Things to do/see on drive to Key West?

GEM

Mommy to Paul - 1lb 7oz wonder
Joined
Sep 23, 1999
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Driving down to Key West for the second part of our next Florida trip. We have things figured out for our time in Key West, but we want to take our time and explore on the drive between Miami and Key West. Planning on leaving Miami about 9am on Thursday, January 8th. Any suggestions for things to do/see/eat along the way? Any especially good tips for scenic places, beaches, historical stuff, interesting things, great food, etc? We have a FL State Park annual pass, so can do any of those for free. We do realize it will probably not be swimming weather, but we'd stll love to check out some pretty beaches. We'd love to hear any tips or suggestions you might have! Thanks!
 
First of all, you need to realize that downtown Miami to downtown Key West is about 170 miles. So if you are planning a down and back drive, you are in for one long day. If you are overnighting somewhere in the Keys, the trip changes dramatically.

I'm going to break my answer down into several parts, starting with things to do outside of Miami, but before you get to the Keys.

There are five things I would mention between Miami and the Keys, but several of them would be a 1/2 day to full day excursion by themselves.
  • Zoo Miami - located in suburban SW Miami-Dade County, is a very fine zoo with lots of interesting exhibits.
  • Shark Valley, Everglades National Park -- located about 25 miles West of Miami. Walking trails with alligators every few feet in January, bicycling including bike rental along a flat 15-mile road, 2-hour naturalist-guided tour on the same road. The Shark Valley Tram Tour may be the best tourist attraction in Miami -- Google it! (And, in January, MAKE RESERVATIONS and arrive at least an hour early.)
  • Big Cypress National Preserve -- the Oasis Visitor Center is 20 miles further west from Shark Valley. Beautiful cypress strands, home of the Florida Panther (which you will NOT see!), etc. If you like photography, Clyde Butcher's Everglades Gallery (awesome large format black and white photography) is 1-2 miles before Oasis VC.
  • Biscayne National Park -- maybe. For now, don't bother, because there are no boat trips available. But if the park service and the boat people get their acts together by January, there may be a nice glass-bottom boat tour.
  • Everglades National Park main entrance -- located SW of Florida City in SW Dade County. Very nice visitor center and a 38 mile drive with numerous stops at trails/ponds along the way. Boat tours at Flamingo at the end of the road. Keep in mind that the 38 miles is the one-way distance and it takes about an hour to drive each way without stopping.
Everglades NP currently charges a $10 entry fee, which is good for 7 days at all entrances. Big Cypress and Biscayne do not have entry fees.

Florida Keys -- There are far too many good restaurants to mention, so I'll only mention a few Keys classics. The upper keys are built-up, touristy areas with all the standard teeshirt shops and junk stores. Key West is the same, but with more character.

To understand the Florida Keys, you have to understand a few things. One, the place was founded by pirates without ships and it hasn't changed that much since. There is a real counter-culture atmosphere, especially in Key West, epitomized by The Conch Republic and Fantasy Fest. Two, the primary activities in the keys are fishing, diving, and drinking. If you don't like those things, don't go.

There are several Chambers of Commerce in the Keys and they are excellent sources of specific information about lodging and activities. All of them have websites.

Upper Keys

Two suggestions in Key Largo:
  • John Pennekamp State Park, depending on the weather. January tends to be quite windy, and if the seas are too rough for a boat trip there is no sense going here. There are glass-bottomed boat tours from the park, and snorkling/dive trips into the offshore part of the park from outfitters along US 1.
  • Hobo's -- great casual food.

Middle Keys

The middle keys are the pretty part. Lots of small islands with big bridges between, and beautiful water. REALLY gorgeous -- easily the prettiest place in Florida.
  • I second "feed the tarpon" above.
  • Sombrero Beach, Marathon -- this is one of about one good beaches in the Keys. There are two other "fair" beaches, but this is the only one I would go to. For beaches, Miami has much, much more to offer.
  • Bahia Honda State Park -- this is a nice-enough beach, but most of it is on the bay side. Pretty place.
Lower Keys
  • Looe Key -- a national marine preserve located (like most reef areas in the keys) about 5 miles offshore. If the weather is good, a snorkling or diving trip to Looe Key is a great experience. It's a finger reef, the top of which is about 4 feet deep at high tide. The bottom is about 40 feet, so it's perfect for either snorkling or shallow SCUBA. Amazing variety and density of marine life -- an aquatic wonderland. We have taken the boat from Looe Key Resort, and it was excellent. There are several other options.

Key West
I'll only mention a few of the things to see and do here, but there are dozens.

First of all, you mentioned beaches. On the south side of the island, Smathers Beach is a large public beach along Roosevelt Blvd. I don't like it, primarily because every time I've been there, it's been covered with seaweed. But it's the only beach in Key West.

Key West Landmarks
  • Duval Street -- this is the heart of old Key West. Home of Sloppy Joe's (Hemingway's fave) and Margaritaville (and yes, Jimmy may be there), the La Concha Hotel, etc. Lots of tourist shops and bars.
  • Mallory Square/Sunset Pier -- on the water at the end of Duval Street. A must do if you are overnighting is to go to Mallory Square for sunset. Lots of street performers and vendors, beautiful sunsets, big fun.
  • Hog's Breath Saloon -- to buy the obligatory "Hog's Breath Is Better Than No Breath At All" teeshirt. This is the must-have Key West souvenir.
  • Southernmost Point in the US - for a picture with the bouy.
  • Ernest Hemingway's House -- historic tour.

