Until the Seaboard reached West Palm Beach and Miami, the Florida East Coast was the only railroad to serve that side of the state. After the Seaboard’s invasion, the FEC advertised that it was “the only double-track route through Florida” (emphasis added). Unlike the Seaboard’s trains, the FEC required out-of-state travelers to change trains in Jacksonville, but this booklet dismisses this as “a simple matter.”

Click image to download an 18.1-MB PDF of this 32-page booklet from the Touchton Map Library.

The booklet mentions three trains: the year-round Havana Special, the December-to-May Miamian, and the January-April Florida Special. The latter train had an on-board hostess, a special recreation car, and an orchestra! (From the photos, the “orchestra” consisted of some guitar players and an accordionist and was possibly enjoyed by dancers in the recreation car.)

“Present rail fares are low,” says the booklet, with coach fares from Washington or Cincinnati to Miami under $18. That’s about $300 in today’s money, which is probably more than some air fares today. The booklet also provides some prices for the Flagler hotels: the Ponce de Leon in St. Augustine ($6 to $13 a night for a single room), the Ormond near Daytona Beach (same), the Breakers in Palm Beach ($10 to $18 a night), and Casa Marina in Key West ($8 to $12 a night). All these hotels were only open in January through April.