I’ve been to Key West before, so I know it’s not considered a family vacation spot. However, we were all going to be in Florida anyway, and I’ve been missing my favorite quirky island. Who knows when I would be so close again??
So we took our kids to Key West!
We found a lot to do there as a family. The kids complained it was “too much walking” and “too much stuff for adults.” Ha, yes, have to agree there. But we (all) still had a great time!
Here’s what we did in Key West with kids:
Activities everyone including kids (Ages 9 &10) enjoyed or at least tolerated
Mallory Square: This nightly sunset celebration has food vendors and street performers, and everyone cheers for the sun when it goes down. I gave each kid several $1 bills to distribute among the talents which they enjoyed doing. This evening activity was a hit with all!
Haunted History Tour: There are several options for these tours because Key West is considered “haunted” but we used the Ghost & Graveyards trolley tour. It was 1.5 hours. Everyone enjoyed the stories and getting to see so much of the island at night.
Shipwreck Museum: This building shows the history of the island as a home for treasure seekers, and you can climb to the highest viewpoint on the island. There is an cute aquarium next door I’ve been to before but we didn’t do it this time since we were recently at Shedd.
Hemingway House: Needless to say – because this is actually a book blog not a travel blog – I have to visit Hemingway House every time I go to Key West. My kids loved all the cats and tried to pet each one.
Fishing: We chose a “party boat” which means you share a charter with others so it is more affordable. We used Salty Goat. It is a long day for kids (9am-2pm) but they brought books (of course!!). We caught more than enough fish for a dinner and literally walked from the dock with our fresh fish over to Conch Republic Seafood Company and had them cook it for us. That was a cool experience, and it was really good (various snappers).
Sunset Tour: Even though we all loved watching the sunset from Mallory Square, watching it from a sail boat is also an amazing experience. We sailed on the Schooner Spirt of Independence, and my husband later said this was the coolest thing we did on the island. They host a great sail. I also want to recommend the Jolly Rover which I had initially booked because it looked super family friendly with a pirate theme. That ship ended up not sailing when we were there, but the owner was extremely pro-active and got us booked on his friend’s boat. They both are great companies to work with!
Southernmost Point & Beach: Of course we had to stand in line for this family photo. Then we walked over to the Southernmost Beach and hung out there for awhile.
The Green Parrot: I’ve previously hit most every bar in Key West. So this time I was OK staying away from that scene though we could have easily taken our kids into most any bar before 8pm if we needed to check these places off our list (would have wanted to see several Hemingway spots if I hadn’t been in before.) Honestly we had so much to do here, I didn’t even miss going out to bars all night!! However we did stop in one of our favorites, the Green Parrot, for a refreshment on walk back from Southernmost Point.
We could have done a lot more but we only had three days.
The kids’ other favorite things about the island included the free-range chickens and roosters, Key Lime pie (even on a stick), tons of ice cream shops, and as usual, the hotel pool (a must for us!)
Where we Stayed
We stayed at The Marker because it is right next to the historic harbor, close to both of our boat outings, and walking distance to everything else we did. Also, it has three pools, and one is specifically for adults so I didn’t have to feel guilty about my kids splashing in one of the others. There is bar service at the pool too. Rooms are nice, and most have a balcony.
Note there are several annual events during which I would not take my kids to Key West, including Fantasy Fest (October). So check the calendar! We went during September and it was a bit dead; this is considered the off-season.
Please ask any questions in the comments, and I would be happy to answer. Thanks for reading!