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Key West

Key West is the far frontier, edgier and more eccentric than the other Keys, and also far more captivating. At its heart, this 7-sq-mile island feels like a beautiful tropical oasis, where the moonflowers bloom at night and the classical Caribbean homes are so sad and romantic it’s hard not to sigh at them.

Best Time to Visit

Money and Costs

Attractions

Must-see attractions

Museum of Art & History at the Custom House
Key West
This excellent museum, set in a grand 1891 red-brick building that once served as the Customs House, covers Key West's history. Highlights are the…
Mallory Square
Key West
Take all those energies, subcultures and oddities of Keys life and focus them into one torchlit, family-friendly (but playfully edgy), sunset-enriched…
Nancy Forrester’s Secret Garden
Key West
Nancy, an environmental artist and fixture of the Keys community, invites you into her backyard oasis where chatty rescued parrots and macaws await…
Hemingway House
Key West
Key West’s biggest darling, Ernest Hemingway, lived in this gorgeous Spanish Colonial house from 1931 to 1940. Papa moved here in his early 1930s with his…
Studios of Key West
Key West
This nonprofit showcases about a dozen artists’ studios in a three-story space, and hosts some of the best art openings in Key West on the first Thursday…
Duval Street
Key West
Key West locals have a love-hate relationship with the most famous road in Key West (if not the Keys). Duval, Old Town Key West’s main strip, is a miracle…
Florida Keys Eco-Discovery Center
Key West
This 6000-sq-ft center is one of the best places in the Keys to learn about the extraordinary marine environments of South Florida. Start off with the 20…
Fort Zachary Taylor State Park
Key West
‘America’s Southernmost State Park’ is home to an impressive fort, built in the mid-1800s that played roles in the American Civil War and in the Spanish…