Key West

[Sophie]

I read on another post that some people don't like Key West as a port of call. :mad: Now I'm very curious. I've never been there, but will be going this December on the Rhapsody. I'd like to have some input from other posters who've been there. Why do you like or dislike going to Key West? Opinions please...:)

[lscole]

I was at Key West in January. Went to Hemingways house, shopped in town and had lunch at Sloppy Joes. I wished I had more time there. If you go there take the trolley not the train. The trolley has stops that you can get off and back on. The train doesn't give you that option. I would love to go back there. But I'm not fond of the western itinerary. I wish they would occasionally put KW on the eastern route.

[FinelyCruising]

I don't know why people don't like it. I love it. If every cruise I went on went there I'd be happy. It's lush and tropical, it has history, excitement, plenty of shopping, beautiful water, and it's great.

[brn2crz]

Hi Sophie....Hot here in Texas today Huh ??

.

Our first cruise to stop at KW,I told myself that I would not even get off the ship in KW,but of course I did.At first glance,I did not see anything that we could do,due to the time constraints that the Rhapsody is in dock there.It seemed if you were not into the BAR CRAWL, there wasn't much to do.I really wasn't into the Hemmingway thing,or the Conch train....So we walked around,checked out the town,and some of us rented the little electric cars and had a blast.We also did the sunset thing at Mallory square,and that was pretty fun.Upon looking further into excursions this time,there are a couple of sunset sails that we are looking at doing,one specificly is the Catamaran Champagne sunset sail...45pp.We are also gonna go to the shipwreck museum,and the lighthouse if we have time.It is a very quaint town,(that looses some of it quaintness when the ships are in).As long as there is not one of their funky festivals going on,I expect to have a good time!!

[Sophie]

Hi Sophie....Hot here in Texas today Huh ?

 

 

Yes! VERY HOT! :(

[Bubba]

We love going to Key West. Lots of interesting places and interesting people. Good places to eat and drink. Sloppy Joes, Hogs Breath. etc. Be sure to get a conch fritter from the little stand outside the aquarium. Eat supper at Billys and go to Mallory square at sunset. Chocolate covered key lime pie for desert sold at several places. The Keyo sandle shop has great stuff. Duval street after dark is loud and wild. Lots of T-shirt and tourist junk shops. Get a tempory tatoo.

[brn2crz]

lol bubba

 

I think I am going to do that.My niece got an iguana on here ankle last year,it lasted about 3 weeks.Simple way to sow some of those wild oats of younger years.

 

And oh yes....gotta do the chocholate dipped KLP yuummmm.

[pmvogelalex]

the 7-11 grandeur cruise calls at key west

also rosie odonells gay family cruise calls at key west{NCL DAWN}

I predict that Key west, our favorite florida town, will be even Gayer than usual!

[klingoncruiser]

O.K. Let me put in the negitive report. This is why many of us do NOT like going to Key West.

 

In the winter months, you leave Galveston for a "Western Caribbean" cruise. They set sail usually under cool (sometimes cold) and sometimes rainy conditions. Then they proceed to sail a day and a half to Key West, getting there about 3:00 at the dock. It is not uncommon for the temperatures to be in the low 70's. Then they stay until late so you can party in town. The ocean this time of year is a bit cool for swimming and there in almost no snorkeling there anytime of the year.

Finally they leave and head for another day at sea, this time finally leaving the 60's and 70's behind to head BACK across the Gulf to the Caymans.

 

It is becoming a slow burn for those of us in Texas and places far north who want OUT of the cold or cool.

 

O.K. I have been to K.W. 4 times now. The first was O.K. The second time boreing, and did not get off the third or fourth trip. I go because of the Rapsody, the most fun and well run RCCL ship I have been on. It never fails to be a great time. Yes, I wish they would lose K.W. but despite all the grumbling from those on board the ship, these boards seems to get only positive comments. If you have not been to K.W. then it will be great. IMHO it would be better to go to the Caribbean on this cruise as advertized. (BTW, they grumbled about Belize and if rumors are to be believed, that is why K.W. is there. I for one love Belize. But to each their own.)

