Things To See & Do In Key West

The Ernest Hemingway Home & Museum - One of America's most famous authors, Ernest Hemingway owned this home from 1931 until his suicide in 1961. Whilst living here he wrote such famous works as "A Farewell To Arms" and "To Have And Have Not" although his short story best known to all anglers "The Old Man And The Sea" was actually written whilst he was living in Cuba. Whilst he lived in Key West, Hemingway spent many days and weeks hunting the giant tuna and marlin that inhabit these waters. The Hemingway Home & Museum is home to approximately 60 cats. About half of the cats are polydactil which means that they have six toes on their front feet. Hemingway was given a six toed cat by a ship's captain and it is believed that many of the cats that live in the museum grounds are descendants of that original cat.

The Harry S Truman Little White House -  Built in 1890 the house was originally used by senior officers from the naval base. In 1918 the inventor Thomas Edison lived there for six months whilst designing weapons for the war effort. Beginning in November 1946,President Truman used this house for 175 days as his Winter White House during his administration of 1945 -1953. He spent 11 working vacations here and the building became known as the Little White House. President Dwight Eisenhower used the house for meetings in December 1955 and January 1956 while he recovered from a heart attack. President John F. Kennedy used this site for a summit meeting with British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan on March 26, 1961 just 23 days before the Bay of Pigs. On November 26,1962 he returned following the Cuban missile crisis for an inspection tour. Today the house is owned by the state of Florida and it is open for visits by the general public.

The Key West Shipwreck Museum -  In the mid 1800's Key West was one of the richest cities in the United States. That was the golden age of sail and over 100 ships per day passed by Key West on their journeys throughout the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico and the mainland United States. The waters around Key west were known as some of the most dangerous in the world and on average one boat per week would wreck somewhere along the Florida Reef. Key West's wealth came from salvaging from those wrecked ships. The so-called "wreckers" would watch the reef day and night from observation towers up to 90 feet high, as well as patrolling the reef in their own small boats. The goods salvaged from the wrecks would later be sold at auction in Key West with the wrecking courts awarding anywhere from 25 to 50 percent of the profit to the wreckers, depending on how dangerous and time-consuming the salvage operation had been. Eventually, as navigation methods got better, the number of wrecks was significantly reduced and the wrecking courts were finally disbanded in 1921, bringing an end to an era that saw huge wealth in Key West. Today you can relive the era of the wreckers at the Key West Shipwreck Museum. Many of the exhibits at the museum were retrieved from the wreck of the Isaac Allerton which was caught in a hurricane in August 1856. Because the ship had sunk in such deep water, the Key West wreckers were unable to salvage all the cargo. But the cargo they did salvage resulted in a payoff of over $50,000 making the Isaac Allerton the richest wreck in Key West history. Over 130 years later, in 1985, the wreck of the Isaac Allerton was rediscovered by a group of local divers. Today you can relive the days of the Isaac Allerton and see the original cargo from the ship at the Key West Shipwreck HISTOREUM® Museum.

Key West Aquarium -  Key West was severely hit by the great depression of the 1930's. The US government recognized that Key West, with its great climate and location, would make a wonderful tourist destination. The Key West Aquarium was one of the largest in the world when it was built between 1932 and 1934. It was originally an open air aquarium and nowadays it is twice the size of the original and a mixture of indoor and outdoor exhibits. The Aquarium features a wide variety of fish including grouper, moray eels, barracuda, tropical fish, tarpon, sharks, parrotfish and much, much more. During your tour, you will even be able to pet a live shark!

Key West Butterfly & Nature Conservatory -  The Key West Butterfly & Nature Conservatory has been voted by The People's Choice Awards the #1 Attraction in Key West for the past four years in a row. It is home to hundreds of butterflies and exotic colorful birds from around the world. The Conservatory is truly a magical experience filled with lush tropical vegetation and cascading waterfalls, all under a climate-controlled, glass-enclosed habitat.

The Conch Tour Train -  OK, it's not a "real" train but it's a great way to see the sights of Key West. It is one of Florida's most popular attractions and has delighted over 15 million guests since its first trip in 1958. The 90 minute tour takes in all of the major places of interest whilst touring around the old town. The commentary from the Conch Train "engineers" provides many fascinating stories to pad out the basic facts.

Water Sports - The climate and geographic position of Key West make it an ideal center for all types of water sports. Snorkeling, scuba diving, parasailing and jet skiing are all popular. For the less energetic there are cruises aboard sailing boats and motor yachts (both normal and glass-bottomed) to visit the reef, the Dry Tortugas or simply a romantic sunset cruise. Some relevant web sites as follows :
Glass Bottom Boat
Snorkel / Parasail / Glass Bottom Boat
Dry Tortugas High Speed Catamaran / Sailing Catamaran
All of the above....and more

Sloppy Joe's -  We couldn't finish this section without mentioning Key West's most famous bar, Sloppy Joe's. It's been here since 1933 and in the current building since 1937. Walk in and you are instantly aware of the tangled history of Sloppy Joe's, Key west and Ernest Hemingway. With live entertainment from noon to 2 am, 365 days of the year, a menu of reasonably priced food and a retail shop with more than 300 souvenirs this is definitely more than a bar, it's a Key West experience not to be missed.