Florida Keys

Papa's Playground

Let's start backwards. There is this island, a stone's throw from Key West. It is home to a rather extraordinary resort that sets high standards as a reward for corporates after great achievements or as a honeymoon destination for lovers. The location is called Sunset Sea Cottages, operated by the luxury chain Opal, and it is clear from the pier, after a short crossing from Key West's marina: this is going to be heaven on earth! In the Latitudes restaurant, which plays all the tunes of cosmopolitan cuisine, a warm breeze from the nearby beach accompanies the carefully served Wagyu Beef, the Lobster Bisque or an original Key West Pink Shrimp Carbonara, each time accompanied by representative wines from all over the world. With the wind blowing gently and your feet in the sand, life is so easy off Key West, and in one of the most romantic restaurants in the United States.

Get off the pedal: 200 islands and 42 bridges are waiting to be discovered very slowly.

There's this bar off Key Largo. Alabama Jack's is its name. It's half mangrove thicket, half bistro and terrace, just a few handbreadths above the water. It's been here for 50 years. The decor - formica chic at its finest - consists largely of dozens of license plates nailed to the walls and pillars, as well as a few fishing buoys and driftwood. An impressive, taxidermied marlin serves as an eye-catcher. No luxury ferry is needed to get to Alabama Jack's: the toll on Cardsound Road costs one dollar - cash, of course. Welcome to the watering hole of a community of bikers, retirees, families or anyone else looking for a good time. Conch fritters, the Keys' signature dish, are served here in abundance, along with shrimp from a paper plate. No shortage of cold beer. There's live music at weekends - the same band has been playing here for 28 years.


Latitudes & Alabama Jack's, luxury & Old Florida charm:

These are two worlds that belong together here. Between them lie many bridges, a good 100 miles of road - and a great opportunity. With glittering Miami behind you, you could cover the 160-mile stretch to Key West in four hours. Many visitors speed along the route - and miss the best part. Florida's Overseas Highway, which connects countless islands like a string of pearls to form a marvel of early engineering, breathtaking nature and a relaxed lifestyle, is an iconic road trip: right into the heart of an America that is bucking the fast train of time. Rugged, shirt-sleeved hospitality with a mischievous charm is the unofficial emblem of Florida's far south. Bon vivants, dropouts, adventurers - in short, anyone in search of the best quality of life has settled in this outpost of American civilization.

None other than Ernest Hemingway did it for them: He thought it appropriate to "let your bones dry out well" here in the Keys. It would be a shame to miss out on "Papa's" house - now the most visited museum in Key West - his sunbathing cats, the great writer's original desk, the countless, sometimes intimate photographs from his life and the excellent guided tours of the grounds where Hemingway lived in the 1930s. A visit here becomes a course in the art of living. Do it slowly. But it would also be a shame to only visit Key West, this shimmering, loud, all-you-can-drink party UFO that has landed at the very tip of America. Just like many people do who arrive by plane or, as already mentioned, in record time by car.

Never more so than here: The journey is the reward. In perhaps the most relaxed four days since the tourist discovery of America, places of longing such as Key Largo or sleepy Marathon are waiting to be discovered. Turquoise-blue surf, coral reefs, sandbanks and mangrove forests line the "highway that goes to sea" and its 42 bridges. The sea plays a leading role in the great landscape theater: deep-sea fishing is - unchanged - the big theme in the harbors. A Florida Keys Shipwreck Trail connects nine historic underwater wrecks and artificial reefs. And the Caribbean has been a hotspot for professional divers for decades.

Key Largo. The island has some of the best diving spots in the USA.'


The sea plays a leading role in the great landscape theater

Henry Flager, the legendary railroad baron from New York, had the right instinct back in 1912 when he connected the Keys with tracks on which guests could comfortably roll south. However, 1935 was the end - a hurricane destroyed the masterpiece of engineering that the world press had once called the "eighth wonder of the world". Prior to this, thousands of workers had spent seven years driving hundreds of pillars into the quicksand and mangrove swamps between the open sea. Instead of the railroad came the road, and with it came the tourists and hotels and resorts, but also the desire to preserve the special Key atmosphere. This also - and first and foremost - includes a relaxed gastronomy that transports the catch from the sea directly to the grill and plate: in harbor bars and top-class gourmet restaurants, at unsuspicious addresses along the way or wrapped in newspaper for a quick snack in between. In the best American tradition, Florida also shows its casual side when it comes to overnight stays, without ever compromising on quality.

Check-in at Baker's Cay Resort, Key Largo. Calusa, the in-house Creole-Caribbean restaurant with a terrace and panoramic view of Florida Bay, for example, likes to serve Key West cuisine with a hint of New Orleans flavors. Sunsets are the best wine accompaniment. On other days, there are two pools, a nature trail with hidden beaches and a pier for boats and all kinds of water sports. Oh yes, there are also tiki huts for your four-legged companion and chilled water bowls. At mile 102.5, a spur road branches off to the first underwater national park in the USA, Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park. The guides offer diving, snorkeling and glass boat tours, kayak adventures, stand-up paddling, as well as fishing trips - pure summer fun, although quite chilly in the winter months. Then fresh fish, preferably straight from the dock, is the order of the day: Mrs. Mac's Kitchen is an ideal place for lunch, even if the restaurant is located directly on the highway. If you like a little "off the road" lunch, the Key Largo Conch House is the place for you. Seafood - freshly caught here too - and delicious desserts. Gourmets can argue for a long time about the most authentic "Key style". In any case, The Fish House is one of the top favorites for first place on a podium of delights, where atmosphere, local cuisine and humorous service come together. "Fish & seafood only" - but with an unheard-of quality and selection: Yellowtail snapper, mahi mahi, grouper, Florida lobster or stone crab are offered in countless varieties. A reason to stay another night: There is still time for a second epicurean landmark in Key Largo before continuing the journey. In the nearby Pilothouse, the Glass Bottom Bar right on the water's edge overlooks the 5-star marina.

