Welcome to Jacksonville! From seashore to forest, nurtured by the majestic St. Johns River, Jacksonville is aptly known as "The River City" and offers a wide variety of wonderful opportunities for visitors and residents alike. Located in Northeast Florida at the crossroads of two interstate highways (I-95 and I-10), Jacksonville is the largest city in the contiguous United States in land area, a major sea and air port, the insurance and financial center of the state, the site of two U.S. Navy bases (Mayport and NAS Jax) and the home of the National Football League's Jacksonville Jaguars. In February 2005, the city hosted the Philadelphia Eagles and the New England Patriots and their fans at Super Bowl XXXIX. Thousands of football fans and volunteers in Jacksonville, anxious to show the world why our city is so special, prepared a world-class welcome.  Thanks again to all the folks who visited our city and enjoyed our hospitality. The Jacksonville Vision "To make Jacksonville's local government the most responsive and effective City government in America, and Jacksonville the best place in the nation to live, work and raise a family." The City of Jacksonville is truly operated as a performance excellence-oriented organization.  The city has been long-affiliated with the Florida-based Governor's Sterling Council and was the proud recipient of the Governor's Sterling Award for Performance Excellence in 2001.  Quick "Jax Facts" -The City of Jacksonville ranks as the 14th largest city in the United States in population with more than 800,000 residents. -The Jacksonville metropolitan area (also known as the First Coast), which includes three beach cities and Clay, Baker, Nassau and St. Johns counties, has a population of more than 1,000,000 residents. -Jacksonville covers 841 square miles (217,559 hectares). -Joint management agreements with national and state park services give Jacksonville the largest urban park system in the United States. -Jacksonville International Airport (JIA) is 15 minutes from downtown by car. It is served by 15 major and regional airlines that offer 250 daily flights to and from most major cities in the country and is an international gateway. -By air, Jacksonville is ... Sixty minutes from Atlanta Forty-five minutes from Orlando Two hours and 15-minutes from New York Nine hours from London -Four modern seaport facilities, including America's newest cruise port, make Jacksonville a full-service international seaport. In 2004, JAXPORT handled 7.7 million tons of cargo, including 533,000 vehicles. -There are three major interstate highways running through Jacksonville- I-95, I-295 and I-10. Additionally, I-75 is approximately 60 miles west of downtown Jacksonville. -There are four major U.S. Highways- U.S. 1, U.S. 17, U.S. 90 and U.S. 301. -By car, Jacksonville is ... Forty minutes from Fernandina Beach/Amelia Island Thirty-five minutes from historic St. Augustine Two and a half hours from Orlando (Disney World) Six hours from Atlanta We invite you to learn a little more about Jacksonville by visiting the city's web site at www.coj.net . There you'll find a calendar of things going on in our vibrant city. For more information about Jacksonville's vacation and business opportunities, check out the Jacksonville & the Beaches Convention and Visitor's Bureau web site at www.visitjacksonville.com and the Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce web site at www.myjaxchamber.com . For information about Jacksonville's growing downtown, you'll want to visit the Downtown Vision web site at www.downtownjacksonville.org .