There are some very expensive and beautiful homes in Key West. They are all in Old Town Key West and so very walkable in an hour if you are in a rush or a few hours if you just randomly wander down a few streets in Key West.
Here are a just a few highlights to make you want to come to Key West and also to make you jealous of these beautiful and historic homes.
I think this is my favorite Key West home, 1029 Fleming Street. Immaculate white and all the elements of the house work together in perfect harmony. Very Key West Old Town it also helps that this house is very imposing and also huge. The second image below shows the side view, showing how long the house is. It's not so uniform from the side, for example the 4 sided feature, which I think makes it even more interesting.
One of the most beautiful homes in Key West - 1029 Fleming Street
The Dry Tortugas are a group of small islands 70 miles west from Key West and visiting them by seaplane is the best thing I've ever done from Key West and one of my highlights of the year. The flight is only at 500 feet so the ocean views are stunning but that's only a warm up for the island itself which is dominated by the huge Fort Jefferson, the largest brick made structure in the Americas. Then there's the beach and snorkeling. I visited Key West for years without visiting the Tortugas and that was a mistake - make sure you include the Dry Tortugas and Fort Jefferson in your itinerary.
View of Fort Jefferson and the snorkeling area in front from the seaplane at the Dry Tortugas
Here are 11 things that are cool about a seaplane trip to the Dry Tortugas:
You get to fly in a small, 12 seat seaplane! That's cool!
You get amazing aerial views of Key West on take off and landing
For most of the flight you're at only 500 feet so you see loads of turtles, dolphins and other marine life in the water
You get to see all the lonely keys and sandbars between Key West and the islands - along with informative commentary from pilot
You're immersed in the Caribbean colors of the ocean - beautiful blues and greens
When you land on water at the Dry Tortugas experience how soft a water landing is
If you go on the morning trip you arrive 90 minutes before the ferry so you have the fort and island to yourself, which is awesome and makes a real difference
Fort Jefferson, with its 16 million red bricks, is very photogenic
As is the vista out to open ocean which includes the Dry Tortugas lighthouse, 157 feet high, a few miles away on Loggerhead Key
The snorkelling, very close (like 10 metres) off the island, is easy to do and good. Much better than any snorkelling in Key West
The colors, clarity and contrasts are stunning and you end up with some amazing photographs. The photos you see below are the set I'm most proud of across all my tens of thousands of photos of the Florida Keys - see below
If you're reading this then it's probably raining in Key West and you're looking for ideas about what to do. First I'm sorry it's raining and I hope it stops soon. Anyway, what to do? The traditional answer in Key West when it rains is: Drink! You have a multitude of choices and you'll find the bars packed today if it's raining. But there are alternatives, read on...
What to do in Key West when it rains. Here on Duval Street someone has a different option than a rain poncho.
Visit Peppers of Key West store: as if Key West is not hot enough already this experience makes you even hotter. This is a great store on Greene St in Key West which sells all things related to peppers and chillies. Sit up at the tasting bar and let the team take you though a tasting of a dozen sauces, starting from mild and going as hot as you dare. How far up the hot scale can you go?....
The tasting bar at Peppers of Key West at 602 Greene Street. We're mid-tasting here, starting off with some very mild and tangy sauces. This is great fun, and free!
Click to see the rest of the story and a video of us at the chilli tasting bar on a recent visit....and to see their most powerful $2,000 bottle of hot sauce....click below...
See the tarpon feeding while you're in Key West, daily 4pm, free. Watching the tarpon feeding is a must do while you are in Key West.Update 2016: They don't seem to do the feeding here in the Historic Harbor anymore. I hear they might do it further up the island on the Charterboat Row. As a local or a fisherman if you want more information. It's shame because, as you can see from the pictures below, it was great entertainment. There's a lot to take in: the fisherman who expertly gut the fish, the huge tarpon who lurk just below the surface, the dozens of fighting, arguing pelicans who compete viciously for the off cuts - the guts, the heart, the eyes. It happens daily on the Harbor Walk (Historic seaport/Key West Bight), right by the A&B restaurant. It's meant to happen at 4pm but on the day these pictures were taken it started at 3pm.
