A GROOVY NEW WAY TO EXPLORE FLORIDA’S FAVORITE COASTAL HIGHWAY!
For anyone unfamiliar with Florida’s highway A1A, its northern tip is on Amelia Island and its southern tip is on Key West and in between are roughly 600 miles of exhilarating coastline passing through some of the most extraordinary seaside communities on the planet; some well-known, others maybe not so much yet equally fantastic. By stringing together a series of destinations or activities via a Passport to Explore A1A, we set out to create a fun, interactive, super low-tech, and groovy new way to encourage visitors and locals to get out and explore more of this iconic route.
Here’s a 3.5 minute video we made during the development of the first tour.
Here’s a somewhat brief history of the first passport’s evolution…
We’re thrilled to announce that from March 21st to April 30th we’ll be partnering with Indiegogo to launch a campaign called Passport to Explore A1A. It’s the critical second phase of a larger three-phase project that will ultimately produce an extraordinary interactive app and user experience framed within the context of exploring Florida’s most legendary (and much-loved) scenic coastal highway A1A. And as we share more information, we hope you’ll decide this project is worthwhile too and find a way to be a part of it. Stay tuned for more…peace, love & A1A.
We’ll be posting Indiegogo campaign updates here as well as information about the special reward incentives being developed for our community members. About once a month we publish a newsletter called Explore A1A Today, and if you’re interested in plugging in for updates, please use this link.
CAMPAIGN UPDATES:
March 21, 2016 – WE’RE LIVE!!! We’re super excited to announce that our campaign successfully launched this morning and invite you to learn the story behind “Passport to Explore A1A”; please help us reach our goal and stay tuned for updates we’ll be posting here as well as across all of our social media sites!!
March 29, 2016 – The purpose of this post is two-fold. First to share an update on the Indiegogo campaign – We reached 13% of our goal in the very first week of the campaign; THANK YOU to all of the early adopters who jumped in and helped us make some noise. We’re thrilled to have gotten off to such a fast start and are so grateful for all of the love and support. We’ve got a long way to go and only 5 weeks to get there – please join us!!
Second, this week starts the process of selecting the theme of the inaugural Passport Tour. At the end of this week, we’ll take all of the suggestions and incorporate them into a ballot. Voting will run throughout the month of April and the winning selection will be based on the combined popular vote from Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, ExploreA1A.com, and Indiegogo.
April 1, 2016 – LET THE VOTING BEGIN! Now it’s time to find out which tour will be our first. Please take a minute to let us know where you want us to start by using the Contact Form to leave us a comment or use the image link below where you’ll be redirected to a multiple-choice, one-question survey.
Happy voting…
April 4, 2016 – CALLING ALL BUSINESS OWNERS from Amelia Island to Key West; help us reach our goal by becoming a sponsor of the inaugural Passport to Explore A1A! Today on Indiegogo, you’ll find a total of 15 sponsor positions in three levels; Base Camp, High Camp, and Summit and regardless of which level you choose, we’ve created a few great perks to help you decide to help us. Don’t wait, there are only 15 spots available – we invite you to plant your company flag in the history of A1A!
April 7, 2016 – Sending out an A1A-tomic THANK YOU to Sunset Grille (421 A1A Beach Blvd., St. Augustine Beach) who became Summit Sponsors today for our Indiegogo launch of Passport to Explore A1A! Three cheers for Sunset Grille; Hip, Hip, Hooray! You can use either the text or image link to check out their site…
April 12, 2016 – We A1A-DORE this community; we’re half-way through the campaign and almost half-way to our goal! With just a little less than three weeks remaining, we’re calling on all A1A explorers to lean in and give us a little push forward. Please support the campaign to launch Passport to Explore A1A in whatever way you’re able, and effective today, make a campaign contribution of any amount and along with our thanks, we’ll send you a big, bold, beautiful, weather-resistant vinyl Explore A1A sticker. Peace, Love & A1A…
Please join us in giving a huge round of A1A-plause for Beaches, Bars & Bungalows who became Base Camp Sponsors today for our Indiegogo launch of Passport to Explore A1A and whose blog we love, love, love! Three cheers for Beaches, Bars & Bungalows; Hip, Hip, Hooray!
