Key West

[Shir Kahn]

DW and I will be arriving in Florida a few days earlier than our reservation and I was trying to figure out something to do that we have never done before. One of the ideas I had when I was looking at maps was to drive down to Key West! We've never driven farther south than WDW and google earth says it's about a 7 hour drive. Have any of you done this before? Is it worthwhile to kill a few days doing? Any tips for us if we decided to try this? Anything would be much appreciated, thanks!

 

[LadyBeBop]

Key West is something to see once. It's up to you to decide if it's worth the drive (seven hours from Orlando to Key West sounds about right).

It's a quaint town with a lot of museums, art deco homes and yummy restaurants. We ate at an excellent Cuban restaurant. Remember, you're less than 100 miles from Cuba.

The Overseas Highway is an experience. You'd think you'd be traveling on a bridge over water for most of the trip. Nope. Most of the highway are on the numerous keys, or islands that run between Key Largo and Key West. I think the longest bridge between keys is about seven miles.

Again, it's up to you if you want to make the trip. We've done it, but we were staying a lot closer (Ft. Lauderdale).

 

[Shir Kahn]

Thanks for the answer! Do you think it's a scenic drive or are we going to be looking at buildings the whole way other than the bridges?

 

[JimMIA]

Thanks for the answer! Do you think it's a scenic drive or are we going to be looking at buildings the whole way other than the bridges?

A bit of both. In the Upper Keys, from Key Largo down to Tavernier, you'll have some built up areas, larger keys and therefore less water view. In the Middle Keys, down to about Big Pine (30 miles or so from Key West), you'll have lots of small keys and a lot of very pretty water views. The last 30 miles will be like the first part, bigger land masses and some built-up areas as you start coming into Key West itself.

There are lots of great places to stop going down or coming back up.

 

[Disneykidsdad]

You might want to make sure you can get a reservation. Hotels fill up fast and are rather expensive.

 

[dis-happy]

I hope you do it and let us know how it goes. This is something that's been on my list too! (along with driving to Alaska!!!)

 

[jeff968]

We drove down from Fort Laud. for our 25th anniv. last year. It was great and beautiful. There are many beaches along the way. You can just pull over and walk out into the beautiful water. We had a great time.

 

[Shir Kahn]

Thanks for all the replies, I think we will give it a shot! Although another 7 hours of driving just after completing the 32 hours of driving just to get to WDW isn't exactly what I had imagined us doing, it still sounds like it'll be a nice drive! Definitely better scenery to look at!

 

[toxa]

Is there a beach suitable for sunbathing / swimming in Key West, with public showers?

 

[Dano1182]

Key West is a great place for Adults.Not too much for Kids.
The ride is wonderful during the day.
Stop at Lorelies for lunch it is in Islmorada.
Some people refer to it as the DISNEY world For Adults .
Much nicer views than around Orlando area.
Sunset is great.