Florida Naturally.com

Island hopping down to Key West along the scenic Overseas Highway and the famous 7 mile bridge, you encounter numerous parks and attractions. At the highway’s end lies Key West, the southernmost city in the continental United States. The ambiance of this Key, which is situated closer to Havana than Miami, is embedded in its quaint, palm-studded streets, historic gingerbread mansions, and relaxed citizenry of self-styled “Conchs”.

Drive The Florida KeysAlthough it takes only 45 minutes to fly from Miami to Key West, a leisurely drive will provide a true Southeast Florida experience. The 113-mile Overseas Highway leapfrogs from key to key, treating travelers to turquoise seascapes and deep green landscapes under a brilliant blue Florida sky. The highway can be traversed in fewer than four hours from Miami, but many visitors prefer to get into the spirit of the islands and take time to explore the treasures along the way.

For an educational and extraordinary experience, take a seaplane or charter a boat from Key West out to Fort Jefferson, which lies among a cluster of seven coral reefs called the Dry Tortugas. Here, visitors can marvel at the fort walls — 8-feet thick and 50-feet high — as well as three gun tiers designed for 450 guns.

Fort Jefferson is remembered by many history buffs and movie goers, as being the prison which was “home” to Dr. Mudd when he was imprisoned for tending to the wounds of Abraham Lincoln’s assassin. (Dr. Mudd was portrayed by Dennis Weaver in The Ordeal of Dr. Mudd.)

In Key West, families will find many 20th-century attractions set amid 19th-century charm. Military history literally surrounds the city in the form of four classic, red-brick forts. Families can venture into towers reminiscent of a medieval castle or climb a winding staircase to the top of one fort for a sweeping view of the island and surrounding blue waters.

Visitors can explore the remarkable Lighthouse Military Museum; the stately Audubon House, where John James Audubon stayed while painting his noted works depicting wildlife in the Florida Keys; and the Key West Shipwreck Historeum, which focuses on the wrecking era of Key West. Then, visit the area’s most famous historical site, the Hemingway House, where Ernest Hemingway lived and worked for 10 years.

A stop that is well-worth the time is the Key West Aquarium. There you’ll find a 50,000-gallon tank which exhibits a cross section of a near-shore mangrove environment, including a variety of tropical and game fish, sea turtles, and birds.

Visitors will often end their day in Key West at a truly extraordinary sunset celebration at Mallory Square Pier. As part of a daily ritual, both islanders and tourists gather to watch as the glowing orange sun slips silently into the sea. Free entertainment including jugglers, musicians, unicyclists and more, keep the spirit festive. A stirring round of applause from the crowd salutes the Key West sun as it falls from view into the island’s green-blue waters. This offers the perfect ending to a day in the Keys, a day spent enjoying the region’s many pleasures, beaches, and treasures found not only in museums, but in the many boutiques and shops.