Key West Restaurants
Many, many good restaurants in Key West -- far too many to list. Our two favorites are:
  • Half Shell Raw Bar -- Great casual food, good service, super low-rent atmosphere which is classic Keys. If you wear an old pair of shorts, no shirt, and flip flops, you will fit in perfectly. Some of the best seafood in the Keys, and reasonable prices. This is the one place we ALWAYS eat in Key West.
  • Louis' Backyard - fine dining, most of which is outside, which should be beautiful in January. A Key West tradition.
 

Thanks, everyone. We are actually spending a day at Everglades National Park, doing the Shark Valley Tram Tour and exploring in that area, then spending the night in Homestead before driving down to Key West the next day. We are spending that second night in Key West before driving back to the Miami are the next afternoon. Like I said, we have a plan for while we're in Key West, but we needed some ideas for things to see on the way down. So, all the suggestions were very helpful! Thanks!
 
Have a great trip! Since you will be in Homestead, you might want to check out the Coral Castle:

http://coralcastle.com/

It's worth an hour or two, especially if you can get a coupon.

Also, there is a cool fruit and vegetable stand in Florida City that makes awesome shakes, called Robert is Here:

http://www.robertishere.com/
 
Thanks, everyone. We are actually spending a day at Everglades National Park, doing the Shark Valley Tram Tour and exploring in that area, then spending the night in Homestead before driving down to Key West the next day. We are spending that second night in Key West before driving back to the Miami are the next afternoon. Like I said, we have a plan for while we're in Key West, but we needed some ideas for things to see on the way down. So, all the suggestions were very helpful! Thanks!
So you're spending Wednesday at SV and that night in Homestead? And then Thursday night in Key West?

Makes a big difference in traffic.
 
doing the Shark Valley Tram Tour and exploring in that area,
On your way out to see us, an airboat tour is a worthwhile thing to do. They're about 30-40 minutes long and range from $20-$30 per person.

Some of the operators offer longer tours for much more money, but they're not worth it. They will just drive you around in circles and you won't know the difference.

*****
For the Tram Tour, call 305-221-8455 and make reservations. They do not take reservations for the 11AM, Noon, or 1 PM tours, but you can reserve 9 AM, 10 AM, and 2,3 & 4 PM.

You don't have to pay anything to hold a spot, and the trams often sell out several hours ahead of time (or get booked by large groups).

If you have any difficulties with the tram reservation, PM me.

Arrive at least an hour early if you are coming after 10 AM. After 10 AM any day of the week, the parking lot is likely to be full and you may have a long wait to get into the park (or you'll park outside and have a 1/2 mile walk in).
 
So you're spending Wednesday at SV and that night in Homestead? And then Thursday night in Key West?

Makes a big difference in traffic.

Yes, leaving Homestead around 9am on Thursday morning to drive down. We will spend Thursday night in Key West and drive back up on Friday.
 
On your way out to see us, an airboat tour is a worthwhile thing to do. They're about 30-40 minutes long and range from $20-$30 per person.

Some of the operators offer longer tours for much more money, but they're not worth it. They will just drive you around in circles and you won't know the difference.

*****
For the Tram Tour, call 305-221-8455 and make reservations. They do not take reservations for the 11AM, Noon, or 1 PM tours, but you can reserve 9 AM, 10 AM, and 2,3 & 4 PM.

You don't have to pay anything to hold a spot, and the trams often sell out several hours ahead of time (or get booked by large groups).

If you have any difficulties with the tram reservation, PM me.

Arrive at least an hour early if you are coming after 10 AM. After 10 AM any day of the week, the parking lot is likely to be full and you may have a long wait to get into the park (or you'll park outside and have a 1/2 mile walk in).

Thanks so much for the info! We actually made a reservation for the 10am tram tour several weeks ago, so we're all set for that. I really appreciate all the information!
 
Hi Gem,

We based ourselves at Homestead while we were down that way and found it a very central point. We did the Shark Valley Tram tour and it was so enjoyable. We absolutely loved it and were blown away by the Everglades. We also did the drive down to the Keys but found that it was a long day. Unfortunately it was Spring break when we were down there and we left booking our accommodation way too late so couldn't get anything at Key West. We actually didn't get to Key West in the end. We turned around and headed back at about 6pm. We also did an Airboat tour which was a lot of fun for the kids.

We did stop and feed the Tarpon also which the kids found great. We made the mistake of staying for lunch though at the little cafe there and it was overwhelmingly bad. Don't make the same mistake as us LOL
 
Yes, leaving Homestead around 9am on Thursday morning to drive down. We will spend Thursday night in Key West and drive back up on Friday.
Okay, you're good. If you were heading down on Friday and coming back on Saturday you would have had bad traffic.
 
Hi All ~ we are staying in Key Largo for 4 days before our cruise, I definitely want to make the road trip down to Key West, so that will be one day taken. Would you recommend an Everglades Airboat tour over the Shark Valley Tram Tour? Thanks!
 
I would Recommend that you do BOTH.

You will pass up a great opportunity to see the Real Florida.

The Airboat rides are far better than the ones in Orlando.You will pass them on the

way to Shark Valley.

Both take just over an hour to do PLUS waiting time .

So take Airboat ride in morning & carry on to Shark Valley.

BOTH are good .& well worth the money.

Key West is a bit of a tourist Trap. with an overblown Reputation

Parking is Very expensive & hard to find.

Walking is the way to see the so called sights.

Take the " Conch Train Tour " to get around.
 

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