Four Essentials Activities To Do In Key West, Florida (Kayak! Sail! Learn! Drive!)

By Delaina Dixon | July 29, 2021 | Travel

Ready to travel again, Divas? We’ve got four essential activities to do in Key West, Fla., where we just enjoyed a weekend getaway. The weather is so warm, the sun is so bright and the water is stunning hues of blue: you’ll love every minute!

Explore In A Kayak

How you can see the native sea life, plants and birds of the Florida Keys up close? Key West Eco Tours offers a guided kayak tour in Key West through the mangroves’ winding tropical waters. You travel the two-hour trek with an experienced guide, and bottled water, all equipment, instruction and camera dry-bags are included in your tour. Since my traveling companion wasn’t quite ready for this highly active thing to do in Key West, we did a few loops in a tandem kayak near Eco Tours’ loading dock. We also had an amazing conversation with Liv Castillo. This college-bound Diva plans to study marine biology, so she is spending her summer days hauling in the kayaks and maintaining them. Liv knows a lot about our bodies of water and why we should be working much harder to keep them from eroding. We should all make the effort.

Visit The Home Of Literary Greatness

One thing you must do when you visit Key West is to take a tour of The Hemingway Home and Museum. It’s where famed writer Ernest M. Hemingway lived and wrote in the 1930s. He and then-wife Pauline remodeled late 1800s Spanish colonial, adding one of its best features: Key West’s first in-ground pool.

As a writer, I felt truly inspired to spend a few moments in Hemingway’s private second-story studio outside the main home. This is where he wrote daily. Hemingway completed some of his greatest works in Key West, like Death in The Afternoon, The Green Hills of Africa and The Snows of Kilimanjaro. And then there are the famed six-toed cats that roam freely on the grounds! Tours are available (cash-only admission). Our guide was so knowledgeable, it felt like Hemingway was sitting in a corner and feeding her information (and maybe his ghost is!).

Take A Sunset Sail

catamaran sunset sail with Sebago Watersports

One of the best ways to see the sunset in Key West is from the water! We chose the Champagne Sunset Sail with Sebago Watersports. Setting off a catamaran with Sebago’s operations manager AJ, we sailed around the harbor on a perfect evening to experience dusk. Drinks and appetizers are included in the trip (depending on which package you book). We loved the sangria! Some tours also offer live music featuring local musicians strumming out Island Rock. It was the perfect way to end our way-too-short getaway. When we return to do more activities in Key West, we plan on booking a private tour with AJ, who is a wealth of knowledge about boating (he does work on the vessels himself) and the town’s island vibe.

Drive The Keys!

Key West is part of the Florida Keys, a string of tropical islands known as an archipelago. They stretch about 120 miles from Key West’s southern tip up to Key Largo. It’s a magnificent drive with sparkling blue water lining both sides of your ride and sleepy little towns in between. One place you must stop for lunch is Bitton Bistro Cafe in Islamorada. Our own ImageGal discovered this little gem of a French bakery, which has the most incredible crustless quiche — order the mushroom! Its generous portion comes with a fresh green salad, delicious. Tell ’em the DivaGals sent you — bon appetit!

There are so many activities to do in Key West (like the sunset celebration in Mallory Square), you can’t do it all in one 48-hour trip! Plan your stay for few more days. And take advantage of the Florida Keys and Key West travel guide so you can add even more adventures to your trip!

photo credit: Instagram, Amanne Media