Miami and the Keys with kids?
 

Sorry for the essay lol!

As we've had to cancel our summer cruise round the Med we thought we might look at a caribbean cruise instead in April. The one we like is 7 days from Fort Lauderdale so we thought we might do Miami and the Keys as well.

It will be our first time to both places. We will have our children, boys aged 8 and 13 with us.

Where is the best place to stay with kids? Would it be South Beach? All the boys would love seeing the fast cars so we will def go there.

My husband has always wanted to go to Miami but not with kids lol. So he would want at least one night out without the boys so do hotels have babysitting services?

How long should we stay in Miami? We could have up to three nights before we sail? Enough? Too much?

The plan would be to hire a car after the cruise and drive to the Keys for 5 nights. I've read on here that Islamorada is lovely with lots to do for the kids and maybe Marathon?

Is it worth staying in Key West? I definitely want to visit it but would consider a day trip or 1 night as the hotels look so expensive! Are there any private rentals in Key West?

We would have about £1,000 for 5 nights accommodation in the Keys. Iis that doable? Ive found one hotel under £200 a night in Islamorada - the sunset Inn - but have only just started looking.

Thanks if you got to the end!

Try the Hyatt in marathon. We liked it and it was an easy drive to KW for a day. State parks close for snorkelling and swimming as well as the turtle hospital. We also went to Robbie to feed the Tarpon not to be missed,

Would love another Miami and Keys trip

Thanks. Have you done a trip report for the keys? Would love to read one.

Truthfully I think your kids maybe bored in Islamorada, we adore it but we fish, kayak, snorkel on the reef and jet ski. There is the turtle hospital in Marathon and the aquarium nearby but honestly unless they’re really placid kids you’d be better off somewhere like Clearwater where there’s more to do. Key West is a great party town with a fair bit to see during the day, that said, on our first 24 hour trip we Flew into Key West initially and were unimpressed, you really need to stay longer to scratch the surface and understand the place.

Last thing I want to do is put you off, Islamorada and Key West are our most favourite places in the world but I’d wait until your 8 year olds a little older. If hubby likes a night out you’ll be gutted to walk away from Duval at night, the bars and bands are amazing ❤️

If you’re still set try Breezy Palms in Islamorada or Best Western Hibiscus in Key West.

Thanks. We will have spent a week on a royal caribbean cruise with lots of entertainment so a relaxing few days will be perfect. My kids love to snorkel, swim, play on the beach, they love wildlife etc. Weve done clearwater and AMI and much preferred AMI.

We are supposed to be going to Miami and the Keys in July😞. I’d booked several hotels in the Keys, one in Key Largo for John Pennencamp park, one in Key West and one in Marathon. Was very excited about all these stops, going to rebook for next year. We have stayed in Miami before, I would definitely recommend staying close to South Beach, we stayed mid-beach before(Fontainebleau, beautiful) but there was nothing near by, no restaurants or cafes, and parking at the hotels is extortionate. We were staying near Lincoln Mall road(?) this tome, seemed like a good location to me.

As an earlier poster warned, there is not enough to do on the Keys to hold much interest for children the age yours are. Key West itself is a long, slow, boring drive and when you get there it's definitely not a place for kids. Too sleazy, too adult orientated and too reliant on its only claim to fame, Ernest Hemingway. Some of the other keys are quite pretty, but since when have little boys been enthralled by scenery. And frankly, when you've seen one key - like Key Largo, an easy drive down from Miami for instance - you've seen them all.
If you are spending any time in Miami, South Beach is the liveliest, but again, it doesn't have a lot for kids.

Thanks. Where would you suggest we go after the cruise for a few days R & R that's close ish to miami?

Again, that’s a hard one. If you enjoyed AMI, like we do, you maybe ok. There are no beaches in The Keys like AMI, it’s all coral stone and sea grass but if your children love wildlife you may enjoy renting a couple of kayaks from Robbies and paddling through the mangroves, great fun, just avoid the areas with the salt water crocs lol. Like others have said there’s the Theatre of the Seas and Turtle Hospital but never bothered as we can see all that at Seaworld. How about Naples? Never been but heard many good things x Really don’t want to be a Debbie Downer as we adore the keys but even my 20 year old gets a bit bored and he likes to fish.

We stay in Captiva Island at www.southseas.com I would highly recommend lots to do for all on site and you also have Sanibel and Captiva to explore. It’s a bit of a drive 3 hours but very easy and a great place for a few days R & R