Key West Question

dshrawder

Has anyone stayed at the Westin? 

Also, if we fly to Key West, will we have to rent a car, even if we stay in Old Town?  Are there taxi's available to take us back to the airport if we opt to not rent a car?  Neither of us will be the age to rent a car and I read it is a pain to park in Key West anyways... any advice is appreciated.

Also, is Key West super expensive to eat and do things??

hz80408

I'm excited to see the responses, as DH and I have thought about giong to the Keys for our 1yr anniversary since we have a friends wedding there the weekend after our anniversary.

From what I've heard, there is a moderate range of places and prices to stay and eat at. 

Sorry this isn't much help!

[Deleted User]

We were just there this past June for our two year anniversary.

Click "Our Website" above my siggy pic for our reivew and pics. That should answer some of your questions.

No, it is not necessary to rent a car in KW.

dshrawder

Monkeygirl18 - So, the beaches in Key West are not very pretty?

Ana_2985

No you won't need to rent a car. It's also not super expensive to eat and do things in Key West, though I'm sure you could find some more expensive options if you wanted to.

The beaches in Key West are not natural. The water is very calm so seaweed builds up along the shore. Overall, the beaches aren't as nice as the west coast of FL or even Fort Lauderdale/Miami beaches. But if you're just looking to lay around on the beach it's fine. You still have nice white sand, palm trees, and pretty blue green water. 

ETA: The name of one of the "bigger"/more popular beaches is Smathers Beach I think.

Islamorada14

You definitely won't need or want a car if you're staying in Old Town.  It is fun, however, to rent a scooter or bikes for at least a day to explore the town quickly.  If you plan on going to Ft. Zachary Taylor or Stock Island the scooter will come in very handy.  Ft. Zach was so not worth the walk IMO, but I might have enjoyed it if we'd gone there by scooter.

Most beaches in the Keys are small and manmade.  South Beach (southern end of Duval) is my favorite beach in Key West, although it is very small.  I really prefer to get out on the water rather than sit on a beach.  Danger Charters and Seabago do great full day trips that include snorkeling and kayaking.  Fury Catamarans does a full power adventure trip that includes jetski, parasailing, and snorkeling.  Some of the boat companies will throw in a free sunset cruise if you book a full day trip.

Key West can be really expensive or fairly reasonable depending on what you want to do and where/when you eat.  We always stay at a B&B, so we fill up on breakfast for free and then have a late lunch (Southernmost Beach Cafe, Sunset Pier, and Schooner Wharf Bar are places we always go for a reasonably priced lunch with great views of the water). Sometimes we'll do happy hour instead of a full dinner to save money.  Alonzos Oyster Bar has a great happy hour menu from 4-6 pm and we often get some cheap late night pizza at Upper Crust Pizzaria.  For a nice dinner, I love Nine One Five on Duval, however dinner entrees run about $30, which is pretty typical for restaurants in Key West.

[Deleted User]

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_honeymoon_key-west-question?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:11Discussion:f1d5845e-9635-49a7-842f-70b8966a435cPost:cca5c724-05d1-4e53-b252-5443c45545f8">Re: Key West Question</a>:
[QUOTE]Monkeygirl18 - So, the beaches in Key West are not very pretty?
Posted by dshrawder[/QUOTE]

Not really. They are coral not sugary white sand. Very hard on the feet, very few hotels have a private beach and if they do it's very tiny so if your looking for a lay on the beach and relax type of vacay KW is not the place. KW is known of history and above all else, Duval St. (which btw is awesome).

[Deleted User]

Oh and as far as expense wise. We spent 4 nights 5 days there. The hotel room was 2k (we splurged as it was our anniversary) and we spent at least that much in food and booze (did not splurge there it's just pretty pricey).

Kristin789

>>We spent 4 nights 5 days there. The hotel room was 2k (we splurged as it was our anniversary) and we spent at least that much in food and booze (did not splurge there it's just pretty pricey).

This is exactly why Floridians don't go to KW anymore.  We can go to Western Europe for 10 days for $4000, so when we want to go to the beach, we go to Sarasota or Clearwater or St. Pete Beach on the West Coast, or St. Aug or Daytona or Melbourne on the East Coast.  Beaches are better and the costs are much less...

RemyAlexandra

I stayed at the Westin for Spring break my freshman year, so 2007.  It's nice, but the room I stayed in was nothing special...just a view of the pool that was insanely loud.  However, you won't be going during Spring Break time, so I doubt you'll have that problem.  It is right next to Mallory Square, which is great for sunsets.

Definitely don't need to rent a car.  You can walk to Duval where everything goes on.  If the hotel doesn't have a shuttle to Smathers, you can get a taxi pretty cheap I'm sure.  Like PPs said, the beaches aren't true beaches.  If you want gorgeous beaches and still a relaxing place with good restaurants, you might want to look at some other places in Florida.

On the West Coast, Naples, Marco Island, Anna Maria Island, and Fort Meyers are all good options.  On the East Coast, Jupiter, Palm Beach, Singer Island, and Delray are great. Those places have true beaches.

GL!