Relieved and grateful that the Florida Keys were spared impacts from Hurricane Dorian, Keys groups and businesses are organizing efforts to assist people in the northwest Bahamas who felt the brunt of the hurricane’s devastating winds and water — including citizens of tiny Green Turtle Cay, whose village of New Plymouth is Key West’s sister city.
Vacation volunteerism, often called “voluntourism,” contributes to the self-sufficiency and sustainability of destinations like the Florida Keys. In the Keys, advocacy groups and learning-based attractions offer hands-on experiences that visitors can discover and enjoy — helping them find out more about impacts on Florida's reefs and environment and how the average person can help as a citizen scientist.
Fort Jefferson, America’s largest and most remote coastal fortress, stands on the tiny Dry Tortugas islands 68 miles west of Key West in the Gulf of Mexico. A trip to Dry Tortugas National Park takes visitors into a unique realm, largely untouched by modern civilization yet unmatched in its historic and natural wonders.
Get ready for Key West's Womenfest, renowned as one of North America’s largest gatherings of lesbians and their friends. Taking place Sept. 4-8, the event is bursting with an abundance of entertaining revelries on both land and sea — from playful and rambunctious pool parties and picturesque sunset dinner sails to a late-night dance party.
Key West’s colorful history includes Spanish galleon shipwreck treasures and artifacts, famous artists and eccentrics, a cigar-making heyday, a vibrant past as a bustling seaport and even an eerie haunted doll. So it’s no surprise to find that cultural and historic richness preserved, spotlighted and celebrated in the island city’s many museums.
Today’s Key Largo includes upscale new resorts, funky attractions, established dive charter operations and affordable-stay options that are longtime comfy favorites. And savvy “foodies” can’t forget Key Largo’s delicious dining spots. Discover casual eateries, waterfront emporiums with island flair and classic examples of "Old Keys" appeal, many with menus starring incomparable local seafood.
In late 2018, Key West’s first lesbian mayor was elected. Teri Johnston, a former City Commissioner, is also the first openly gay woman elected mayor of a major Florida city. Popular and well-respected, Johnston was interviewed recently by the leading news source Towleroad — and Towleroad permitted Keys Voices to share excerpts from that interview.
Calm summer seas in the Florida Keys mean easygoing and easy-on-the-environment watersports powered by people or the rays of the sun. Low-impact on-the-water activities include cruising warm, clear waters on a hydrobike, standup paddleboarding through the backcountry flats, or taking a dolphin watch and snorkel tour on the Keys’ first electric-powered charter boat.
Joe Maxey looks a lot like Ernest Hemingway. That fact was amply proved when the 68-year-old white-bearded retired banker won Key West's annual Hemingway Look-Alike Contest at Sloppy Joe's Bar. More than 140 aspiring Ernests competed, vying to be named "Papa" on the island where Hemingway lived and wrote during the 1930s.
There are some people who simply belong in the Florida Keys — visitors who become mesmerized by an indefinable magic about the island chain that makes them unwilling or unable to leave. If the "symptoms" here apply to you, there’s a good chance you’re already under the spell of the laid-back subtropical destination.