In September 2019, over Labor Day weekend, Ben’s mom held a beautiful destination wedding in Key West, FL. We helped coordinate getting all of Ben’s siblings (6 of them!) to Key West and enjoyed a fun visit with family. The last time all siblings were together was our wedding in 2010! For more on our flights and drive and where we stayed, see here.
Favorite Activities
Smathers Beach Park
Smathers beach is free and has very calm waters. It is a popular spot for families due to its bathrooms and watersport rental gear stands and was the location of the wedding we attended. We didn’t actually get in the water here, but the sand was soft, the ocean sounds were glorious, and the beach was beautiful.
Mallory Square Celebration
This is the main downtown area. At sunset, there is a nightly celebration. The kids had a blast watching the gorgeous sunset, eating some key lime pie, and watching jugglers, fire dancers, and other street performers. There are tons of restaurant options and shops to purchase souvenirs. It felt a little touristy, but we enjoyed it. After all, we are tourists!
Snorkel Tour
At the hotel, we picked a company out of a brochure and took the whole family out on a boat adventure with Sunset Watersports. We met up at a marina, and the boat took us about 30 minutes off the coast to a reef area. The cost was $40 per person (free for kids). Ben and I have been on cooler snorkel adventures in Maui, but this trip was nice because it was cheap and we felt that due to the cost, we wouldn’t feel grumpy if our kiddos prevented us from being in the water the whole time.
There were several cool schools of fish and jellyfish floating around. The boat was a great place for a grown-up to hang back with 1-year-old Ellie. They also provided snacks, drinks, and had additional things to purchase on the boat. I think this is where Ellie’s love of piña coladas first started.
Butterfly house
The Key West Butterfly and Nature Conservatory was a fun stop. There are hundreds of butterflies all around and many will land on or near you. There is also an art gallery and a small section near the end that shows the metamorphosis process. Carter was really interested in this area. We stayed for around 2 hours, including the gift shop. The cost is $11-$15 a person (3 and under free)
Southern Most Point
I have capital-F Feelings about this point. It is a very popular photo stop to show you’ve been to Key West. I don’t understand why people line up to take their picture in front of it. It is not even the Southernmost point of Key West, let alone the continental U.S, or the U.S. as a whole (Hawaii!) We took our group picture. You can do it too. It’s free and located on the south side near to the Butterfly house.
Truman Water Park
At the Truman Waterfront, our kids enjoyed the fun splash park. This play area had several water slides and two fun dry playgrounds. Ben went for a long run around the island during this time. I didn’t participate in playing, but I did enjoy reading my book and sitter-vising (supervising from a sitting position)
Pool Time at the Hotel
Both our kids love swimming, and we spent several hours swimming at the pools. Be sure to pack goggles and dive sticks. We also like to pack multiple swimsuits if we know it’s a swim-heavy trip.
Other Activities
Other sites we didn’t get to visit on this trip:
Favorite Restaurants
Two Friends–This restaurant was right near the main downtown area and walking distance from Ben’s mom’s timeshare. The food was pricey but delicious and worth it for big portions of seafood.
El Siboney–This yummy Cuban restaurant had huge portions of large steak and pork with plantains, tostones, kids meal options, and lots of other choices. Near the butterfly house.
Hurricane Hole– close to the hotel on the East side, this restaurant had a good beer selection, reasonable fish and shrimp options, and a pirate-themed playground for the kids! Fun!
Bagatelle At this upscale restaurant located in an old mansion, we had a delicious brunch with the family after the wedding. Bananas foster french toast and lobster benedict were winners!
Other meals and snacks: When we first arrived, we made a shopping trip at Publix for groceries. This helped us cut down on costs since we ate breakfast at the hotel and had frozen pizzas one evening for dinner. We also stocked up on snacks and drinks for grown-ups and kids. It was great that we splurged a little on the hotel because we spent a lot of time there at the pool and in the room playing games.
Final Thoughts
Although a little inconvenient to get to, We enjoyed our visit to Key West and had a great time. Since Ben’s mom continues to own a timeshare there, we will definitely be making a repeat trip sometime soon!