 

I will now don my kevlar and hunker down for the return fire. ;)

[Doc'sWife]

We were just there two weeks ago on the Rhapsody. We had never been there, so we researched the area. Started off just strolling the streets. Then we stopped off at Sloppy Joe's and had one (to share). Then made our way to Margaritaville. Walked all the way back to a wonderful bar on the water and watched the awesome sunset. After that, we took a bicycle taxi to 801 Bourbon and watched the Drag Queen show. We had never been to one, and just thought it would be interesting to go to one - once. There were tons of people there for the 9 pm show from the ship. All in all, it was quite good !! After that we just walked back down the main "drag" and popped in a few "adult beverage" places. Made it back to the ship with about 1 hr. to spare. Sat around the pool deck until the 11:30 pm BBQ Sail Away Party. It was great !

 

There are a lot of things to do and see in Key West. Take the tours if you are with family, as the "main drag" is mainly bars, t-shirt shops, and restaurants. I can see kids getting bored there very easily. Oh, and it was HOT !!!

 

Enjoy !! We did :-)

[Cruising89143]

Key West is a nice port of call IMHO. The beaches there are not much to talk about as they have to truck in the sand. Other than that there is plenty to do as others have mentioned above. RCI has a great pier to dock by the Key West Hilton. I love to sail away around six in the evening when the locals and tourists gather at Mallory Square for the sunset activities. Kind of a festive mood.

[Sophie]

Thanks everyone for all the great info! :) We haven't quite decided what to do while we're there. Maybe Ripley's Believe it or Not and some shopping, walking and lots of sightseeing. And of course I plan on trying one of those key limes on a stick! :D Are there still any five-toed cats at Hemmingway House? :eek: My daughter wants to know.

 

klinkoncruiser, I hope you don't get any return fire! After all, I did ask for the positive as well as the negative opinions. :)

[sailor moon]

We were there last August and loved it. It is a funky town with a lot of character. We did the RCCL excusion stargazing tour on an America's Cup replica sailing ship that left in the evening. We sailed away from Key West and enjoyed a astronomy tour given by an expert. Our DS (10) had a blast being on a sailing ship and seeing all the stars and learning their names. :)

[Gradelady]

There are those of us who are arriving on the Enchantment which means a morining till 1:30 visit to Key West. I don't believe this is the best time to visit. I would love to be there at nite but oh well...in my case, I would just as soon stay on the ship!

[cplyons]

My wife and I rented scooters last time there (Rhapsody out of Galveston), and had a total blast. We toured the whole island, saw everything, parked wherever we wanted, and made it back in time to have a drink at Sloppy Joe's before re-boarding. Don't know your situation, but this is an easy ride: I am in my late forties (and not in the best of shape, to put it delicately), but being reasonably careful (and always wearing the provided helmet), found it made Key West a fun visit.

 

Chris L

[FlorenceItaly]

Gradelady - We were on the Enchantment last November, and loved Key West. Please get off the ship, and enjoy. You'll have plenty of time.

Next trip to Key West is on the Rhapsody of the Seas. We chose this ship specifically because we wanted to go back to Key West and be there in the evening, to experience the nightlife....but we did have plenty of fun during the day. You will love the Enchantment. Enjoy!

 

Marie

[unkfrank]

Ooooooh! First post :) Personally, I love Key West - been there at least once a year for the last 4 or 5 years as part of the Parrothead National Phlocking, Meeting of the Minds (will be there again this year), and going as part of the Majesty cruise on 9/6 (another Ooooooh - first cruise :) ) Anyways, I love KW because of the local atmosphere. My first couple of times there I did the touristy stuff, but each time I go back, I'd rather find a locals spot and spend time there and experience the local's flavor.

