaves on the plantations…
Magnolia Plantation Charleston Review: For beautiful gardens and wildlife!
Old Slave Mart Museum Charleston Review: Tracing the Origins of American Slavery…
Gillie’s Seafood Charleston Review: Soul Food served up at Grandma’s…
Charlotte
Billy Graham Library Review: The Simple Message of The Gospel…
Bojangles Review: Really Salty Fried Chicken but Rather Good Legendary Iced Tea…
Legion Brewing Charlotte Review: Great Craft Beers at Plaza Midwood
Whiskey Warehouse Charlotte Review: Affordable Daily Specials in a Cozy Sports Bar Atmosphere
Atlanta
Exploring Atlanta, Georgia: A Guide to the Top 5 Must-See Attractions
The Darwin Hotel Review: A Beautiful Boutique Hotel in Atlanta…
Georgia Aquarium Review: A Beautiful Encounter with Sea Creatures Await!
Fernbank Museum of Natural History Review: Science, Nature and Fun does make history here!
Mary Mac’s Tea Room Review: For Authentic Southern Comfort Food in Atlanta!
Minero Review: Excellent Mexican Food at Ponce City Market Atlanta
From Charlotte to Atlanta: Our first visit to Chick-fil-A…
Orlando
Park Royal Orlando Review: Newly renovated rooms with a heated pool!
Spicy Girl (辣妹子) Review: What We Had during Lunar New Year in Orlando USA
Airport Lounges
Turkish Airlines Lounge Miami with Priority Pass: Squeezy little lounge during peak hours…
Al Maha Lounge Doha International Airport Review: Try Out Some Local Middle Eastern Delights Here…
Others
Ole Times Country Buffet Review: Southern Food and BBQ Buffet at an affordable price…