If you thought Florida’s main connection to pirates was a ride at the Magic Kingdom, there’s only one thing to say: aaarrrggh!
Sure, there were pirates in the Caribbean, but they swarmed around Florida as well. As Spanish ships, laden with gold and treasure from South America, made the journey back to Europe, they followed the Gulf Stream through the Florida Straits, up the peninsula and across the Atlantic, turning Florida into a staging ground for gold, silver and precious gems…and the pirates who wanted them.
“We have a pirate background on Amelia, the likes of Captain Kidd, Calico Jack and others,” says Amy Lacroix, director of marketing, advertising and meetings for the Amelia Island TDC. “Amelia was a haven for pirates because Georgia was in the Union but Florida was not, and it was just across the river, so they could escape here.”
The Amelia Island Museum of History—available for group rentals—tells the island’s fascinating tales.
Pirates also were busy on the other end of the state, trying to scuttle the loaded Spanish galleons as they passed Key West and other islands of the Keys. Once the U.S. Navy took over, pirate attacks became rarer and Key West flourished with the legal practice of wrecking—salvaging goods from ships wrecked on nearby reefs. Check it out at Key West’s Shipwreck Treasure Museum; or get a good idea of the dazzling riches discovered beneath the waves by latter-day treasure hunter Mel Fisher at the Mel Fisher Maritime Museum, also in Key West.
On Florida’s central east coast, the sheltered Ponce Inlet—known as Mosquito Inlet in the 1600s—was known to harbor pirates on the lookout for passing galleons. You may not see galleons today, but the Ponce de Leon Inlet Lighthouse, Florida’s tallest, is a good spot to imagine them sailing by. Or take the group a bit farther south to the Treasure Coast, where gold from long-ago shipwrecks has been to known to wash up on the beaches of Martin, St. Lucie and Indian River counties.
Jolly Rogers
Pirates meant serious business when it came to plundered booty, but many of the state’s themed attractions take a lighthearted look at these buccaneers of yore.
“Pirates are almost like fictional creatures; they’ve been glamorized in Hollywood,” says Cindy Stavely, executive director of the St. Augustine Pirate & Treasure Museum. “It’s like a hobby or lifestyle for some people. There are a lot of pirate groups.”
Your group may find itself partial to pirates with a gathering at the museum, which offers a 1,300-square-foot courtyard that can host up to 75 reception-style as well as a 500-square-foot balcony for up to 30 overlooking the Matanzas River and the 17th century Spanish fort, Castillo de San Marcos, oldest masonry fort in the continental U.S.
“The fort ties in well because it was actually built in response to a pirate attack,” Stavely says, referring to the destructive raid by English privateer Robert Searle in 1668.
During your event, attendees will have the museum to themselves, and they’re free to meander through exhibits that include a centuries-old treasure chest and an interactive world map of piracy.
Pirate Central
Events are themed down to the last doubloon at the Walt Disney World Resort, where pirate motifs are among the most requested style for private functions, says Andrew Lammes, senior event consultant.
“I’ve got a total of four pirate events within the next three months,” he reports. “It’s definitely sought after and well-desired.”
Lammes says when the party or reception will be outdoors, on-site beaches such as those at Disney’s Yacht & Beach Club or Boardwalk Resort are utilized and decorated with such touches as wooden tables and burlap linens along with details that include treasure chests and skeletons. Some events also feature eyepatches and do-rags for attendees to wear as well as activities such as treasure hunts.
“Once you enter the event space, music is the first thing you’re going to hear,” Lammes says. “We have a four-piece ensemble called the Rusty Cutlass, and they play the ‘yo-ho, yo-ho’ type of music that really transports you to the Caribbean.”
In case of inclement weather, or by request, Lammes can move the party indoors to one of the resort’s many ballrooms where, instead of a beach, the setting becomes the deck of a pirate ship complete with a ship’s mast and crow’s nest. In either case, Disney characters—including Mickey, Minnie, Donald and Daisy decked out as pirates—are on hand to join the festivities, as are Captain Hook and Captain Jack Sparrow.
Also in the Orlando area and a perennial favorite for groups is the themed dining attraction Pirate’s Dinner Adventure, set aboard a replica Spanish galleon anchored in a 300,000-gallon lagoon and featuring a cast of actors, singers and stunt performers. The audience surrounds the lagoon in a six-sided, ship-like showroom. The entire venue is available for a 850-person total buyout but also features VIP areas for smaller groups.
“Our VIP areas have their own bars and their own catering,” says Jennifer Cardin, community relations manager for Pirate’s Town, a group of four dinner show theaters, Pirate’s Dinner Adventure, Treasure Tavern Dinner Theatre—for ages 16 and older—The Three Musketeers and The Cirque Magique.
