Welcome to Jacksonville–the largest city in the lower 48. Home to two major military installations, this community is full of active-duty families, retirees, business, medical & service industry professionals. Located in North Florida, you will sense the southern hospitality, a touch of the city, and a pinch of coastal living.
NAS Jacksonville is located on the St. Johns River in West Jacksonville. This base is home to many P-8 Poseidon (East) squadrons, MH-60R helicopter squadrons (East), as well as Naval Reserve Full Time Support (FTS)/TAR squadrons, and Fleet Readiness Center Southeast. This base offers newer base housing, a marina, an impressive Commissary and NEX, and critical proximity to great restaurants as well as sporting events, markets, and concerts.
NS Mayport is located in East Jacksonville on the Atlantic Ocean and the St. Johns River. This base hosts a handful of Destroyers (DDG) and Littoral Combat Ships (LCS), helicopter training squadrons, the MH-60R East Coast Weapons School and Fleet Readiness Squadron, an Engineering Command, and the home of the US Navy’s Fourth Fleet. This base occasionally hosts visiting submarines and aircraft carriers. This base offers incredible natural scenery on Windy Harbor Golf Course, a private dog-friendly beach, the nicest gym in naval history (fact-checked 2024), and proximity to beaches.
We have been stationed at both bases for a total of four years and fully maximized our time here. We will definitely miss it when we move on. Here are some quick adjustments that helped with our transition to Jacksonville:
- Driving anywhere will take you about 30 minutes so maybe downgrade to a more fuel-efficient car and be prepared for lots of highway driving.
- It will rain every afternoon from June to October. Serious deluges occur for 5-45 minutes. Watch your tire treads for good traction and keep up on your windshield wipers which can disintegrate in the sun.
- Your car insurance premiums will rise if moving from out of state.
- Jacksonville is located on the western-most slant of the East Coast therefore we do not get many serious hurricanes.
- Try to get a single-story home if possible as the heat differential from upstairs can trigger a larger utility bill. Speaking of, Jacksonville Electric Association (JEA) has high kw/h costs so be prepared. The heat and humidity here is stifling in the summer and those will quickly become your “inside months”.
Things to know about NS Mayport & NAS Jacksonville
Since moving to Jacksonville, we have fully adopted biking around the beaches as our preferred mode of transport. We have beach cruisers and electric scooters to take us up and down the coast. Additionally, we have expanded our culinary palettes trying new international foods at the abundance of options here in Jacksonville. Lastly, we have adopted the Jags as one of our new teams to cheer for and have enjoyed attending NFL games often.
Katie
Looking for more specific recommendations from the WAF community on topics like best neighborhoods, favorite restaurants, or doctor recommendations – join the conversation in our private Facebook group of incredible WAFs!
In an effort to better serve every WAF across all branches, and with the help of some amazing other WAFs, we’ve curated branch specific Facebook groups. You can find your branch’s group by joining the general WAF Facebook page and then clicking “visit group”.
