Military Discounts in Northeast Florida: Free Castillo Passes, 10% Off at the Zoo, $17 at the Lightner and 25% Off State Park Passes

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Veterans Day free admission is over for 2026, but a long list of Northeast Florida attractions keeps a military price on the board every day of the year. The biggest savings are federal and state: a free National Park Service pass gets service members, veterans and Gold Star families into the Castillo de San Marcos, and Florida State Parks takes 25% off annual passes for active-duty members and honorably discharged veterans. Museums and attractions from Riverside to St. Augustine add smaller standing discounts, usually $2 to $4 off or about 10%.

Those offers matter in a region built around Naval Air Station Jacksonville and Naval Station Mayport. Each discount below comes from the attraction's own current admission page or a 2026 announcement, and the rules on who qualifies differ from place to place. Some prices cover only active-duty members, some name veterans, and a few cover the whole party.

Federal and state passes

The National Park Service offers a free Military Annual Pass to current U.S. military members and their dependents, according to the Castillo de San Marcos fee page. Veterans and Gold Star Family members qualify for a free Military Lifetime Pass, and pass holders must show a valid photo ID with the pass. Without a pass, Castillo admission is $15 per adult and is good for seven days, and children 15 and under get in free with an adult.

Florida State Parks gives a 25% discount on annual entrance passes to active-duty members and honorably discharged veterans, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection said in a Nov. 9, 2026, release. Veterans with service-connected disabilities, along with surviving spouses and parents of service members who died in combat, can get a free lifetime military entrance pass. The release called those benefits year-round, unlike the free admission all visitors got on Veterans Day.

Some sites near Jacksonville need no discount at all. The National Park Service says Timucuan Preserve sites, including Fort Caroline National Memorial and Kingsley Plantation, are free and open to the public. Both are open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday.

Jacksonville attractions and museums

The zoo's general admission runs $29.94 to $34.95 for adults online depending on the date, and it adds a $10 fee to tickets bought at the gate. The zoo says the 10% military rate is sold at the Guest Relations window, so buy those tickets on site with a military ID in hand. The zoo's page does not say whether the $10 gate fee applies to discounted military tickets. Kids Free November, which runs through Nov. 30 and lets up to five children ages 3 to 12 in free with each paying adult, must be booked online because those tickets are not sold at the gate.

MOCA Jacksonville is also free for everyone on Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., so a military family may not need the $6 rate at all on a weekend. The Cummer's $18 military price matches its senior, student and educator price, according to its visit page. The VyStar arena discount comes from VyStar Credit Union's military support page.

St. Augustine attractions

The Alligator Farm lists adult admission at $36.99 before sales tax, so the 10% military discount is worth about $3.70 per adult ticket. The Fountain of Youth says it offers discounts to adult U.S. active military with ID but does not post the amount, and its regular adult admission is $22.95. The Lightner's $17 military price sits above its $12 rate for St. Johns County residents with ID, so local service members may do better with the resident price.

Restaurants

Most restaurant deals in Northeast Florida are one-day offers on Veterans Day, Nov. 11. Action News Jax reported on Nov. 10, 2026, that Metro Diner, the chain founded in Jacksonville, maintains a 10% military discount year-round. Other restaurants may give a military discount at the manager's discretion, so ask before ordering rather than assuming one applies.

How to prove eligibility

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs lists four kinds of ID that veterans can use for discounts. A Department of Defense ID card covers active duty, retirees and Guard and Reserve members, and the Veteran Health Identification Card goes to veterans enrolled in VA health care. The Veteran ID Card is a digital photo ID for veterans with an honorable or general discharge, and new cards have been digital-only since September 2022.

The fourth option is a veteran designation on a state driver's license or ID card, which every state offers. Most states ask for a copy of a DD-214 or other separation papers before adding it, the VA says. Carry the physical card or have the digital card loaded on a phone before reaching a ticket window.

Discounts and prices change, and the zoo says some of its offers cannot be combined with others. Call ahead or check the attraction's own website before driving to the gate. Ask at the ticket window which ID it accepts, since some take only a military ID and others accept a veteran card or license.