DESTINATIONS FLORIDA KEYS THE US
OF THE BEST
PLACES TO EAT
Food and the Keys make a dream pair.
Islamorada is the ultimate place to wind down.” The Florida Keys attracts about three million visitors annually. Jade Andrews, product administration executive for Funway Holidays, says: “Florida Keys is 46% up in terms of room nights generated in 2015, and a popular twin-centre holiday with Orlando.” The archipelago has wide appeal, with plenty for families, couples, groups, nature lovers and water-sports fans. With North America’s only living coral reef, the coastline is designated the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, with intentionally sunk vessels creating impressive artificial reefs. Air Adventures offers helicopter tours including sunset trips, which are a wonderful add-on for clients. Kayaking, fishing and diving are part-and-parcel of island life, while museums, history and festivals keep
Quirky Key West declared itself as the independent ‘Conch Republic’ in 1982 and the name has stuck
it culturally active. Agents can learn more at the Key Lime Academy at
fla-keys.com/keylimeacademy.
w SEE: SELECTION BOX The big ticket is Key West – the birthplace of quirky. After a disagreement with US border control in 1982, it declared itself as the independent ‘Conch Republic’ and the name has stuck for this tongue- in-cheek micro-nation ever since.
The most populated island, it’s the southernmost of the Keys, 150 miles from Miami but only 90 miles from Cuban capital Havana. Key West’s magic lies in its chameleon-like ability to appeal to all. Art deco and Victorian architecture, leafy streets and vintage signs make it a joy for walking, from the Historic Seaport to the quieter stretches of Duval Street. Suggest the new Made in Key West Food Tours or the Old Town Trolley Tour, with its excellent guides charting Key West’s history of Native Americans, pirates, wreckers and the Civil War. Stops include Hemingway House where Ernest Hemingway lived, and Key West still remains a writers’ and artists’ town. Other sights include the Harry S Truman Little White House, Key West First Legal Rum Distillery and Fort Zachary Taylor Historic State Park, which is best explored by bike.
ABOVE LEFT: Key West
ABOVE RIGHT: Marker 88 restaurant
LEFT: Fantasy Fest
For brunch/ lunch in Key
West, suggest open-air Blue
Heaven, with live music, roaming chickens and sublime key lime pie.
For Cuban
food, takeaway stands such as Cuban Coffee Queen serve delicious coffee and sandwiches.
On Big Pine
Key, No Name Pub, which is adorned with dollar bills and serves
great pizzas, describes itself as ‘a nice place if you can find it’.
For sunset, seafood and cocktails, suggest Islamorada’s beachfront Marker 88.
On Key Largo, The Fish
House serves everything
from hogfish to conch.
64
travelweekly.co.uk 3 September 2015
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