Check out 12 incredible things to do in Key West with kids!
Going to Key West with kids is a fun family vacation, although people may tell you otherwise. The southernmost point in the states (only 90 miles from Cuba!) gets a bad rap for being a party town. And after dark, Duval Street – the main strip lined with souvenir shops, seafood restaurants and cocktail huts – does reek of rum. But Key West is much more than Duval Street. There are so many things to do in Key West with school-age kids that it’s totally worth a trip.
You’ll love the laidback atmosphere, the pastel-colored Caribbean style homes and the eclectic vibe of the place. I mean what other city has chickens strutting all over it – pecking at the sand on restaurant patios and clucking their way down sidewalks and streets? (They were let loose decades ago and have become a Key West fixture.)
Just don’t expect a lounge-on-the-beach vacation. Key West doesn’t have great beaches – a vacation here is more about doing activities together like kayaking through the backwaters filled with marine life, sampling key-lime-pie flavored everything and going to the nightly street carnival in Mallory Square.
12 Things to Do in Key West With Kids
If you have two days in Key West, you can easily do all these activities at a leisurely pace. But, if you’re stopping here for one day during a cruise or on a long road trip, don’t stress yourself out trying to do it all. Just pick a few of these things and have fun.
(NOTE: There’s no reason to pay hefty prices to book excursions through the cruise. You’re still in the U.S. so it’s totally easy to get around and see the sights without having to pay a guide. The exception is if you want to go kayaking, snorkeling or do other water sports.)
Here are activities your entire family can enjoy together:
#1: Ride the trolley
I love a good hop-on-hop-off bus tour. It’s a great “orientation” for tourists, giving you a quick lay of the land, interesting stories about the place and transportation to all the key points you want to go to anyway.
Plus, when the muggy heat of midday hits in Key West, you’ll be so happy to hop on the bus and sit on a shaded seat for a bit. (Or when your kids start complaining about too much walking.) Old Town Trolley Tours has 13 stops. You can get off at any one of them and the next trolley will come along in 30 minutes or less.
#2: Eat key lime pie on a stick
Have you ever had key lime pie? If not, you my friend are missing out. It’s the most scrumptious sweet-tart, creamy concoction that’s ever slid across your taste buds. You totally need to try it!
The best-known key lime pie maker is Kermit of Kermit’s Key West Key Lime Shoppe. His recipe has gotten kudos from the Food Network and it’s popular enough that there are two stores in Key West. But go to the original location at 200 Elizabeth Street, where the shop is stocked with ALL things key lime from cookies to salsa to taffy to olive oil and spiced nuts.
You can sample the products and buy a bottle of key lime juice to make a pie back home (trust me: you want to do this – the recipe on the bottle is super easy and whoever you serve it to will rave about the pie and you’ll be like, “Oh this? It’s made with key lime juice I picked up on my travels.”)
They also sell frozen chocolate-covered slices of key lime pie on a stick. Yep, it’s as good as it sounds and the slices are huge. Get one of those bad boys and savor it on the shady patio while your kids are distracted by the koi pond (more bites for you!).
#3: Go to a sunset party
Every evening before sunset a crowd gathers in Mallory Square, which overlooks Key West Harbor. Don’t miss being a part of this sunset celebration and come ready for some yummy snacks!
At one of the food carts, they’ll slice open a coconut and stick a straw in it so you can sip the fresh juice. Or watch a vendor squeeze sugarcane through a machine and then sip the sugary nectar. There’s made-in-front-of-you chunky guacamole, served with tortilla chips, and other treats as well.
Grab a snack and then watch the street performers juggle, swallow fire and do crazy acrobatics. You can also peruse the craft vendors and listen to musicians before watching the sun melt into the watery horizon.
#4: Kayak through a mangrove forest
Kayaking through the mangrove forests is one of the best experiences in Key West. What are mangroves? They’re trees and shrubs that grow in saltwater and create a unique ecosystem. Their roots act as a protective nursery for young fish and their branches are perfect nesting spots for egrets, bald eagles and other birds.
You can paddle around and through the mangrove forests – there are small waterways through the trees – to spot wildlife. The shallow, blue-green water is clear enough to see animals underneath your kayak. We spotted a small shark hanging out along the sandy bottom and our guide pulled a sea cucumber out of the water to show us.
We went on the 2-hour tour at 10 a.m. (before it got too hot!) with Lazy Dog Adventures, but there are several companies that provide kayak tours of the backcountry.
#5: Swim in crystal-clear water
Before I went to Key West, I heard that the best beach was at the Fort Zachary Taylor Historic State Park. So that’s exactly where I headed the very first day. And while the beach is small, it does have clear, warm water and some rocky outcroppings that parrotfish dart in and out of.
Fort Zachary is where the locals go to enjoy a day at the beach. There are shaded picnic tables and a beach shack that rents chairs, umbrellas, snorkel gear and bikes. There’s also a café for snacks. There’s also an old fort (the namesake) that you can explore, too. It costs a few bucks to enter the state park, but it’s worth it.
