If you have ever been to Key West, you know that a week in Key West might be a little long, but if you are looking for a mix of relaxation and excursions than a week in Key West is for you! When most people think of Florida, you think of beaches. Key West, however, only has two small beaches, but it is definitely not lacking on gorgeous weather!
We stayed at The Reach Resort, which had one of the two beaches, but unfortunately we couldn’t get into the water due to seaweed. Evidently summer is seaweed season, who knew?! We still were able to enjoy the pool and beach though without getting directly into the ocean. We were in Key West the first week of June, which brought nearly perfect 80 degree days and only a few stray clouds.
Since my family is a little on the large side, nine adults and five children big, most days we hung out at the hotel by the pool before heading off into town when the weather started to cool and to catch the stunning sunsets. With Key West being a relatively small island, just 4 miles long by 1 miles wide, you get the pleasure of both sunrises and sunsets! If you are a seafood fan, I recommend trying hogfish. While my search for hogfish came up dry this trip (I’ve been a few times before), you should absolutely ask for it even if it isn’t on the menu. It is a melt in your mouth fish with a mild flavor and a hint of sweetness.
Due to being surrounded by water on all sides, Key West is plastic straw free! Most restaurants will have paper straws, but I suggest bringing your own favorite reusable straw.
A Week in Key West, Florida: What to Do
Deep Sea Fishing
We went deep sea fishing two different days while in Key West with two different tours. The first day was on a smaller boat and ended up catching dolphin or commonly known as Mahi Mahi and a barracuda (which had to be thrown back). The next time we set out on a giant 63-foot boat with Blind Squirrel Charters for a full day adventure. While we didn’t catch any fish, it was fun to be that far from the coast with the wide open water all around. Some days you are just luckier with catching evidently! I still enjoyed the experience and the cabin was air conditioned so when it got too hot, we could take breaks and cool off!
Dolphin/Snorkel Tour
This dolphin and snorkel tour was one of my absolute favor parts of the trip! It was organized by our resort through their sister property Casa Marina, which made it hassle free. We were picked up at the other property and shuttled to the marina to setoff on our dolphin adventure. I love dolphins, so I was excited to see a few. We didn’t see a few. We saw a ton! The tour took us to a “dolphin playground,” which is a protected area that you can’t swim in. There were saw at least 7 families of dolphins (pods) and so many baby dolphins. As someone who had never seen a baby dolphin, I couldn’t help myself from squealing alongside my little nieces. After viewing the dolphins, we set off to snorkel around a reef. There were tons of fish, and I would recommend bringing an underwater camera, GoPro, etc.
Also when snorkeling in reefs, remember to use reef safe sunscreen. Florida is about to join Hawaii in banning chemical sunscreens due to the destruction of the reefs.
Going Out
Key West definitely has a night life. We only went out to the bars one night with some of the younger people in our group. It made me feel old, but I still had a good time. We started at Fat Tuesdays and indulged in some overly sweet frozen cocktails and danced until we were sweating before heading off to a few other bars that I honestly can’t remember. But if you are looking to get your party on, Key West has no shortage of bars and clubs!
A Week in Key West, Florida: Where to eat
The Square Grouper: Seafood
If you are driving to Key West from Miami, The Square Grouper is a must pit stop on Cudjoe Key. I ate here five years ago, and it was just as good as I remembered. I ordered the catch of the day, which was snapper paired with yucca fries and slaw. It was so good! The fish tacos also caught my eye, which were topped with pickled red onions, key lime crema and sriracha. This place is open for lunch and dinner but closed from 2-5pm so plan your trip accordingly because we arrived at 1:30pm, and I would have been so disappointed to miss this stop.
Spencer’s by the Sea: Breakfast, Lunch, Steakhouse
Spencer’s is in The Reach Resort and offers a variety of seafood and steakhouse options. We ate here for breakfast almost every morning along with two dinners. There are different breakfast options on the weekdays versus the weekends. For weekend brunch, I especially loved the avocado toast with gluten-free bread topped with a perfectly poached egg and thinly sliced Fresno peppers and the short rib hash paired with a fried egg served in a cute mini cast-iron skillet. These are technically breakfast tapas, but I could barely finish the two because the portions were actually pretty big!
