Where to stay...Drive to Key West?

[mickey'sbud]

Most important thing, we're being budget conscious, but we do care about nice accommodations and always prefer water front!!~~~

June 25 (Tuesday) we'll leave WDW and drive to Key Largo or near there.
Any recommendations for a "Beach Front" in/near Key Largo?

Looking for best recommendations for a hotel Wednesday and Thursday in Key West.
This one doesn't have to be on the water if it is within walking distance of everything. I still like waterview if we can have it all!!!

Final thing....I noticed that Rates seem more affordable this time of year in Miami Beach. We might stay a night in Miami Beach coming back (Friday). Any suggestions of a beach-front hotel? Are there parts of Miami Beach to avoid due to safety?

Again, budget is priority!!
We just decided to do this so I haven't had much planning time.
Thanks!!!

 

[PoppyJ]

We just did this road trip in May!

We had an AirBNB booked in the Truman Annex. As we were having breakfast at Topolinos, about to start our drive down, or AirBNB canceled on us....

We ended up staying at the Fairfield in Marathon because we've stayed there before.

Most of the affordable hotels in Key West are the ones along Roosevelt Blvd. But they are not really walking distance to anything. Everything near Old Town tends to be pretty pricey, so I'm interested in hearing others recommendations too.

I've never stayed in Key Largo but my doctor recommended the Hampton Inn Key Largo. He stayed with his son there and said it was great.

Not sure what your plans are but we did a snorkel/kayak tour with Danger Charter in Key West and a snorkel tour with Captain Hooks. We would do both again.

 

[amcc]

Baker's Cay in Key Largo is lovely. It has a nice beach and pool and is very "Keys". As you've seen, Key West is pricey. We really enjoy Island City House and Simonton Court both walking distance to the Key West attractions.

 

[cvjw]

We stayed in Truman’s annex in key west. Lovely neighborhood. Short walk to duval and to watch the sunset.

 

[kathy884]

We stayed at the Best Western Hibiscus when we were in Key West. It's on the quieter side of Duval, but you can still walk everywhere. It's the most I ever spent on a Best Western (Key West is pricey), but it was a highly rated property and one of the less expensive places to stay (other than B and Bs and rentals) where you could walk to everything. It was a really friendly place. It had a nice pool, cushy loungers, and palm trees by the pool area. I would not hesitate to recommend it as a possibility. We had a double queen room and it was spacious and well maintained. Do note our stay was quite a few years back, so maybe take a look at reviews online. I like Booking.com and Tripadvisor for looking at reviews.

 

[MrsPete]

We're thinking of a trip to Key West ... but we want to leave the car in Key West and take the Yankee Ferry and camp for 1-2 nights at Dry Tortugas National Park. Any hints on where we could leave the car overnight for a reasonable price?

 

[PoppyJ]

We're thinking of a trip to Key West ... but we want to leave the car in Key West and take the Yankee Ferry and camp for 1-2 nights at Dry Tortugas National Park. Any hints on where we could leave the car overnight for a reasonable price?

I ended up using the SpotHero app when we needed to find parking in Key West.

 

[amcc]

We're thinking of a trip to Key West ... but we want to leave the car in Key West and take the Yankee Ferry and camp for 1-2 nights at Dry Tortugas National Park. Any hints on where we could leave the car overnight for a reasonable price?

It's been a couple of years, but we would park our car for the entire time we were there in one of the municipal garages. On-street parking can get tricky with resident permits.

 

[FrannyFrogs]

If you're into the points and miles game, transferring points to Hyatt can get you a relatively cheap stay at the Hyatt Centric in Key West, which is a very convenient location!

 

[LuvOrlando]

I posted this in another thread, we stayed in Homestead to break up the drive and keep some costs lower to make up for the splurge in Key West itself, staying in Homestead was a fraction of the Keys and Miami. In Miami you will probably also be taking on parking fees. We thought Homestead was a good spot, it had tons of restaurants and shopping for travelers. When we went there was nothing in the Keys for under $500-$600 while homestead was in the $100 range.