Downtown Jacksonville's River Docks Charge by the Calendar, and Thanksgiving Weekend Uses All of It

On Saturday, Nov. 28, the Jacksonville Light Boat Parade lines up at the docks off Metropolitan Park. On Sunday, Nov. 29, the Jaguars host the Titans at 4:05 p.m. at EverBank Stadium, a short walk from those same docks. Those two days cover nearly every docking rule on downtown's newest stretch of waterfront. Docking can be free, cost $18.60 for a reserved raft-up, or run by the hour or by the foot. The price depends on the calendar more than the boat.

That's new for downtown. Before Aug. 12, 2026, the Northbank had no full-service public marina next to the stadium. Since then it has one, plus a restaurant on the water beside it.

The marina is only three months old

The city and the Jaguars cut the ribbon on the 78-slip Met Park Marina on Aug. 12, and boats docked that same day, according to the Jacksonville Daily Record. It sits on the north bank behind the Four Seasons Hotel & Residences and the One Tower Court office building. F3 Marina, a Wisconsin operator running its first Jacksonville marina, operates it with Shanna Collective. The docks were designed for vessels from 30 to 400 feet and include two water-taxi slips. A ship shop sells boating supplies, grab-and-go food, drinks and merchandise.

The marina is the latest in a run of riverfront projects the city's parks department has finished over the past two years. The others are the renovated Friendship Fountain at $8 million, the first phase of Riverfront Plaza at $38 million, RiversEdge at $35 million and the Riverfront Music Garden at around $7 million. At the ribbon cutting, Jaguars president Mark Lamping told the Daily Record that "it's a lot more fun cutting ribbons vs. unveiling renderings."

The same docks, priced four ways

Two separate facilities share this waterfront. One is Met Park Marina, which takes reservations at metparkmarina.com. The other is the city's wood docks along Metropolitan Park, which you book through the city's WebTrac system on event days. As an example, here's what a 24-foot boat would pay under each option, using posted rates as of November 2026:

Boats over 60 feet pay $3.25 per foot per night for a transient slip. Dock-and-dine stays that run past four hours switch to $2.75 to $4 per foot per night. Pump-out is $5 per use, and shore power runs $5, $10 or $20 a night depending on amperage. City and F3 officials described the marina's pricing to the Daily Record as market rate.

The table shows how much the calendar matters. On an ordinary Wednesday, a boat can tie up at the park docks for free. On a game day, the same docks take a paid reservation, and a slip next door costs more per foot on a special-event night.

Saturday: the parade starts at the slips

The city's Holiday River Fest brings the evening together at Riverfront Plaza, where the Christmas tree returns for its second year. The posted schedule for Nov. 28:

1. 5 p.m. Holiday River Fest opens at Riverfront Plaza.
2. 6:25 p.m. Tree lighting.
3. 6:30 p.m. The Light Boat Parade begins.
4. 8:15 p.m. Winners announced.
5. About 8:30 p.m. Fireworks.

The city says parade boats cruise both banks of the river and points spectators to the Downtown Riverwalks. Last year's route started at the west end of the Shipyards, ran along the Northbank, turned south just before the Acosta Bridge and came back east along the Southbank, as Jax Today described it. Check the city's parade page for the 2026 route before choosing where to stand.

For captains, the deadline for judged entries passed on Monday, Nov. 16, at 11:59 p.m. The city's 2026 registration form says late entrants can still take part but won't be judged. Entry is free. Every entrant must attend an in-person boater safety meeting one week before the parade, carry a working VHF or two-way marine radio and line up at the Metropolitan Park marina. Boats can't start the parade from anywhere else. If you plan to arrive by boat as a spectator and stay overnight, the marina's special-event rate of $4 per foot per night is the relevant number to price.

Sunday: the Titans game puts a price on the free docks

Less than 24 hours after the fireworks, the Metropolitan Park docks change from free tie-ups to reserved game-day rafting. WebTrac lists the Titans game on Nov. 29 and the Steelers game on Monday, Dec. 14, at 8:15 p.m. Each is $18.60, with separate listings for residents and nonresidents and for two boat-length classes, roughly 15 to 30 feet and 31 to 45 feet.

The booking steps come in a set order:

• Complete a 2026–27 vessel registration in WebTrac first. The system won't book a game without one.
• Select "Jags Game," search your vessel class and add each game you want to the cart.
• Check out, then pack extra lines. Boats may raft up to five deep, so you could be tied to four other boats.

For anyone without a boat, St. Johns River Taxi lists a "Metro/Stadium/Daily's" dock among its regular stops. Its text-for-pickup service runs at 904-860-TAXI during operating hours. Regular hours are noon to 9 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday and noon to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday, with extended hours for large events. Confirm the game-day schedule and fares with the operator directly.

The rest of the week, the docks are for dinner

Event weekends get the attention, but dock-and-dine probably shapes how the marina gets used day to day. Asado Life, the Argentinian-inspired live-fire restaurant from Nick and Christie Carrera, shares the marina site at 5 Tower Court. Its covered patio sits right on the water, steps from EverBank Stadium, Daily's Place and the Riverwalk. Lunch is 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., social hour 3 to 6 p.m. and dinner 5 to 8:30 p.m., Tuesday through Sunday. That fits easily inside the marina's four-hour dock-and-dine window.

The Jacksonville restaurant opened in August as the second location after the original in St. Augustine. Asked about business traffic since the opening, Nick Carrera told the Daily Record that "it has been fantastic." The same report said the restaurant was busy on event weekends like Monster Jam and was exploring a takeout program aimed at the marina. The Carreras are also planning a Nocatee location in the former Dick's Wings space.

Mondays are different. Asado Life is closed, the Steelers game falls on Monday, Dec. 14, and the river taxi's posted regular schedule skips Mondays. That game night may take more planning than the Thanksgiving weekend one.

Walking in from the west end

Arriving on foot is changing too. Upriver at Riverfront Plaza, European Street Cafe has planned a quick-service café in the park pavilion at 2 W. Independent Drive. The menu calls for breakfast, coffee, sandwiches, soups, salads, beer, wine and Italian ice, with indoor service and café seating outside. The Downtown Investment Authority approved a $71,310 forgivable loan for the build-out on Sept. 16. The proposed hours are 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekends, with longer hours possible for special events.

Riverfront Plaza Phase II construction has also put the Main Street Bridge's southbound pedestrian walkway on a detour, with completion estimated for Jan. 30, 2027, according to The Resident Community News. Anyone planning to cross from the Southbank to the tree lighting on Nov. 28 should check walkway access before leaving home.

At the far east end, the city's plans for Shipyards West Park include a two-story, 36,000-square-foot pavilion, event space, a beach, a cove, a fishing pier and a lawn. A plaza lit for the holidays, a marina, a restaurant on the water and a park still being built now line the same stretch of Northbank that hosts the parade on Nov. 28 and a home game on Nov. 29.

If you're weighing whether a boat slip, a Riverwalk view or a short walk to the stadium belongs in your next home search, the team at Market Makers Group can show you how riverfront access is priced in neighborhoods across Jacksonville. Start with a free home valuation, and we'll help you plan from there.