During the day, we mainly lounged by the pool and ordered lunches and drinks to our cabana. My favorite drink of the week at the resort was the Key Lime Cooler featuring key lime rum, fresh lime juice and coconut water. We discovered if you ordered a shaker to share that it was more cost effective as you could keep your shaker for the entire trip and it was refilled at a discounted rate. While I tried the cubans press the first day on gluten-free bread and it was very good, I ended up ordering the Key West fish tacos every other day because they were amazing! Grilled mahi mahi topped with cilantro-lime cream, guac and pickled fresno peppers. Yum!
For dinner, the place turns into more of a steakhouse vibe. Being from a landlocked state, I still ordered fish the two nights we ate here, and it didn’t disappoint. Our table started with an order of the lobster tacos with osetra caviar and tuna tartare. While I am not really a caviar fan, these crunchy tacos were like little bites of heaven. I love grouper and the black grouper was out of this world. It was flavor punch to my tastebuds served with avocado, tomato confit and golden raisin demi glaze. One night the restaurant also pan-seared the mahi mahi from our first deep sea fishing adventure, which was awesome to actually eat what we caught!
Cuban Coffee Queen: Coffee, Breakfast
Someone suggested this place on Instagram, and I wanted to send my scenarist thank you. This coffee was BOMB! I got the Cafe Con Leche with almond milk and light sugar. There are two locations on the island, but the waterfront has the cute Key West sign on the side of the building.
Hot Tin Roof: Seafood, American
Sitting atop the Ocean Key Resort, this restaurant offers some of the best sunset views on the island! It gets a little toasty in the summer months, so no need for a jacket. I started with the Red Devil Battery cocktail, which was the perfect mix of tart and sweet. My husband ordered the Baby Doll, and he said it was one of the best cocktails he has ever had. I ordered the black grouper which was paired with a chorizo-coconut curry, boniato mash and roasted asparagus. It was so delicious! Grouper is my all-time favorite fish, but super hard to find in Denver. Others at the table, ordered the seafood paella, which they all raved about. I finished the meal with the Summer & Smoke cocktail and a slice of the key lime pie that ended up being my second favorite of the trip.
A&B Lobster House: Seafood, Steakhouse
We ate here our first night in Key West, and it set the bar high for the entire trip. Out of a group of almost 20 people, I think 10 of us got the Florida Lobster and Mushroom Risotto, myself included. Holy crap. I wish I could describe how delicious this was. I ordered this even though I don’t really like lobster, yeah I know, but everything else in the dish sounded so good that I couldn’t pass it up. The lobster was buttery and succulent and paired perfectly with the creamy rice, earthy cremini mushrooms and micro basil for a fresh element then finished with a dash of truffle oil. Not to be out done from the dinner, the Key Lime Pie was the best of the whole trip. (Don’t worry I sacrificed myself to eat 5 different pies for this research) It had just the right amount of tartness without being overly sweet with the perfect creamy texture almost like a mousse.
Firefly Key West: Southern
To change things up a bit for our last meal, we headed to a charming Southern restaurant. We ordered a ton of appetizers for the table including the Southern style deviled eggs, pork belly brussels sprouts, buttermilk biscuits, shrimp and grits, and fried green tomatoes. Everything was so good. I indulged in a fried green tomato, and it was one of the best I’ve ever had. It was topped with a spicy scotch bonnet aioli, brussels sprout slaw and bacon vinaigrette for a truly unique flavor combination!
Conch Shack: Seafood
My oldest niece forced/convinced us all that we had to try conch ceviche. I’d never had conch, but evidently it is quite the delicacy/local favorite in the Bahamas. With the Bahamas less than 300 miles from Key West, it makes sense that this dish has made its way to the US. According to my niece the Bahamian version is made with a little orange juice and Anaheim peppers, but the Key version was made with key limes and jalapeños and served with plantain chips. It was different but I liked it!
Now go and enjoy a week in Key West and soak in everything this tiny island has to offer! If you are driving down from Miami, check out my guide to Miami Beach!
