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Florida Keys

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Man and a woman in kayaks at Key West.

©Corey Rich/Getty Images

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Overview

If Florida is a state apart from the USA, the Keys are islands apart from Florida – in other words, it's different down here. This is a place for those escaping everyday life on the mainland. You'll find about 113 mangrove-and-sandbar islands where the white sun melts over deep green mangroves; long, soft mudflats and tidal bars; teal waters and a bunch of charming polite society castaways.

Attractions

Must-see attractions

  • Key West, Florida, USA. August 2019. A girl is walking near Key West Art & Historical Society. The building houses the Museum of Art & History at the Custom House.

    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…

  • Tourists and locals enjoy cocktails while viewing the sunset from pier at Mallory Square.

    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…

  • Bahia Honda State Park

    Bahia Honda State Park

    Florida Keys

    This park, with its long, white-sand (and at times seaweed-strewn) beach, named Sandspur Beach by locals, is the big attraction in these parts. As Keys…

  • Nancy Forrester’s Secret Garden

    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…

  • Flying to Dry Tortugas National Park

    Dry Tortugas National Park

    Florida Keys

    Dry Tortugas National Park is America's most inaccessible national park. Reachable only by boat or seaplane, it rewards you for your effort in getting…

  • Key West, Florida - December 4, 2019:  People tan and rest on the sunny beach of Fort Zachary Taylor State Park in tropical Key West Florida USA

    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…

  • (GERMANY OUT) Amerika, USA, Florida, Key West, Sunshine State,Atlantic Ocean , Caribbean Sea, Island,  Key West Cemetery, cemetery  (Photo by Franken/ullstein bild via Getty Images)

    Key West Cemetery

    Key West

    A darkly alluring Gothic labyrinth beckons at the center of this pastel town. Built in 1847, the cemetery crowns Solares Hill, the highest point on the…

  • PX7F3T The supposedly haunted Robert the Doll is one of the prime attractions found at the East Martello Tower art gallery in the city of Key West, Florida
Fort East Martello Museum & Gardens

    Fort East Martello Museum & Gardens

    Key West

    This old fortress was built to resemble an old Italian Martello-style coastal watchtower (hence the name), a design that quickly became obsolete with the…

Planning Tools

Expert guidance to help you plan your trip

Best Things to Do

No matter the season, there's plenty to keep you busy in the Keys. 

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Best Places to Visit

Plan your travels through the Florida Keys with this guide to the best islands.

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Best Time to Visit

The winter months sizzle in the Florida keys, it’s true – but there’s something to enjoy all year long in this alluring chain of islands.

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Transportation

The islands of the Florida Keys dangle down from the tip of Florida in a 113-mile-long chain. Here's how to get around Florida's islands in the sun.

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Free Things to Do

From public art trails to bird sanctuaries, here’s our guide to the top free activities in the Florida Keys.

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Best Road Trips

Get to know the Florida Keys by way of the Overseas Hwy (US 1) on this journey through islands of tropical paradise.

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