Will we be able to do ocean stuff like snorkeling?

We're thinking about using United frequent fliers miles to skip winter for a week, will probably stay here to built up Marriott points:

http://www.marriott.com/hotels...ott-beachside-hotel/

Very tentative plan is fly into EYW and NOT get a rental car. 1) Will the water be warm, and 2) Can we get around w/o a car?

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Sigmund,

Yes, should be no problem. Snow should not be an issue either. Key West is pretty laid back and different. Lots of characters. People from Iowa generally view it as "DIFFERENT."

Should be a good time. Others will have suggestions on where to stay.

It should be! Several years ago I had (had!) to go there for a work project in late January...it was about 80 for a high and though the water temperatures had cooled a little folks were still headed for the water.

Sort of reminded me of the weather in Guantanamo Bay I experienced in the winter months of 1979.

Water will be cooler and unless you want to drive up the keys, skip the rental car. Everything is in walking distance.
Lots to do down there and I'm there once a year. For good live music, check out Willie T's. Vinos on Duval is a nice spot and they have craft beer and a very nice selection of wine.
Food is everywhere down there but 2 places to hit are The Ocean Bar&Grill and A&B Lobster house. Not cheap but both are great.
Wander up and down Duval St. and you'll run into lots of places to see and things to do.

I've stayed just north of the keys for 20 years now on the first weekend in Dec. and never felt that there was a bad day in terms of temperature.

No problem with water activities. Should be bath water now.

The water at Key West is warm enough for swimming all year round. The ocean reaches its warmest point of the year in July and August when the temperature averages 87 degrees Fahrenheit (31 degrees Celsius). The coolest month is January, when the temperature is usually around 69 °F (21 °C).

Heading to KW in about an hour!

quote:

Originally posted by Sigmund:
Very tentative plan is fly into EYW and NOT get a rental car. 1) Will the water be warm, and 2) Can we get around w/o a car?

(1) Definitely fly into EYW. The Tampa to Key West drive is fun once, one way.

(2) Water will be warm and nice. Be advised that Key West doesn't have that many beaches, with lots of the shoreline being quite rocky. So for sunbathing normally stick by the pool.

(3) That hotel is nice, but it's not very easy walk places from that location, as the north Roosevelt Road is kind of filled with fast food joints, other hotels, etc.

Personally when I've gone down I've stayed at the hotels near Mallory Square / Front Street / etc. The main walking / shopping / eating areas are centered off Duval north and south a couple of blocks.

I like the Hyatt on 601 Front Street personally.

https://keywest.centric.hyatt.com

Have fun!

I like Key West in early December. We have visited several times just before Christmas. Not many tourists and the weather is nice. The seaplane to Fort Jefferson is one of the coolest things I've done. We snorkeled there in December and the water was quite comfortable. There is a great little restaurant called 7 Fishes. It's a little out of the way but well worth it. We made good use of Uber. No need for a car.

The wife and I did Key West last November
. We initially tried it without the rental car but changed our minds. Duval Street is the nightly party. There are all kinds go good restaurants. Our favorite was Blue Heaven. The Key West beaches are underwhelming. We drove to Bahia Honda State Park a couple of days. It is gorgeous and the beaches are very nice. It's a 30 minute drive north. You have to take a day trip to the Dry Tortugas. Amazing history with Fort Jefferson and the water is amazing. We chose the ferry rather than the seaplane and thoroughly enjoyed it. Have fun and be safe! Not a huge deal flying with a handgun there either.

if you are affiliated with the military you can stay at the Navy installations there. I rented a three bedroom house two years ago for less than a 1000. for an entire week.

My wife's family is from Key West, so I've walked all over that sumbitch. The entire island is arguably "walking distance" from any point, because it's only 4 miles long by 2 miles wide at the widest.

That said, you are guaranteeing yourself a 6-mile round-trip walk every day, because that hotel is at the opposite end of the island from Duval St, where most of the stuff you will want to see/do is located. I would think a hotel like that would have a shuttle to Duval St. A taxi wouldn't cost more than a few bucks either. It's totally do-able without a rental car, just a lot of walking!!

Here are two suggested restaurants that you NEED to visit:

1) Camille's, for breakfast. I'm sure their food at other times of the day is just as good, but their breakfasts will blow your mind.

2) El Siboney. It's a hole-in-the-wall Cuban restaurant, 90-miles north of the island itself, OF COURSE it's fantastic.

Uber just started running in KW. So getting around just got easier.

quote:

2) El Siboney. It's a hole-in-the-wall Cuban restaurant, 90-miles north of the island itself, OF COURSE it's fantastic.