It's one of the most fascinating shows in town. Here's a video and click below to see more great pictures of this daily spectacle....
Here's the best shops and stores in Key West. I've chosen these shops because, like the best of Key West, they are unique, off beat, a little bit strange. So if you're after towels, rum, salt, hot sauce, hammocks, and kitsch tropical ware - Key West is the place for you. Pack a spare suitcase.
The best 9 stores in Key West are:
Salt, a small boutique store for interesting items made in, or near, Key West - including honey, art, jewelry and salt. A really beautiful shop.
Key West's first legal rum distillery. As well as the shop, this is where they actually make the rum. See the making in action and then buy the result.
Peppers of Key West. Hundreds of chilli pepper sauces from around the world. Sweet to mega hot. Tasting bar is free.
Leather Master. Fun toys and clothes for naughty boys. Recently has added a new section for ladies so I hear.
Assortment Inc. With Fast Buck Freddy's now closed, where do we get our outrageous tropical themed gear? At Assortment Inc of course.
Towels of Key West. Cheeky, camp and fun towels and t-shirts. This shop closed in July 2016 after 30 years of trading in Key West. It was one of the oldest stores in Key West. Very great shame.
Cocktails of Key West. As above. Could they possibly be targetting gay men?! As it was owned by the same 2 guys this also closed July 2016.
Key West Hammock Company. Fantastic selection of hammocks but also fantastic metal murals of fish shoals and turtles for your garden wall.
Timmy Tuxedo's - 50 years and counting. Maybe the apostrophe is in the wrong place, but who am I to argue? They even have a website - Google it.
Here are some pictures and more details if you can't visit in person any time soon.....
Duval Street is Key West's main street with dozens of bars, restaurants, shops and lots of loud and/or weird people. It's always busy - to get some tranquility just fall back a few blocks from Duval, if you want to. Duval Street evolves down its length from Gulf of Mexico (Front Street) to Atlantic Ocean (and the Southernmost point end). The very noisy end is the Front Street end - after 5 blocks it gets less hectic and more interesting. Don't assume all Duval Street is like the first few blocks: if you can restrain yourself from going into the alluring bars in the first few blocks, you've got many more treats awaiting you further along.... I really like Duval from Eaton Street and up.
Here's some pictures of the journey up Duval Street. starting at the bottom at the intersection of Duval and Front - the center of town. Click below
Key West's first legal rum distillery is in full production at 105 Simonton Street. Yep, I'm sure gallons of the stuff has been brewed in Key West illegally but this is the real deal! It's all made here in this historic building (which used to be Key West's coca cola bottling plant - anyone for rum and coke?!). They sell and distill the rum here on site and you can look into the distillery and ask questions.
The big question of course is: does the rum taste any good?
In Key West the harbor's called the Key West Bight, and the walk on the board walk is one of my favorite things to do in Key West.
Key West Bight looking out to sea.
There is always so much happening there, every day is different. At dawn, it's almost solitary, for then on there is constant activity with the coming and going of hundreds of boats and ships; by afternoon it's the liveliest place on the island with noise from the harborside bars and restaurants; see the unmissable tarpon/pelican feeding at 4pm; and the watch the sun set in the evening.
And all of this within a few hundred yards of the very center of town...how can you miss it?!.. read on for more...
Hello and welcome to my live blog from Key West, today Saturday 4 January 2014. Many people actually read this blog from Key West (I can see from the stats in Google Analytics). Especially on a day like this…. everyone in Key West will know all too well that it's RAINING. Yep, right now at 9.41am it's raining hard in paradise.
And, sorry folks, it looks that way for the vast majority of today.
Get off the island and get away from it all: Take a walk down the White Street pier in Key West! Jutting out a few hundred yards into the Atlantic Ocean surround yourself with water, wind and open vistas of the south side of Key West. The pier is hard, minimalist, brutalist concrete; the views from the end of the pier are panoramic.
And if you're very lucky, as I was for a short while, you'll be Alone on White Street Pier.
White Street Pier in Key West. The distinctive combination of white concrete and black lights.
