A bridge over calm water in the Florida Keys
USA · Florida Keys

The Keys & Key West

A chain of islands running south-west from Miami, linked by forty-two bridges across open sea. The drive is the attraction as much as the destination.

Drive3h 30m from Miami
Stay3–5 nights
Best monthsDec–Apr
Guide pricefrom £1,399pp

Don't drive it in one go

Miami to Key West is three and a half hours without stopping, and stopping is the entire point.

Key Largo has the first coral reef state park in America. Islamorada is sport fishing and a sandbar you can walk to. Bahia Honda has the best beach in the Keys — which matters, because most of the chain has no beach at all, just mangrove and rock. Then the Seven Mile Bridge, and Key West at the end. Two nights along the way and two in Key West beats a day trip, and a day trip is what most people do.

What to do

A reef, a bridge, and a very odd town at the end.

John Pennekamp, Key Largo

America's first underwater park. Snorkel or dive the reef, or take the glass-bottom boat. Ninety minutes from Miami.

Bahia Honda

The best beach in the Keys by a distance, with the old railway bridge above it. Most of the chain has no beach at all.

Seven Mile Bridge

Exactly what it sounds like — seven miles of road across open water. The old bridge alongside is now a walking pier.

Key West Old Town

Conch houses, Hemingway's six-toed cats, and Duval Street. Small enough to walk, and best in the morning.

Mallory Square sunset

Street performers and a crowd every evening for the sunset. Touristy and genuinely good-natured.

Dry Tortugas

A 19th-century fort on an island seventy miles further out, by ferry or seaplane. A full day and the best snorkelling in Florida.

Where to stay

Four main stops down the chain, each with its own character.

Key Largo

Diving & closest

Ninety minutes from Miami. Pennekamp reef park, and the easiest overnight if you're short of time.

Islamorada

Fishing & smart

Sport fishing capital, good restaurants, and a sandbar you can wade to. The nicest middle stop.

Marathon & Bahia Honda

Beaches & family

The turtle hospital, the Seven Mile Bridge, and the only proper beach in the Keys.

Key West

The end

Old Town, Duval Street and the sunset. Busy with day-trippers and cruise passengers until about five.

Five things worth knowing

When to go

December to April is dry, warm and the busiest. Avoid hurricane season if you can.

Winter is the peak — 24–26°C, low humidity, and hotel rates to match. Spring is warm and quieter after Easter. Summer is hot, humid and stormy, and the Keys are directly exposed to hurricanes between June and November, with evacuation orders a real possibility. Fantasy Fest in late October fills Key West entirely.

Practical

Getting there

Three and a half hours by road from Miami, or fly into Key West (EYW) via a US hub.

Hire car

Essential unless you fly in. One road runs the length of the chain, and mile markers are how addresses work.

Currency

US dollar. Tipping 18–20%, and not in the price.

Booking

Key West is small and fills. Book accommodation well ahead, particularly in winter and for Fantasy Fest.

Tell us your dates

We'll build the drive with stops along the chain, pair it with Miami, and write the payment plan out in full.

Questions people ask

Is it worth the drive?

Yes, if you break it. Driving down and back in a day is three and a half hours each way to see one town at its busiest.

Are there beaches?

Almost none — the reef stops the waves that build sand. Bahia Honda is the exception. Come for boats, reefs and the drive.

How long in Key West?

Two nights. It's small, and the difference between day-trippers leaving at five and the town at eight in the morning is the whole experience.

Can we do the Keys and Orlando?

It's a long way — about six hours of driving. Possible over two weeks, but we'd pair the Keys with Miami and Orlando with the Gulf coast instead.

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Florida Keys packages

Flights, accommodation and transfers as one package. Every one can be reshaped — different dates, different board, a different airport, or a stopover on the way.

7 nights in Florida Keys

Room only · Dec–Apr
  • Return flights and car hire
  • Room only, so you eat where you like
  • What protection applies, confirmed in writing before you pay
from £1,299per person

10 nights in Florida Keys

Room only · Dec–Apr
  • Return flights and car hire
  • Room only, so you eat where you like
  • The extra nights cost proportionally less — fixed costs don't change
from £1,659per person

14 nights in Florida Keys

Room only · Dec–Apr
  • Return flights and car hire
  • Room only, so you eat where you like
  • Best value per night
from £1,969per person

Guide prices, per person, based on two sharing, including return flights, accommodation and transfers. They indicate what a holiday of this type has typically cost and are not an offer or a quotation. Your price depends on dates, party, board basis, departure airport and availability, and is confirmed in writing before any payment is taken.

Multi-centre itineraries we arrange

We don't currently run a ready-built itinerary that includes the Florida Keys, but these are the multi-centre trips people ask about most — and we can build one around the Florida Keys on request. Flights, transfers and internal hops booked as one package, with what protection applies, confirmed in writing before you pay.

See all 33 multi-centre itineraries →