Attractions

The beach that many locals consider to be the best of the Key West public beaches can be found on the southern tip of Key West. This is where you can enjoy the large, relatively undeveloped, partially forested patch of land that surrounds Fort Zachary Taylor. The fort is a historic, pre-Civil War brick-built defense […]

Smathers Beach is a stand out among Key West beaches. It’s a long, narrow, palm-lined strip of white sand running along Roosevelt Boulevard (State Road A1A) on the south shore of the island. Smathers Beach offers convenient accessibility and plentiful parking, making it popular with tourists and locals alike. Easy access, bathrooms, showers, and picnic […]

Families love Higgs Beach because it is a true all-in-one beach fun zone. Higgs Beach is the public beach at Clarence Higgs Beach Park, a Monroe County Park. Like Fort Zachary Taylor Beach and Smathers Beach, Higgs Beach stands out among Key West public beaches for offering an exceptional variety of activities, amenities, and interest […]

To find one of the most conveniently-located Key West public beaches, look along the island’s Atlantic shore for South Beach, one of the smallest of Key West public beaches. A 200-foot-long pocket beach tucked away at the lower end of Duval Street, South Beach is bounded by the back wall of a resort development on […]

Rest Beach or C.B. Harvey as it is  known by the locals is a relatively new addition to the list of Key West public beaches. C.B. Harvey Memorial Rest Beach is named after Cornelius Bradford Harvey, a former Key West mayor and city commissioner. It is a compact 300-yard-long strip of sand and vegetation that […]

In keeping with the tolerance for diversity that Key West is known for, the island has a reputation as a pet-friendly place. Many facilities, including a number of shops, hotels, and restaurants with outside dining, are welcoming to well-behaved, leashed dogs. It is very common to see local dog owners taking their pets with them […]

One of the most popular pastimes for Key West locals and visitors alike is exploring the amazing marine environment around the island. Key West is well-known as a great destination for enjoying the underwater sports of snorkeling, SNUBA, and SCUBA. If you are visiting Key West, I highly recommend that you take advantage of the […]

Due to their proximity to the Keys (about 275 miles from Key West; 55 miles from the closest islands to mainland Florida), the islands of the Bahamas have always been a source of influence and immigration for Key West. The islands’ original inhabitants were the Lucayan, Arawakan-speaking Taino peoples; after Columbus made his first New […]

The Key West Cemetery is a 19-acre (77,000 m2) cemetery at the foot of Solares Hill on the island of Key West, Florida, United States. It is estimated that as many as 100,000 people are buried there, many more than the 30,000 residents who currently live on the island. It is in the northwest section […]

The Mallory Square Sunset Celebration is one of Key West’s most well-known attractions. Originally begun in the late 1960s as a stoned-out hippie ritual, the gathering of locals and visitors to enjoy the unobstructed sunset view from Mallory Pier is now an island institution that draws thousands every evening.