 

Frank

[BEVEROO]

We have only been there once and had a bad experience. I would like to go back though and and give it another chance. We got off the ship and took a bicycle taxi to Margaritaville to buy some things for our friends who are avid "parrot heads". After that we were just walking around taking in the sites when a person selling timeshares approached us. He wouldn't take no for an answer so we just went back to the ship (everytime we went into someplace he was there waiting for us - you'd think he would have bugged someone else). We did have a nice quiet day aboard ship though as everyone else was off sight seeing or doing whatever. We also did get to see a whole bunch of off shore racers as their pits were right by the pier. We would have liked to see more of Key West, so maybe next time. Have fun!

Bev

[DCman22]

I was thinking of booking the Fury snorkel excursion in KW - any comments or reviews? Also, is that one morning, afternoon, or either?

Thanks

[bambam]

go here for a report on our stay at Key West in May...it might help..

 

http://boards2.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=31864

 

:D

[coccodog]

We had a great time last year,took the couch tour and it was very nice,they have a $ 8.00 trolley that hits all the hotels and goes around the whole island. We are going to go to one of the hotels and go swimming at there beach..would like to fly to the keys and stay for a week...

[JMG]

We love Key West. So much so that we left ship and drove down to Key West for a 5 day stay then drove back to Miami for the flight home. A super vacation! http://www.keywest.com has lots of ideas for things to do. One stop we did the Jungle tour. http://www.jungletour.com We connected on the Meet and Mingle board and 5 couples went on this tour and we had a great time!

We enjoy just walking around. Another favorite is to go to the piers, get a refreshing drink and just look out at the water. If you are there in the evening hours, the Sunset celebration is a big attraction with all sorts of stuff going on. Cat trick, dog tricks, sidewalk vendors and the Star - the setting sun. Since we have seen so many sunsets on the various ships we found it funny to hear people applaud the sunset - but they do! I guess not everyone has had the opportunity to see the sun set over water.

For us - the temps are great. Coming from the north, we are already into warmer weather. One time it was actually rather hot in Key West and we had to seek out some shade.

 

One final note - at the Keywest.com site - you can find out if your ship docks or tenders at Key West.

[tadjr]

Unless you're into the bars and Duval Crawl, get off the main drag to enjoy some of the charm of Key West. This is one of my favorite quick getaways. Lots of us from work go down there just for the day. Take a stroll off the main drag and enjoy the lush tropical plants and scenery. Look for the chickens and cats, two of the "wild" animals of the island. Key West is also a good place to get off the ship to enjoy some local cuisine. They have some great Cuban restaurants. Nothing fancy, but good food. Check out http://www.roadfood.com/Reviews/Overview.aspx?RefID=280 for some info on El Siboney. Definitely a great spot for lunch. Here are some other reviews of the place.

http://www.10bestcityguides.com/details.process/OID_0D9A56E1/MID_365/CID_1/SID_203/BID_46141/

http://www.activediner.com/restaurant/homepage.cfm?CID=162494

[lbrooks34]

Anyone ever dive in Key West while cruising?

 

Lori

[tland13]

We just returned from the Rhapsody and I only recommend this excursion if you are a very strong swimmer and have experience snorkling. I have snorkeled in Hawaii and this is rougher than that! The waves come up over your snorkel gear and you will take in a lot of sea water if you have never been. You have to get underneath the catamaran and scoot down metal steps to get off and on the boat. The water is not as clear as in Grand Cayman or Cozumel. Our youngest son, age 11, started to hyperventilate due to the amount of salt water he was taking in...and he is a strong swimmer but never snorkeled other than in the pool. After 30 exhasting minutes, you get banged up trying to get back into the boat. I asked the captain if the water was a little rough and he replied it is calmer than it usually is.... Great crew, helped my son get back into the boat and he did come back out with us....my opinion...save the snorkeling for Grand Cayman and Cozumel