April 18, 2016 – Lucky 13! With just under two weeks remaining in our campaign to launch Passport to Explore A1A, we’re calling on A1A enthusiasts and explorers of every kind to help us reach our goal. Please join us and plant your flag in the history of A1A by being a part of this epic adventure! Peace, Love & A1A…
April 26, 2016 – The countdown is on! We’ve reached the final 5 critical days of our Indiegogo campaign to launch Passport to Explore A1A and this extraordinary community has helped us A1A-complish more than 61% of our goal. We need your help to crush the remaining 39% ($1,494). This is it – don’t wait another second to get involved; please take action today. Peace, Love & A1A…
April 30, 2016 – It’s been said that time flies when you’re having fun yet we’re still A1A-stonished that today, our forty-day Indiegogo campaign to launch Passport to Explore A1A has entered its final day of orbit. So this is it, last call, become a founding member of this epic adventure and take action now! Peace, Love & A1A…
Looking for an A1A-drenaline rush? Then look no further than Air Adventures – Key West’s ONLY helicopter tour and the newest Base Camp Sponsor of our Indiegogo campaign to launch Passport to Explore A1A! Three cheers for Air Adventures; Hip, Hip, Hooray!
May 2, 2016 – “Gratitude turns what we have into enough.” While we weren’t able to confidently identify the source of this quote, it captured the spirit of what we wanted to share today. Yesterday, our Indiegogo campaign ended with more than 70% of our “wish-list” goal attained. We’re humbled and grateful that our tiny little start-up seems to have struck a chord with other liked-minded kindred spirits who believe Florida’s favorite scenic coastal highway A1A deserves a brand, a status, and community that rivals other legendary highways like Route 66 or California’s Route 1. We are profoundly grateful for the generosity of this community and can’t wait to announce the inaugural Passport to Explore A1A tour which will be determined by popular vote tabulated through Friday, May 6th… Peace, Love & A1A
May 8, 2016 – We couldn’t think of a more appropriate way to announce the inaugural Passport to Explore A1A tour than to borrow a quote from someecards.com, “I’ve learned to use meditation and relaxation to handle stress… Just kidding, I’m on my third glass of wine.” Yes, the votes have been tallied and we’re pleased as rum punch to announce the winner by popular vote is ‘Wineries & Distilleries’ which we’re officially naming the Wine & Spirits Tour! So in honor of this soon-to-be epic adventure, let’s pause for a minute to raise our glasses high today in celebration and gratitude for all the A1A-stonishing women that have helped shape our lives; cheers and Happy Mother’s Day!
May 14, 2016 – Last weekend we announced that by popular vote, the winning theme of the very first Passport to Explore A1A would be wineries and distilleries and that we officially named the first tour, the Wine and Spirits Tour. Now that development of the tour is in full-swing, we thought you might like an advance look at the artwork we’ll be using for the first passport cover. Feel free to share your feedback and let us know what you think!
May 27, 2016 – This is a pic of the back side of the super soft limited-edition launch tee that was created as a THANK-YOU incentive for the contributors to our successful Indiegogo campaign. Through our contributors’ and sponsors’ generosity, we’re now able to move the very first Passport to Explore A1A – Wine & Spirits Tour forward. This week as the tees, stickers, and beach towels make their way to the homes of our extraordinary community, we wanted to offer our heart-felt thanks to the A1A-mazing contributors, sponsors, and supporters that helped make it all possible; we’re deeply grateful to you for all of your love & support!
June 9, 2016 – We’re thrilled to announce the 7 extraordinary destinations included in the first, and soon to be epic adventure – Passport to Explore A1A: Wine & Spirits Tour! Listed north to south, here’s the lineup… Marlin & Barrel Distillery, Fernandina Beach; St. Augustine Distillery, St. Augustine; San Sebastian Winery, St. Augustine; Flagler Beachfront Winery, Flagler Beach; Endless Summer Vineyard & Winery, Ft. Pierce; Schnebly Redland’s Winery, Brewery & Restaurant, Homestead; and Key West First Legal Rum Distillery, Key West. While there is still much to be done before we’re ready to distribute passports and welcome explorers, we invite you to raise your glasses high today in celebration of the A1A-stounding collaboration that will ultimately produce a one-of-a-kind experience for A1A enthusiasts everywhere; cheers!
June 23, 2016 – Oh the places you’ll go and stories you’ll tell… By the middle of next month Passport to Explore A1A: Wine & Spirits Tour will officially begin! Basically, here’s how it will work. 1) Get a passport. 2) Visit each extraordinary stop on the tour and get your passport stamped. 3) A fully-stamped passport earns you a free commemorative souvenir. So first things first. You can get a passport through the website and when they’re available, there will be two options; either use the “DOWNLOAD” button to download/print a free copy or use the “BUY NOW” button and for one dollar ($2 if you live outside the US) we’ll mail you a sturdy UV laminate cardstock version of the passport and because we’re mailing it to you, you’ll get it with a Florida postmark making it even more A1A-mazing!
Although the passports won’t be ready for a couple of weeks, we’ve activated the “BUY NOW” button today for our explorers who enjoy planning their adventures or those who have a competitive streak. We’ll be mailing out the cardstock passports to everyone who pre-registers before we make them available online to download. Peace, Love & A1A!