#6: See the U.S. “South Pole”
Everyone wants to take pictures with the concrete buoy at the Southernmost Point in the U.S. And it’s fun shot, so why not? But expect a line. Go as early in the morning as you can stand and you might not have to wait long at all. You can find it at the intersection of Whitehead Street and South Street.
#7: Check out 6-toed cats
If you’re into literature, a tour of Ernest Hemingway’s house is a must. And if you’re thinking, “Oh, what a snooze,” think again. The man was pretty much a drunk womanizer who made his way around the world and the stories they tell on the tour are pretty interesting.
For kids, the tour’s appeal is getting to check out and pet some of the 40 six-toed cats running around inside the house and out in the gardens. (Cats normally have five toes in the front and four toes in the back.)
#8: Chase butterflies
My kids and I can’t get enough of free-flying butterfly houses like the Key West Butterfly and Nature Conservatory. It’s beautiful inside. There are live flamingos, rainbow-colored birds flitting about, tropical plants everywhere and the peaceful sound of trickling water.
But the real reason you come here is to watch butterflies glide through the air, sip nectar and if you’re lucky, land on you. They have 50 species of butterflies, from big blue beauties the size of your fist to your everyday Monarch butterfly. (Note: The gift shop is heaven for butterfly lovers.)
#9: Try new foods
Because you can’t eat key lime pie all day long (or, can you?), try other regional foods. Hogfish is a mild-tasting fish that’s served in most of the restaurants while conch (the animal inside of the conch shell) has a chewier texture and is usually deep-fried like calamari. But my absolute favorite food here other than key lime pie is Key West pink shrimp.
Key West pink shrimp are the meatiest, most delicious shrimp I’ve ever eaten. In a word they’re AMAZING. They’re wild-caught off the west coast of Florida and around the Keys and are especially plentiful between November and June. I ordered them in a salad and just about swooned right off my chair. I had no idea that Key West had its own special species of shrimp. You’ve got to try them!
#10: Shop for special souvenirs
There are a ton of souvenir shops on Duval Street where you can get t-shirts and keychains, but for my favorite take-homes I head to these two shops:
This carefully curated shop has gorgeous little vials of sea salts harvested from the Lower Keys. You can buy salts flavored with merlot or sriracha to use on fish, meat, popcorn or in cocktails. They also sell handcrafted jewelry, pottery and art from Florida Keys artists and mason jars of local wild honey.
This is the best-kept shopping secret of the Florida Keys. Tucked away in Kino Plaza is a little leather shop where they make super-cute and cheap sandals (around $20 a pair). The place has been around since 1966 and when you walk in, you’ll see women in the back cutting, sewing and gluing the shoes together. They have men’s, women’s and children’s sizes and you can try on any of the 17 different styles they make onsite. I get compliments on the ones I bought every time I wear them.
The place is hard to find though – use Google Maps to give you exact directions but know that you have to go into a building’s courtyard (Kino Plaza) to find the door. It’s at the corner of Greene and Fitzpatrick Streets.
#11: Make mojitos
Learn how to mix tasty mojitos at the Key West Legal Rum Distillery. They offer a free class that runs every day (except Sundays) at 4:30 p.m. The small distillery is family-friendly and provides free tours and one small tasting and kids can sip on the fruity, non-alcoholic mixer.
#12: Have a fancy dinner
A fancy dinner might not sound fun to kids at first, but this one requires that you boat over to a private island. Now that’s cool! Sunset Key is home to a high-end, family-friendly resort. While it costs around $1,000 a night to stay in one of the cottages, anyone can make a reservation to have dinner at Latitudes restaurant at the resort.
Ask for a table on the sandy torch-lit patio – it’s one of the best places in the Florida Keys to watch boats sail past as the sun sets on the water, streaking the sky pink, orange and deep blue. The menu has crab, lobster, scallops and other fish as well as steak and salads. They have a kid’s menu, too.
(NOTE: Reservations are required and you can’t take the ferry over earlier than 30 minutes before your reservations. But don’t worry, the ferry ride takes approximately 10-15 minutes.)
Get the Key West With Kids Travel Plan
Whether you come to Key West for the weekend or stop by for a day on a cruise, you’re bound to have a good time with your kids here. Want the full-blown travel plan with where to eat and stay and the activities you can fit in each day? I’m creating it now. Sign up to be notified as soon as it’s done.
Because why make things harder on yourself?
Happy travels,
P.S. If you’re planning a trip to Florida, don’t miss reading about why you should skip Disney and go to Discovery Cove instead. It’s an awesome, uncrowded theme park that’s seriously Orlando’s best-kept secret.
P.P.S. Speaking of hidden gems: Have you heard of the Finger Lake region in New York? It’s filled with stunning waterfalls and state parks, wineries, great hiking, natural swimming holes, a glassmaking studio and lakeside eateries. Read all about the 5 Reasons Every Family Should Visit the Finger Lakes.
DO YOU WANT TO REMEMBER THIS? SAVE KEY WEST WITH KIDS WEEKEND TO YOUR FAVORITE PINTEREST BOARD!
