Important Temporary Ticket Kiosk Change: What You Need to Know

If you’re planning to visit the Fernandina Beach Marina, you’re likely to notice a little extra excitement. There will be construction fences, equipment, and a general sense that something big is happening. While the city prepares the old Brett’s Waterway Café building for demolition, Amelia River Cruises has made a move of our own. We have a temporary ticket kiosk change, here’s what you need to know.

While the marina changes are major, our change is a simple move to the other side of Brett’s Waterway Cafe, the building being demolished along the waterfront’s marina. We didn’t pack boxes, hire movers, or rent a U Haul. We simply relocated from Parking Lot A to Parking Lot B. Our ticket kiosk is now temporarily located on the south side of Brett’s, just across the railroad tracks from the Hampton Inn & Suites. Same waterfront, same boats, same friendly crew — just a slightly different check in spot.

So Where Exactly Are We Now?
Our temporary ticket kiosk is located at:
S. Front Street, Fernandina Beach, FL 32034
GPS Coordinates: 30.670961, -81.465328

If you can see the boats, you’re close. If you can hear the boarding passes being printed, you’re even closer. If you can feel the air conditioning coming from the window of our temporary ticket kiosk location, well, you might be too close, but you’re definitely in the right place.

What’s Happening on the Waterfront?
The City of Fernandina Beach is preparing the waterfront for a major upgrade. That means:

Parking Lot A will soon be fenced off
The Centre Street turnaround is closing
Ash Street from 2nd Street to Front Street should be open by Labor Day
Construction crews are about to start doing their thing

Rather than remain on the edge of an aging dock structure aside the river during a major construction project, we have moved the kiosk to the other side of the building being demolished. Now, we will have a front row seat to the noise that rivals a Rock Concert. There will be hammering and beeping, and someone else’s music choices. Dirt and dust, the “construction glitter” will be on everything within a three-block radius.
People shouting, “No, not that way.”
“Go around!” And a plethora of obscenities.
There will be forklifts, excavators, dump trucks, and what is that machine that sounds like it’s gargling gravel? That will be there, too.

Vibrations will have us questioning if we are in a mild earthquake, or tsunami. I’m expecting enough rumbling to make my coffee ripple like Jurassic Park.

Oh, and the smells. Let’s go with industrial diesel, hot asphalt, and my personal favorite: mystery fumes.

There will be temporary tunnels fenced off for your safety as you walk aside the construction zone to get to our boats.

Finding the Marina
If you’ve never been here, just come down Centre Street and take any paid parking space you can find west of Fourth Street. If you can find a spot in Parking Lot C, there is no paid parking fees. (Paid parking is supposed to go away in November.)

If you get turned around, call us at 904‑261‑9972. If we’re checking in guests, leave a message and we’ll call you back as soon as we’re done making other people happy.

We’ve Moved – We Haven’t Changed
Even with the temporary ticket kiosk relocation, your cruise experience remains exactly the same:

Historic sightseeing tours
Eco tours
Sunset cruises
Cumberland Island excursions
Adult Only Cruises with Live Music
The same friendly crew
The same beautiful views

Same boats. Same crew. Same fun.

Why Brett’s Demolition?

If you really want to understand why the old restaurant is being demolished, just take a look under the structure. The restaurant may actually have been built before the Reagan era. It has been soaking in saltwater like a turkey for Thanksgiving since Fernandina had rotary phones. The city has been saying the structure wasn’t safe for years, yet it remained open. Finally, at the end of 2025, the restaurant closed, probably because the lobsters were voluntarily jumping into the stock pot. Now here we are, practically Labor Day 2026, and people are still wandering around on top of it like they are on vacation and it’s a scenic overlook. Oh wait, most of them are on vacation. This is a farewell tour for a slab that is clearly ready to meet its maker.

The rust streaks aren’t subtle. That is the concrete’s way of waving a little white flag. The saltwater has gotten to steel no longer encased by healthy concrete. The cracks at the bottom? Those are the structural cries from a building that has absolutely had enough. It is screaming, “I was declared unsafe years ago, YEARS.”

So, while demolition crews prepare to give this waterfront senior citizen its well-earned retirement party, we are happy relocated our kiosk to a spot that isn’t auditioning for a coastal engineering cautionary tale. Same boats, same fun and a smarter, safer place to check in while the waterfront gets the glow‑up it’s needed since shoulder pads were in style.

We appreciate the work the City of Fernandina Beach is putting into our working waterfront. As redevelopment moves forward, we simply want to share what we’ve observed beneath the boardwalk area that fronts our original kiosk location. These photos show advanced deterioration, broken supports, heavy corrosion, and detached structural components. We’re sharing this not to criticize, but to support ongoing safety efforts and ensure the waterfront continues to be a place everyone can enjoy confidently. With attractions like The Isle of Eight Flag’s Shrimp Festival, The Annual Christmas Tree Lighting and other amazing events that draw hundreds of people to our waterfront, we are grateful the city is giving well-deserved attention to the docks and the safety of our community. We are looking forward to watching the improvements as they are made.

Categorised in: Amelia Island