Overview

Ernest Hemingway, Harry Truman, and Jimmy Buffett have all been crazy about Key West. What is it about this place? For starters, the atmosphere. Residents (who call themselves "conchs" and their island the "Conch Republic") share a last-stop-before-you-drop-off-the-world mentality in which personal freedoms, self-expression, a comfortable hammock, and a fresh margarita (not necessarily in that order) are measures of the good life.

But this is Florida, after all, so the sun-sea-sand visitor will feel right at home, with activities such as fishing (the island is home to one of the state's largest sportfishing fleets) and diving. The place has more than its fair share of history, from homes of the famous (Hemingway's 1930s abode is now a museum) to the Mel Fisher Maritime Museum, which displays some of the riches the famed treasure-hunter found in the wreck of the Nuestra Señorade Atoche, a 17th-century Spanish galleon that sank off Key West.

Downtown Key West is a whirl of art galleries and T-shirt emporiums, interspersed with a healthy number of watering holes. After a day by the ocean, you can join locals and visitors at Mallory Square for the daily sunset celebration. The entertainment - street musicians, jugglers, magicians - and the party atmosphere are reminders that life in Key West marches to no drum but its own.

 Plan Your Trip

DIVING

If Mel Fisher could find Spanish gold off Key West, it could happen to you, right? And sure enough, when you come across a pair of coral-encrusted anchors from 18th-century sailing vessels on the reef at Kedge Ledge, it's hard not to let your imagination take flight. For treasures of another kind, explore the ten miles of coral reefs at Sand Key; rich with corals and other sea life, they're fine for snorkeling and scuba diving.

FISHING

Deep-sea fishing for marlin and sailfish is the main hook, but for a very different kind of Keys experience, hire a guide to take you to the shallow-water flats of the "backcountry" to cast for bonefish, permit, and huge tarpon. Or head up into the Everglades to fish for snook, redfish, and more tarpon.

NIGHTLIFE

Several Key West bars are more than bars; they're historical sites. Three landmarks not to miss are Captain Tony's on Greene Street, (Hemingway used to lean on the old wooden bar) the Hog's Breath Saloon on Front Street (probably the locals' favorite); and the Green Parrot Bar on Whitehead Street (note the legendary jukebox in the building, which dates to 1890).

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