Belated trip report

This trip report is VERY belated (trip was early October), but I wanted to do it because I got such good help in the forums before we went.

We stayed at the Key West B%26amp;B, the Popular House. It was quite nice and the location was great. The only drawback was that they didn%26#39;t serve breakfast until 8:30, so you don%26#39;t have time to partake if you%26#39;re taking a 9 p.m. snorkling cruise.

We ate at a lot of great restaurants -- didn%26#39;t have a bad meal. Here%26#39;s a list:

Croissants de France: amazing pastry!

The Cafe: vegetarian restaurant with interesting dishes and HUGE portions.

Santiago%26#39;s Bodega: definitely worth the short walk off of Duval.

Ernest%26#39;s Cafe: IMO, the best key lime pie and drink (Rum Runner) of the trip

Finnegan%26#39;s Wake

Conch Republic Seafood Co.

Sarabeth%26#39;s: very nice breakfast

I would definitely recommend going to the bar at the top of the La Concha hotel to see the sunset. Gorgeous views and so much less crowded than Mallory Square. We got front-row seats and hung out for a couple of hours. (I recommend their mango daquiri.)

My favorite thing we did was going to the Key West Butterfly %26amp; Nature Conservatory. Utterly peaceful -- relaxing music, beautiful foliage and scores of colorful butterflies flitting around. Sometimes they%26#39;d even land on you. There were colorful birds, too. I could have stayed there all day. Seems a world away from the craziness of Duval Street.

I enjoyed the Hemingway House so much more than I thought I would. None of us were fans of Hemingway (we basically went just to say we%26#39;d been and to see the six-toed cats), but our tour guide Diamond Dave made it extremely entertaining. It made me want to read some Hemingway.

Also enjoyed Nancy Forrester%26#39;s Secret Garden. (I love plants, animals and flowers, in case you hadn%26#39;t gathered.) Seemed very secret while we were there -- the only person we saw was someone working there.

We went to the Key West cemetary to see the wacky gravestones, and that was the one part of the trip that was below par (well, besides Delta leaving my suitcase in Key West on the tarmac and then getting it a day after we got back, soaking wet). A bit of a waste of time IMO.

I wish we had been able to stay longer -- there were a lot of things we wanted to see and do that we didn%26#39;t get around to. Next time, I guess!

Belated trip report

Thanks for the report. Nancy%26#39;s secret Garden is a great place.

PJ

Belated trip report

sounds like you guys had a wonderful and relaxing trip.

Thanks for all the great info!

sourismom - thanks for the report.

I really like reading reports because it ALWAYS makes me want to go back there - NOW. Getting a report of what different people like makes me want to get out of my normal rut and go see different things.

I like to get a view of Key West from anothers perspective. We%26#39;ve never been to the butterfly conservatory, nor have we been to Nancy%26#39;s secret garden. (I know why - I always feel like it%26#39;ll be a waste of time {or worse I%26#39;ll love it and want to go everytime we are there ;-)}. I do like the cemetary. Don%26#39;t know why just think it%26#39;s a cool place to go . . . .

Your last paragraph sums up Key West perfectly. Don%26#39;t try and see EVERYTHING, save some things for the next time.

Regarding Nancy%26#39;s Secret Garden, get there while you can! Though I haven%26#39;t heard of any specific development plans, it is located on some seriously prime real estate - who knows how long this treasure will be there?