Miami & Key West ( begining of Sept) - London

Hi there

We are planning a bit of a trip , New York, Washington, Miami and Key West...

I need a bit of help on Miami and Key west as we have never been before ..what can we expect ... we only have three days in Miami and four daysin Key West ... is it worth Staying two nights in Key west and two nights somewhere else along the keys ... are distances far ??

Miami %26amp; Key West ( begining of Sept) - London

Wow what a variety of cities. Sounds like a great trip.

Key West is great and you can see most of it in two days but if you want to relax at the end of your trip you may want to just stay in one place. There is plenty to do in Key West to keep busy if you go snorkeling, dry tortugas trip, conch train tour (start with that to get an overview of Key West), there are art galleries, museums, etc. Plus all the little shops to explore. Many restaurants and bars to try out.

There are four major cities in the keys, Key Largo, Islamorada, Marathon and Key West. When I say major cities I don%26#39;t mean like Miami, I mean they are bigger than some of the other places in the keys. They each have their own thing to offer. From Miami it will take about 3 to 4 hours to Key West unless you make lots of stops at shops, restaurants, bars, etc. There are lots of small keys in between the large ones.

You may want to decide when you get to Key West what you want to do. You should not have any trouble finding accomodations at that time of year and everything will be cheaper as it is off season.

Have a great vacation.

Miami %26amp; Key West ( begining of Sept) - London

Hello tamroo,

Are you planning on staying in Miami or Miami Beach. There is a bid difference. Miami is great for business and Miami Beach is generally considered best for ';holiday';.

If you are looking for total relaxation (cut off shorts and tee shirts) then Key West is perfect. If you%26#39;re into beaches (the beaches in the Keys are marginal), night life, lots of great restaurants and such, Miami Beach is the place. If it were me, I%26#39;d spend four days in South Beach (the southern part of Miami Beach) and three days in Key West. Having said that, assuming you are driving from Miami area to Key West, know that it%26#39;s a good four hour drive - but well worth it! Key West, like South Beach, are like no other areas in the US of A!

To answer you question, I%26#39;d go straight to Key West and stay there. If you like snorkeling, be sure and check out Looe Key National Marine Sanctuary. It%26#39;s absolutely beautiful!

Hope that helps!

Cheers!

Thanks Born with Wheels

Sounds like we are gonna have a lot of fun ...can%26#39;t wait to snorkel!!! ...the Keys sound amazing ... do you know anything about The Poker run ... we might be there over that weekend ..

SoBe Fun , ...we have planned three days in Miami and 4 in the Keys ...but I think we may stay a bit longer in Miami ... love good night life and the Keys maybe a bit quite in the off season .... we will leave the Keys for the unwind ...chilling part of the holiday ... a bit of a wind down ready for our flight back....

At the moment I can%26#39;t wait for a summer holiday ...it%26#39;s freezing in London at the moment ...snowing on my way into work this morning!!

Tam%26gt;

';Chilling in Key West'; during the Poker Run?

[noooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!]

Do check the specific schedule dates of the Poker Run and think twice and twice more about driving during that outing (drive the day before or after if you must participate).

The road to the Keys is ONE LANE mostly and the Poker Run involves TEN THOUSAND motorcycles. The premise of the poker run is that each participant STOPS at FIVE bars along the way to pick up a card to make a hand of poker.

Think%26gt; 10000 motorcycles + 5 bars + one lane of road + FIVE STOPS to DRINK...

Friday-Saturday, September 14 %26amp; 15, 2007

Traffic is - VERY SLOW GOING.

Best to leave the roadway to the motorcycles... it is difficult. it is dangerous to navigate all the bikes. Key West during Bike Weekends is really ';wild'; and not in any way ';quaint...';

Photos:

http://www.keyspokerrun.com/gallery.html

I live here and I play here - I do NOT drive a car to a bike weekend. If you are an accomplished motorcycle rider and want to rent a bike and do the run - it is a GREAT deal of fun. If not...

South Beach is a fun opportunity to relax and play.

AG

Good idea about staying longer in Miami. If you like action and party, you%26#39;ll be glad you stayed longer.

I assume you are staying somewhere in South Beach. It%26#39;s the southern most 2 miles or so of Miami Beach. You can walk to the fun areas so you don%26#39;t want or need a rental car (except to get to Key West). Parking so SoBe is pretty much velet only at some $US20 to $30 a night!

Hotels in South Beach between say 5th Street and 21st Street are all within SoBe and easy walking distance to clubs/restaurants/liquor stores/beach/shops/etc.

If you do have a car, and it%26#39;s your thing, check out Haulover Beach which is considered the best Clothing Optional Beach in the USA. It%26#39;s nine miles north of South Beach. I%26#39;ve met folks there from all over the world there.

Cheers!

I think I am going to leave the roads to the bikes on that weekend and ...rearrange things a bit so I get to chill out in the keys in the week and head back to South Beach before the weekend .... for a bit of a party! !

Don%26#39;t think I want to challenge thoses bikers in my little rent-a -car!

:) Happy Days !!

Even in the off season, you can always find a party on Duval Street in Key West. When making reservations, look at a map and make sure you are within walking distance to Duval Street. That will make your trip much more enjoyable and the nightlife much better. If you are within 6-7 blocks of Duval Street (I wouldn%26#39;t go too much further than that, and don%26#39;t stay at a big chain motel, there are too many nice B%26amp;B%26#39;s and inns) you will be happy indeed!

P.S. You may actually enjoy the nightlife more in Key West than Miami, mainly because it will be warm and you can walk home from the bars. Lovely!

Thanks DrDebi ... I like the idea of a little Inn .... ... a bit more intimate and friendly ,,,really looking forward to go!!