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Voykit pocket guide · United States
Key West
Give Key West 2–3 nights on foot in Old Town; skip the rental car, and treat the drive down US-1 as the trip, not the transfer.
Key West is a small, walkable island city at the end of the Overseas Highway — the southernmost city in the continental US, about 3.5 hours by car from Miami. Old Town holds the sights, bars and guesthouses within roughly a 25-minute walk end to end. It is expensive and busy in winter, hot and wet in summer, and best done without a car.
- Country
- United States
- Best months
- Dec–Apr (dry, sunny, busiest)
- Avoid
- Jun–Oct (wet season, heat, hurricane risk)
- Stay
- 2–3 nights
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- USD
- Money
- Currency is the US dollar (USD, $). Cards and phone payments work almost everywhere; carry a little cash for tips and small vendors.
- Daily spend
- Budget $120–180 excl. bed · Mid $200–320 excl. bed · High $350+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile cover the country; prepaid SIMs at their stores and Walmart/Target (passport required), or an eSIM before you fly.
- Emergency
- Police, fire, ambulance 911
- Plugs
- Types A, B · 120 V · 60 Hz · Chargers are dual-voltage; hair dryers and straighteners from 230 V countries need a converter.
- Tipping
- Sit-down restaurant: 18–22% of the pre-tax bill.; Bar: US$1–2 per drink or 20% of the tab.; Taxi / ride-hailing: 15–20%, in the app.; Hotel housekeeping: US$3–5 a night.; Porter / valet: US$2–5 per bag or car.; Tour guide: US$10–20 per person for a day tour.; Counter service / tablet prompts: Optional; 0–15%.
- Water
- Tap water is drinkable nearly everywhere; boil or treat water from streams in parks.
- Toilets
- Free public toilets are scarce in big cities; use cafés, department stores, libraries, stations. Rest areas on highways are free.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Coffee | $4–7 |
| Slice of key lime pie | $7–12 |
| Conch fritters or a sandwich | $12–20 |
| Beer: draught at a Duval bar / six-pack at a store | $7–10 / $12–18 |
| Sit-down dinner, mid-range | $25–45 per person |
| Hemingway House entry | about $18 (check) |
| Fort Zachary Taylor state park entry | about $7 per vehicle (check) |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- EYW · Key West International Airport
- About 4 mi / 6 km east of downtown on S Roosevelt Blvd; taxi or rideshare to Old Town, roughly 10–15 min.About 4 mi / 3.7 mi east of downtown on S Roosevelt Blvd; taxi or rideshare to Old Town, roughly 10–15 min.
- MIA · Miami International Airport
- Fly here and drive or take a shuttle down US-1; about 3.5–4.5 h door to door.
Typical fares
- Taxi or rideshare EYW → Old Town
- about $25–40, 10–15 min (check)
- Key West Transit bus ride
- about $2–4 (check)
- Keys Shuttle, Miami airport → Key West
- about $100+ one way, 4–5 h (check)
Get around
Walk or bike. Old Town is flat and compact; most visitors never need a car, and parking is scarce and costly. Key West Transit buses cover the island and the Lower Keys; taxis and rideshare (Uber, Lyft) are plentiful. Bikes and scooters rent widely and can park at the kerb.
See and do
Known for
- Duval Street
- Ernest Hemingway House
- Mallory Square sunset
- Southernmost Point buoy
- Conch Republic
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Big Pine Key | Drive US-1 north about 30 mi / 48 kmDrive US-1 north about 30 mi / 30 mi | About 45 min |
| Marathon | Drive US-1 north about 50 mi / 80 kmDrive US-1 north about 50 mi / 50 mi | About 1 h |
| Islamorada | Drive US-1 north about 75 mi / 120 kmDrive US-1 north about 75 mi / 75 mi | About 1 h 30 min |
| Key Largo | Drive US-1 north about 100 mi / 160 kmDrive US-1 north about 100 mi / 99 mi | About 2 h |
| Stock Island | Drive or bike US-1 north about 5 mi / 8 kmDrive or bike US-1 north about 5 mi / 5 mi | About 15 min |
| Duck Key | Drive US-1 north about 60 mi / 97 kmDrive US-1 north about 60 mi / 60 mi | About 1 h 15 min |
Sleep
- Old Town
- Duval Street, Hemingway House and the waterfront on foot; guesthouses and small hotels, highest prices.
- Truman Annex / Fort Zachary Taylor area
- Quieter, near the fort and beach; 10–15 min walk to Duval.
- New Town / Roosevelt Blvd
- Chain motels and cheaper rooms near the airport; you will want a bike or bus to reach Old Town.
- Stock Island
- One island up US-1, 10–15 min drive; cheaper beds, needs a car or taxi.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Thank you | Thank you |
| How much is it? | How much is it? |
| Can I pay by card? | Can I pay by card? |
| Where is the toilet? | Where is the toilet? |
| One beer, please | One beer, please |
| Is this seat taken? | Is this seat taken? |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: Handshake and 'hi, how are you?' — reply 'good, thanks'; avoid: Treating the question as a real health enquiry
- Restaurants: Tip 18–22% and wait for the check; avoid: Leaving without tipping
- Personal space: Keep an arm's length in queues; avoid: Standing close to strangers
- Politics and religion: Listen more than you speak; avoid: Opening with hot-button topics
- Smoking: Smoke only in marked areas; avoid: Smoking near doors or in parks where banned
Scams and watch-outs
- Hurricane season runs Jun–Nov; check forecasts and know your airline's change policy before a summer trip.
- Summer heat index often tops 38°C (100°F) with high humidity — plan sights for early morning.
- Duval Street bars can be loud and heavy on drinking; watch your drink and your tab.
- Parking in Old Town is limited and expensive; a rental car is a liability if you stay put.
- Winter (Dec–Apr) is peak season: rooms and flights sell out and prices spike around holidays.
Key West is a safe, walkable small city; the real risks are heat and humidity in summer, drinking on Duval Street, and hurricane season Jun–Nov. Keep to lit streets at night and watch your tab in bars.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Key West yet. Suggested stay: 2–3 nights. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Duval Street
- Ernest Hemingway House
- Mallory Square sunset
- Southernmost Point buoy
- Conch Republic
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- City of Key West: www.keywestcity.com/
- Key West International Airport (EYW): www.eyw.com/
- Florida Keys & Key West tourism: www.fla-keys.com/
- Wikivoyage: Key West, revision 5314699 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=5314699
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
Key West
To this address, please
To this address, please
My hotel (write the name and address in the local script)
- Police, fire, ambulance911
No embassies in Key West; consulates are in Miami. US visitors: your home country's nearest consulate is likely Miami.
US emergency number is 911 everywhere; no tipping in the UK sense — 18–22% at sit-down restaurants is expected.
Voykit · checked 2026-09
Printed from Voykit (/key-west). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.