My wife and I wanted to not be home for our first Christmas without our son, so we headed down to Key West for the week. Duval Street is where most of the action is, and while it's full of people the entire mile it's also home to a whole truckload of schlock. There are a few nice places along it (shout out Mangoes and the one man band there who did a tropical version of The Middle by Jimmy Eats World), but there's also a ton of Atlantic City-esque t-shirt vendors, weed shops, and strip clubs. Away from that it gets a bit less intense and there are some nice little side streets, especially by the Truman Little White House, and the waterfront along the northern and west edges is quite nice. Our hotel was at the northern side and close enough to easily walk everywhere but far enough away the chaos didn't bother us. The military bases dominate a good chunk of the island, especially in the southwest corner where it took us a good mile and a half detour (walking) around one to get from Fort Zachary Taylor to a decidedly mediocre restaurant by the Southernmost Point. As far as attractions, the Museum of Art and History was good, the Truman Little White House exceptional, but the Hemingway House was overrated and overpriced. I liked the cats but it was slammed with cruise ship vacationers and the actual interiors were pretty meh. The architecture of the city is definitely unique and you wouldn't mistake it for anywhere else.
We also took a couple of excursions elsewhere. The aerial looking photo was from Bahia Honda State Park, where part of one of the old train bridges has been repurposed as part of a hiking trail, and the grassy shot of the fort is from Dry Tortugas National Park, which is a 2.5 hour ferry ride away but totally stunning and with plenty of cool wildlife (I saw a stingray in the wild for the first time). Also had breakfast on Sunset Key, where your reservation includes a short, pleasant ferry ride.
One last thing - the airport, which is being renovated, is currently a disaster. 8 gates all crammed into a room the size of a high school cafeteria. It won't be that way for long - the new structure looked about 80% complete and the jetways were already in place, but with multiple delays and few options for food it was a long few hours shoulder to shoulder with everyone trying to get home. Anyhow, we had a good week and it's worth a visit, though I'm not sure I feel a strong need to return.
We also took a couple of excursions elsewhere. The aerial looking photo was from Bahia Honda State Park, where part of one of the old train bridges has been repurposed as part of a hiking trail, and the grassy shot of the fort is from Dry Tortugas National Park, which is a 2.5 hour ferry ride away but totally stunning and with plenty of cool wildlife (I saw a stingray in the wild for the first time). Also had breakfast on Sunset Key, where your reservation includes a short, pleasant ferry ride.
One last thing - the airport, which is being renovated, is currently a disaster. 8 gates all crammed into a room the size of a high school cafeteria. It won't be that way for long - the new structure looked about 80% complete and the jetways were already in place, but with multiple delays and few options for food it was a long few hours shoulder to shoulder with everyone trying to get home. Anyhow, we had a good week and it's worth a visit, though I'm not sure I feel a strong need to return.
