Key West has become one of our favorite quick trips in the last few years. For one thing 2020 has been crazy and we have not been able to travel much outside the country. Key West is still pretty close and very tropical. It is nice to have really pleasant weather and plenty of water activities. This blog will list our favorite places to stay and then I will follow up with places to eat and things to do on separate blogs (and there are a lot of both.)
Part of deciding where to stay is how much you want to spend and you certainly can stay in anything from a rented room to a 5 star resort. The places listed here are in the middle of that range.
The first thing I am going to mention is that we often fly into the Miami airport since it is has the most options of times and prices . We normally stay at the Holiday Inn at the port of Miami right across from the outdoor mall for one night. There are good restaurants and shopping so we usually get there in time for dinner and then eat breakfast on the water as well. Then we drive south on Hwy 1 through all of the Keys. It is a long, lovely drive. Take your time and stop for lunch and snacks along the way. There are also some great hotels on the islands along the way. You will notice that we love to stay in places on or near the water.
We have stayed at Tranquility Bay Resort. This is a lovely resort in Marathon with your choice of guest rooms or cute beach houses. They have a wonderful restaurant on site and a pool and beach area including Dolphin Lagoon and a gazebo and tiki bar.
The Hampton in Key Largo is a little bit older hotel but it has a fantastic sunset view and a little beach for swimming and visits with the manatees. There are also great restaurants close by and we have stayed here on a couple of trips.
The other choice is to fly straight into the Key West airport. Obviously, this is a faster way to get to the southernmost island of the keys. You skip the drive and get straight to enjoying your stay. We have done both and it just depends on how much time you have and if you enjoy driving. I have listed some of the places that we have enjoyed staying in or near Key West itself.
The Southern Most Beach Resort is at the southernmost point of Key West. This is a beautiful resort with beach access, a spa and a cafe on the beach. They have several different styles of housing including large multi bedroom houses, condos, cottages and hotel style rooms. This is a lovely place to relax and have quick access to the south part of Key West. It is close to shops and restaurants.
Perry Hotel on Stock Island (which is just one island over) is a lovely modern hotel right on a beautiful marina. They have a shuttle service to Key West so it is still a convenient place to stay. If you want to be a little off the beaten path but still close enough to enjoy all that Key West has to offer, this is a great choice. The sunrise in the morning over the marina is just beautiful. And they have a restaurant on the premises with excellent food for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The pool area is very nice and also overlooks the marina.
The Weatherstation Inn is a historic Bed & Breakfast in the Truman Annex. It is a laid back, quiet partially gated community and is located near the former Margaritaville Resort & Marina in Old Town Key West. If you like bed and breakfasts, this is an interesting place to stay even if just for a night. It is a historic older home with lovely bedrooms.
We recently stayed in a condo at Coconut Mallory Marina and Resort. This is on the north side near the bridge onto the island. So on the other side of the island from the shopping and restaurants, but very nice and quiet. We actually like this area because some of the restaurants we love are on Stock island and this is close to both. This resort is lovely and has a marina and a small bar area with a pool table right on the water. The 2 bedroom condo we stayed in was very nice and perfect for four of us but there are several styles of accommodations.
Lastly, I am going to mention the Fairfield Inn and Suites at the Keys. This is also near the entrance to Key West and is just a turn to the left as you come over the bridge. This is not a fancy hotel, in fact it is probably the least expensive place that we have stayed and both times we stayed, we only stayed for a night due to scheduling changes. However, it is clean and easy to get in and out. They have a shuttle to the shopping and eating areas near Duval street and they have a nice pool area.
There are so many places to stay in Key West. There are inns, hotels and motels, rooms for rent, really nice four and five star resorts. You can stay close to Duval Street and be in the middle of the “action” or on other parts of the island right on the water. So many choices but I hope this helps give you some ideas to get your journey started.