Top 10 Things to Do in Key West

Key West is one of Florida’s top tourist destinations. The island is only 5.95 square miles but has tons of attractions, including museums, shops, photo opps and restaurants and bars. Key West can also appeal to both families and solo travelers. In addition, it attracts students with its beautiful sightseeing, literary landmarks and plenty of free things to do. The team at essaywriter.nyc knows how important it is to find inexpensive things to do while traveling.

Here is a list of the top 10 things to do in Key West:

1. Watch the Sunset

Watching the sunset in Key West is a must-do for visitors and locals alike. It is rumored that Key West is one of the best places to see a green flash when the sun sets. There are a couple of options when looking for a place to watch the sunset.

One of the most popular places to watch from is Mallory Square. People flock to Mallory Square as the sun gets closer to the water. From Mallory Square, you have a great view to see the sunset over the ocean. The square is filled with street performers doing everything from escaping from a straitjacket upside down to performing tricks with dogs. There are also booth vendors selling jewelry and paintings and local delicacy fried conch. It’s an open area, and there is no charge to get in, but you might decide to tip the street performers a few dollars.

A more expensive option is to take a sunset cruise. Several ships sail from Key West at sunset, most decked out as pirate ships, with pirate costumed deckhands and wenches. Many serve dinner or a small snack and drink. You can help hoist the sail or interact with the in-character crew. There are also more romantic sunset cruises, sans pirates, that include champagne.

2. Shop on Duval Street

Shopping or just browsing along Duval Street is another must-do for visitors. Duval is the main street in Key West. It is lined with stores selling everything from rock n’ roll memorabilia to art and tacky t-shirts. You might have to shield children’s eyes from the hilarious, yet wildly inappropriate, t-shirts that are everywhere. There are also plenty of restaurants and bars lining the street, some very famous (Sloppy Joe’s) or owned by very famous people. Key West is famous for its wild chickens roaming the island, much to locals’ dismay, so there is a shop filled with all chicken-related items.

3. Take a Trolley or Train Tour

Taking one of the trolley or train tours is an excellent way to learn about the city’s rich history. You will most definitely be surprised by some of the historical significance of the island. Tour guides will inform you of the poets, authors, artists, singers and others who influenced the island. One entertaining story tells how Key West attempted seceding from the United States in 1982, as the appointed prime minister of The Conch Republic broke a stale loaf of Cuban bread over a naval officer’s head, declared war and then surrendered one minute later.

4. Visit the Southernmost Point

The Southernmost Point isn’t a place to spend all day, but it is definitely worth the walk for a great photo opp—and to know that you’re standing at the southernmost point in the continental United States. It is marked by a concrete monument made to resemble a buoy. The Conch Republic logo is painted at the top of the monument; underneath are the words “90 Miles to Cuba, Southernmost Point, Continental U.S.A., Key West, FL, Home of the Sun Set.”

5. Tour the Ernest Hemingway Home and Museum

Ernest Hemingway fell in love with Key West and lived and wrote in his home there for over 10 years. Tour guides give interesting narratives and answer questions. The experts from essaywriterfree.net know that the house is also famous for its cats, of which there are over 60. Hemingway was given a six-toed cat by a ship captain, and many of the cats are descendants of that cat and polydactyl, which means that they have extra toes. Even for those who aren’t big fans of Hemingway’s work, it’s still a great tour.

6. Go on a Pub Crawl

This activity is only for those over the age of 21. The pub crawl is a guided tour of the famous and entertaining bars of Key West. Some are walking tours and some are done by vehicular transport. Often called the “Duval Crawl,” you have the choice between a domestic beer or mixed drink at each bar, and you get a free t-shirt at the end.

7. Visit the Mel Fisher Maritime Heritage Museum

This museum houses numerous artifacts from different shipwrecks, including everything from old spoons to solid gold bars. Some date back to the 1600s, when the Nuestra Señora de Atocha sunk into the sea with 24 tons of silver bullion in 1038 ingots, 180,00 pesos of silver coins, 582 copper ingots, 125 gold bars and discs, 350 chests of indigo, 525 bales of tobacco, 20 bronze cannon and 1,200 pounds of worked silverware. This was only one of the shipwrecks that Mel Fisher discovered, so the countless artifacts are sure to amaze.

8. Tour Harry S. Truman’s House

Harry S. Truman, the 33rd president of the United States, spent vacations in the “Little White House” in Key West during his presidency from 1945-1953. William Taft visited the home, and Thomas Edison lived there for a few months. The history writers from writemyessaycheap.us emphasize that Truman had important meetings right there in the home, including ones about the Marshall Plan and Truman Doctrine. Now the house is open for tours every day, except for occasional days when the government has important meetings still held in the house.

9. Visit the Pirate Soul Museum

This is a must-do for any pirate lover. The museum claims to have the largest and most authentic collection of pirate artifacts under one roof. These include the original journal of Captain Kidd’s last voyage, the only authentic pirate treasure chest in America originally belonging to Captain Thomas Tew, and Blackbeard’s original blunderbuss.

10. Explore the Key West Shipwreck History Museum

This museum is another excellently informative and entertaining museum. Inside, they allow you to lift a genuine silver bar from 1656. This museum has two floors of artifacts, some dating back to ships sunk in the 1600s. And there are storytellers