Following our amazing cruise with Celebrity Silhouette, we had a few days left in our holiday. As it was my husbands childhood dream to drive from Miami to Key West, we rented a car to make a small roadtrip from Miami to Key West.
From Miami to Key West
We picked up our rental car and left for Key West. From Miami, take the Overseas Highway or US1 which connects all the islands of the Keys. It was my husband’s childhood dream to drive from Miami to Key West. And it is a fantastic (though very long) drive. It takes 4 hours to reach Key West (without stops). Mostly, the road is flanked by water on both sides. You regularly pass cute, quiet islands. And the longest coral reef of the American mainland is here.
Key West
.After 182km, you arrive at Key West. The island is not even 20km2 and forms the most southerly point of the contiguous United States.
It is a super friendly town where you will instantly get that holiday feeling (in case you did not have it yet). Both people and area radiate happiness. Beautifully coloured wooden dwellings, palm trees, cosy restaurants and terraces… it has it all.
Hotels in Key West
During our roadtrip from Miami to Key West we stayed at the Truman Hotel, without doubt one of the better places of the last few years. It is a small hotel with beautiful rooms. The inner courtyard looks like a tropical paradise and has a small swimming pool and a cosy bar (where you can also get breakfast). And it is close to Duval Street, the heart of Key West. From here, you can visit most sights on foot. Across from the hotel is a Five Guys, coincidentally my favourite hamburger joint in the States.
Things to do in Key West
Conch Tour Train
Is it too hot to explore the island on foot? In that case one of the best things to do in Key West is to book a ride on the Conch Tour Train. You can buy tickets in the booth just in front of Five Guys. The train’s driver will tell you all about the most important sights, and you will stop a few times.
East Martello Tower
You will see, for instance, the East Martello Tower (1861), meant to defend the Zachary Fort. But they stopped the build when it became clear that the tower was outdated before it was finished.
Conch Houses
Key West architecture is mostly notable for its simplicity. Early conch houses were mostly built by boatbuilders. They introduced elements that they saw during their travels. From the Bahamas they imported ways to cool houses. Since the 70s, a lot of houses were restored without losing their authentic character. So one of the best things to do in Key West is making a tour along some of these characteristic houses.
Three Bay House
The Three Bay house is the most common style. This is slightly more luxurious than the emergency housing build for cigar makers which were also called shotgun houses. If you put a bullet through the front door, it would come straight out the back.
.Ernest Hemingway Home and Sloppy Joe's
One of the most famous residents of Key West was Ernest Hemingway. He lived here from 1931 to 1940 and wrote (among others) To have and have not. He wasn't planning a road trip from Miami to Key West because he was on his way to Cuba, A friend gave him a car which he had to pick up here. He fell in love with Key West and stayed. You should visit the Ernest Hemingway Home and stop for a drink in his local bar Sloppy Joe’s.
Bahama Village
Bahama Village is also worth a visit. Wander through the streets with the cheerful, colourful wooden houses. In former days this area had a very bad reputation. The opening of Blue Heaven, one of the best place for breakfast at Key West, made the neighbourhood popular among tourists. More restaurants opened it's door and transformed Bahama Village into a nice neighbourhood. Nowadays it's one of the most colourful parts of Key West.
Southernmost Point
The most southerly point of the island and of continental USA has a brightly coloured monument that should definitely be included in your holiday album. It's a unique landmark that so making a picture over here is one of the best things to do in Key West.
Everglades
We drive back to Miami after our trip to the Keys. From here it's just a small detour to the Everglades during your roadtrip from Miami to Key West. They had been on my list a long time. When you are in Florida with kids, visiting the Everglades is a must.
The Everglades is an extensive system of wetlands, originating in Lake Okeechobee. The area is often incorrectly called a swamp, as it actually is the slowest moving river on earth. The area is 32km long, 80km wide and only rarely more than 1m deep. The growing population of Florida disturbs the natural flow of the water by building irrigation canals and roads. High concentrations of artificial fertilizers are also a threat, as this stimulates the growth of non-indigenous swamp vegetation. Large amounts of mercury have been found in the local fish population. Hopefully there is still time to save this fabulous area of natural beauty.
Everyone in our generation knows the boats with the flywheel like they used in Miami Vice. We booked a tour with such an airboat Gator Park .There are many small operators along the Everglades route that offer such tours.
Along the way you get a lot of information, and you see birds, snakes, turtles and of course alligators. Although the last ones were a lot smaller than I was expecting. The boat went at full speed a number of times, much to the delight of the kids.
Naples
On the way back we stopped off in the ultra-conservative, rich Naples. This city has no less than 55 golf courses and feels very Europea and there are a lot of fun things to do in Naples. A look in the window of an estate agent tells us that this is for the happy few. A small house overlooking the sea will quickly set you back a few million euro.
The largest part of the historic Naples dates back to the start of the 20th century. A lot of the 19th century houses, as well as the original pier dating back to 1887, were destroyed by hurricane Donna in 1960. The pier was rebuilt in 1961. Walk to the end of the pier and witness lots of pelicans dip into the sea to catch fish. You might even be lucky and see a school of dolphins swim by.
Miami
Our last stop was Miami, and we stayed at the Hotel Dream South Beach. We only had one day so we didn't have the time to check out all the coolest neighborhoods in Miami. We decided to book a Biscayne Bay cruise to see where the rich and famous live.
Interesting fact: The man who constructed the islands paid 8 million dollars for the privilege. He sold the whole lot for $84 million and invested heavily in the New York stock exchange. The stock markets crashed a week later, and he was left bankrupt.
Personally, I thought Miami was disappointing. Past glory and very expensive. If I was to take the roadtrip from Miami to Key West again, I would stay at the Keys or Naples a bit longer, but this is of course my personal choice.
Are you looking for more things to do in the area? Check this Fort Lauderdale Guide.
Is Miami on your bucketlist? Or have you been there? Did you like it?
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