Yacht charter Key West's harbor - a paradise for leisure captains.

The next day, the sport fishing capital of the world is just as relaxed: the small town of Islamorada is the epitome of fishing for the most discerning anglers. Get into the sporting fun, preferably in Robbie's Marina or in the "World Wide Sportsman Shop", a gigantic equipment store with thousands of fishing rods, professional equipment and sportswear on offer. Tropical sundowners lure adults to the hotel's own marina. Children love to grab a bucket to feed the hungry tarpon. True professionals bring their catch off the boat themselves to be prepared in style by the chefs. A little more formal, but not stiff, is a visit to Chef Michael's, one of the most famous (fish) restaurants on the way south. Hogfish or lionfish, prepared Cajun-style according to the menu, à la Pontchartrain, à la Ambassador, Adriatic or Juliette are always available in the kitchen. The delicacies are prepared either grilled, sautéed, baked or blackened - there are no limits to the imagination. If you want to stay overnight in Islamorada in style (but not luxury), choose one of the four hotels in the Islamorada Resort Collection: at the Amara Cay Resort, you can enjoy eco-boat tours, cycling excursions, water sports and a total of eight restaurants - the Tiki Bar is the place to meet for the last cocktail in the moonlight. Pass the "Theater of the Sea" with attractions for young and old - and then it's off to real maritime showtime: catamarans take you on an underwater adventure at Donut Reef, a sudden green-blue eye-catcher in the aquamarine sea. Parrotfish curiously watch the exotic two-legged visitors with their masks and snorkels; a ray, just a shadow, glides past into the depths, and a little later dolphins cheerfully surf past the boat.


Visiting the Turtle Hospital

The sea turtle that just floated past here can enjoy freedom and health. In the "Turtle Hospital" near Marathon, their fellow species are guests for life or for temporary treatment - depending on the severity of their injuries. These are usually caused by boat propellers or are due to tumors caused by water pollution, as the helpers know. The professional team lovingly takes care of rescue and rehabilitation. When patients are released into the open sea, everyone celebrates with the recovered patient. "This is not Sea World here," say the caretakers during the enthusiastically guided visitor tours. "These animals want to be back in the wild."

Marathon, until recently the sleepiest place in the Keys, has taken an astonishing turn. One of the reasons: The only remaining relic of the historic Overseas Railroad, the Old Seven Miles bridge, was transformed into a 2-mile adventure park and opened with pomp in the spring of 2023. Since then, it has been a favorite spot for recreational athletes and joggers, cyclists and walkers, anglers and in-air peepers. Two new premier league resorts followed the new highlight: the Isla Bella Beach Resort and the Valhalla Island Resort. They show where Sleeping Beauty is heading in the Keys after her long sleep - towards the stars. The charming, small inns and motels that still characterize the place are still available to travellers without a large budget.

The discovery of slowness ends in Key West at the latest. This is the place to be - daring clothing styles and pimped-out horsepower vehicles on two or four wheels included. The much-visited area can be explored in style and tranquillity by bike or on foot: A drink or two in the Green Parrot Bar, a look around President Harry Truman's Winter White House, a walk to the lighthouse from which - a first! - a woman once oversaw the fortunes of seafaring. She bravely kept the light shining against threats and war before electrification put an end to the keeper's business. Continue to the Mel Fisher Maritime Heritage Society, where the treasures of two shipwrecked Spanish galleys can be viewed up close in the museum and the "Voyage to Freedom" exhibition shows the "boat" Mariana: a makeshift vessel made of 14 steel barrels and an 8-cylinder truck engine, which twenty-four Cuban refugees managed to cross from Cuba in 2015.

Lighthose Hotel by Kimpton's. A casual lifestyle address on Key West.'

The Lighthouse Hotel by Kimpton's Key West, a stone's throw from Hemingway's house, guarantees a cozy atmosphere amidst the hustle and bustle. Ten buildings, built in the mid-1880s, are harmoniously grouped around a brick garden and pool. For lunch, head to the Bar & Grill of the same name, where Bobby Morelli's Killer Hogfish Sandwich has been a culinary legend for years. For daydreaming in style, we recommend a detour to Sloppy Joe's Dockside, an offshoot of the original on hectic Duval Street. And then the surprise: Key West shows its wild side to insiders. "Lazy Dog", a company that started out as a kayak and T-shirt company in the 1990s ("A millionaire in flip flops"), invites you to explore the beauty of the mangrove forests of the southern Keys by kayak and paddleboard just a ten-minute drive from the city center. If you want to experience the flora and fauna of the mangroves up close and wet and watch iguanas hunting, you're on the right leash with the "lazy dogs". And in the evening, ripe for real adventurer's tales, just like "Papa" said: "The most interesting creature in zoology is the fish." It is still growing when it has long since been eaten. At least in the eyes of the angler ...

More information at www.fla-keys.de


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