I'm going to the Keys the week of Thanksgiving and making notes. There's an El Siboney actually on Key West and Chokoloskee is 90 miles almost due north of Key West while Naples is 110 miles due North. I don't find an El Siboney in either of those places.

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Originally posted by trapper189:

quote:

2) El Siboney. It's a hole-in-the-wall Cuban restaurant, 90-miles north of the island itself, OF COURSE it's fantastic.

I'm going to the Keys the week of Thanksgiving and making notes. There's an El Siboney actually on Key West and Chokoloskee is 90 miles almost due north of Key West while Naples is 110 miles due North. I don't find an El Siboney in either of those places.

El Siboney is in the older part of Key West. It's off the beaten path.
I stayed at The Southernmost Inn on United St. and it wasn't that far of a walk. That said, I went there and wasn't thrilled. My food was warm at best and I could tell some of it had been sitting in a warmer for a while.
Stay away from the normal tourist places i.e. Hard Rock and places like that.
OP, Alonzos Oyster bar is another great place I forgot about.
So many places down there that are good.

My favorite restaurant in Key West is Hogfish, on the far east side. It's well away from the main tourist area, but it's near where you'll be staying. (Only about a mile and a half away, so it's definitely walkable.)

http://www.hogfishbar.com/

quote:

Originally posted by joatmonv:

quote:

Originally posted by trapper189:

quote:

2) El Siboney. It's a hole-in-the-wall Cuban restaurant, 90-miles north of the island itself, OF COURSE it's fantastic.

I'm going to the Keys the week of Thanksgiving and making notes. There's an El Siboney actually on Key West and Chokoloskee is 90 miles almost due north of Key West while Naples is 110 miles due North. I don't find an El Siboney in either of those places.

El Siboney is in the older part of Key West. It's off the beaten path.
I stayed at The Southernmost Inn on United St. and it wasn't that far of a walk. That said, I went there and wasn't thrilled. My food was warm at best and I could tell some of it had been sitting in a warmer for a while.
Stay away from the normal tourist places i.e. Hard Rock and places like that.
OP, Alonzos Oyster bar is another great place I forgot about.
So many places down there that are good.

Oh wow. Sometimes I can be incredibly dense. The restaurant is 90 miles north of Cuba, not Key West.

https://goo.gl/photos/bNKePGekUNJJJErMA

See if this works. OP, this is from Willie T's earlier this year. They have live music everyday.
More towards the West side on Duval Street. Irish Kevin's is another place for music.

quote:

Originally posted by Sigmund:
Will we be able to do ocean stuff like snorkeling?

We're thinking about using United frequent fliers miles to skip winter for a week, will probably stay here to built up Marriott points:

http://www.marriott.com/hotels...ott-beachside-hotel/

Very tentative plan is fly into EYW and NOT get a rental car. 1) Will the water be warm, and 2) Can we get around w/o a car?

1. That Marriott is not in the best KW location, it is at the "main entrance" to KW and pretty heavy traffic. Most of what you would want to do in KW will be at the opposite end of the island. Not that it is a bad hotel, just location is not prime. You wont be walking anywhere from your hotel. From your hotel to "down town" is about 4 miles, to the ocean (Smathers Beach) is also about 4 miles. You will be a 1 mile from the ocean via Roosevelt Blvd. And even if you like to walk, the walk to down town is sort of "locals only", strip plazas, marinas and gas stations, nothing to see. On good note, it looks like most of the road construction may be completed, that area around the Marriot was all tore up and impossible to get around. Take a look at Google Earth to see what I am speaking about.

2. Water temp, really depends on what you consider "warm", but Dec is pretty nice and the water has not cooled down a lot from summer, even us "locals" still will swim with out full wet suits!

3. December is one of those months in the Keys will it can be spectacular or blowing 30kts. If you get down there just after a blow, water will be like pea soup. It really is hit/miss, December is when we really start getting those weak cold front that just have enough energy to move through end they end up being wind events. But even if a "cold front" moves through KW is really nice then to walk around. I know this does not help but I have seen December be perfect the whole month one year and the next year the wind never stops.

Of course you can always Uber or cab it to the good areas, its only 4 or 5 miles. Hope that helps. Let me know if I can answer any specific questions.

Everyone else hit the high points. I would encourage you to try El Siboney it is very good! (I know I'm the 4th person to recommend it but it is REALLY good.)

Thanks for the replies. We may not stay at that hotel, but it'll be one of the Marriott chain to maintain premiere status in 2018

I'm also considering flying int Miami and renting a car. I want to visit the NAS plus drive the bridge that Ah-Nuld attacked in "True Lies."