The end (inverted L-shaped bit) of White Street pier. Alone on the pier. Unusual not to see fishermen here.
Human sundial: KeyWestDavid is the gnomon, White Street pier is the sundial. Can you work out what time it is?
One sailing boat, one bench.
My video - me and a seagull, and the fantastic views from the pier....
Snooze with a view. Doesn't he look peaceful?
Looking north west from its pier along the length of White Street.
Compass rose painted on the concrete floor at the end of White Street pier. The M is a W (West)
Not the Southernmost point.
Arty view along the wall of the White Street pier. In the background a water sports hire center at Smathers beach.
You're never truly alone on the White Street pier!
Frequent sight from the pier - an American Eagle flight from Miami just about to land at Key West "International" airport
You can see the control tower of the airport, and on the right the bricks of the Fort East Martello Museum
Superzoom from the White Street pier looking towards Old Town. In the foreground the broken pier legs of Higgs Beach pier. In the far background the yellow accommodation of the Southermost Hotel and the end of Simonton Street, where Atlantic Shores used to be.
Clear shallow water, taken from White Street pier on a calm day. This is about the best clear / shallow water you'll get anywhere in Key West.
Smathers beach from White Street pier
Looking south south east as far as the eye can see from White Street pier. Can you see Cuba in the distance? (the answer is no as it's 90 miles away but if you sail this way, you'll hit it!)
Let's come out and say it: Beaches and big waves and snorkeling are not very good in Key West (from the shore/beach). The offshore coral reef breaks the waves several miles offshore.
There is excellent snorkeling at the Dry Tortugas - but that's a day trip from Key West on a boat. Also Bahia Honda has good snorkelling - but that's 35 miles up the overseas highway. There are many boat operators who will take you from Key West out to the coral reefs for half a day's snorkelling.
But where is the best snorkelling from the shore in Key West?
I've reported before on Fort Zach beach itself - which is by far the best on the island.
Here's a video I took in November 2012 to set the scene:
Today I tried snorkelling for the first time here. Here are some pics of the beach today (November 2012):
It's November so not that busy. Also it's Tuesday and only about 10.30am - the beach did get busier, but not that busy today. That's the great thing about midweek in November - nice and quiet!
The beach at Fort Zach is 20% sand and 80% coral which makes walking and getting into the sea a tricky and sometimes painful affair!
My snorkel amongst the coral at Fort Zach beach.
Ready to snorkel.
Go! Heads down, looking.
So how was the snorkeling? I saw 50 fish in total, maybe about 4 or 5 different types. Even though the swell was not high, it was difficult to see because of the sand and stuff making the water murky.
This area of the beach (see pic below), swimming right up within 1 foot of the rocks, is where I found the most fish.
You can hire a snorkel and mask from the same beach shack that hires out the deck chairs, right on the beach.
It's difficult to miss the artist Wyland in Key West as he has at least 2 large, dedicated art galleries (shops?) for his output, as well as very keen sales staff!
If you want to experience Wyland for free, his very large mural 'The Living Reef' can be seen half a block away from Key West harbor. It was originally painted as part of the Whaling Wall series of 100 (this is number 52) in September 1993. It was re-touched by him recently, in October 2012. It was looking very faded after 19 years and the re-touch has made it look much better.
You can see it at the old Waterfront Market, at Caroline and William Streets.
Other articles on this blog you might like:
Key West hotels - guide to where to stay and why you should seriously consider a B&B/guesthouse when you stay in Key West
How's your Sunday morning going? Bars closed? Chores to do? Overcast weather or too cold to get out of bed early? Not much happening? Then you're not in Key West!
If there is ever a typical Sunday morning in Key West (which there isn't), this morning isn't it.
The following takes places between 8.53am and 9.19am on Sunday 11 November 2012.
It's a Sunday so most of the bars on Duval Street are not quite open yet. It's only just turned 9am after all. But this enterprising trio have started early, or are finishing late.
It's been powerboat week last week in Key West and today and tomorrow all these powerful mega boats will head out of town. This is one powerful boat.
And all of that in just 26 minutes, in the glorious weather, and beautiful clear morning, here in Key West.
