Florida Keys in February

[JamuJoe]

We'll be aboard our sailboat in Bradenton, FL for Feb-July, with the Airstream close by in storage. Thinking of a land excursion to the Everglades and Keys in February while the water warms up. Appreciate any input on campgrounds or places of interest down to Key West.


Safe Travels,
Jamu Joe

[Remax gal]

We stayed at Blue Water in Key West. I believe it was mile marker 14. Absolutely lovely campground!


Laura & Tom

[Remax gal]

By the way...it sounds like you have a wonderful life!!


Laura & Tom

[cptfish]

We are at Blue Water Key now. Wish we had your boat for our dock! It is truly first class and you pay for it. About $150 a night! It was a splurge for us. Great location. They do fill up often 8 months ahead but check and see. You can rent through bluewater.com (the park mgmt address) or another source is blue water.net that rents about 1/5 of the lots privately.


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[cptfish]

I just noticed your trailer is 23' and you might check because I think they only rent to 25' and larger.


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[B00merang]

Go to Bahia Honda State Park...you'll be in t he Lower Keys..you have Big Pine Key with all the stores etc across the bridge, you have wonderful campsites, you have more beaches than anywhere else in the Keys ('tho the water will be cold), and Key West is only 40 minutes away. Been going there since the 60's...its the best spot in the keys. Enjoy! jon

[xrvr]

Sunshine key RV resort. Peace, jim

[saknlak]

We always stay in Key Largo Kampground Home. $65 per night or better yet stay a week for $425. Nice size lots, nice heated pool, clean facilities, we love the place. We ride bikes everywhere to restaurants and shopping. We walk our kayaks from our site to the water to launch, paddle through the lagoon and you'll find yourself inside John Pennecamp State Park canoe/kayak trails. Even better kayak trails are straight out from the campground.

[Phoenix]

Is it possible to arrive in the Keys without reservations and find a campsite, or would it be better to plan on staying on the mainland and make daytrips to the Keys?

I suspect that I should have made reservations last year; and we may end up staying in Everglades National Park (NP), or a commercial RV park between Homestead and Miami. In which case, we'll make a couple of day trips to Key West, etc. to see the sites.

Will it be secure to leave our Bambi in the NP campground for the day; and is this do-able? Or, does the driving time from Long Pine Key Campground to Key West make this plan impractical?

Thanks, in advance, for your opinions...

[B00merang]

Phoenix
You can check availability very quickly (as well as make reservations) via ReserveAmerica.com. Making daytrips to the keys is boring until you cross Jewfish Creek (now with a new name and new high bridge) and get to Key Largo, and don't underestimate the distance and time to the lower keys/Key West. I'd strongly advise against daytrips....you'll see what I mean when you get there. Use the ReserveAmerica website to check out availabilities. Good luck. jon

[Someday'59]

Originally Posted by Phoenix

Will it be secure to leave our Bambi in the NP campground for the day; and is this do-able? Or, does the driving time from Long Pine Key Campground to Key West make this plan impractical?

Thanks, in advance, for your opinions...

Hi Phoenix! We recently visited the FL Keys for our first time.

I think you might find it's a bit of a stretch to visit Key West from Long Pine Key Campground. We were lucky enough to get a site at John Pennekamp State Park in Key Largo. John Pennekamp is mile marker 102. Key West is at mile marker 0.

We took two day trips down to Key West. The drive on the Overseas Highway was beautiful but it was still a long 204 mile day in the car. Also, much of the Overseas Highway is 45mph. It might take a little longer to get down there or back than expected...

Long Key Pine Campground in the Everglades is 30 miles north of John Pennekamp (so, a day trip to Key West would be 264 miles.)

[polarlyse]

If you are retired Military the KW Navy base has camping. We're heading in that direction on Friday and be there in 2 wks. You might get lucky with the state parks but do it ASAP. Not sure what their walk in policy is but you should check. Might get lucky with that too. We stayed at Long Key SP a few years ago with no reservation and just got lucky with that one. Everglades NP is nice. They have 2 CG's. The one near the visitor center has no hookups but it very nice. Flamingo ( about 20 miles farther ) has hook-up's. Not bad but not as nice as the other. Prepare by getting your provisions before you go. It's a long drive out to the store if you forget the milk. Other CG choices out in the Big Cypress Nat. Preserve also. Some with hookups some without lots of choices but advise to reserve early. It does get busy down there. The hookup sites go fast but if you're up for dry camping more late choices are available.

We'll be down there so look for the 30' silver trailer and a silver Dodge 3500.

[TinTin]

Another vote for Bahia Honda SP. Central base for the Keys.

[Moflash]

We just returned from a 3 week trip to the Keys.Stayed at The Point of View RV park in Key Largo it is a beautiful newer park.Worked out nice as a base camp for 9 days.
Then stayed at Boyds in Key West its a decent place but they stack them in so you better be proficient at maneuvering your rig.
Bahaia was packed.We attempted to go in and look around a few times but cars were backed up 2 blocks waiting to get in.

Best meal we had in Key West was at Santiagos Bodega.
I would not suggest traveling to the Keys without reservations though.

[Moflash]

Point of View RV Park Key Largo FL.

[aceflys]

Long Key SP is my pick. Hard to get a spot because there are only 60 sites. All sites are waterfront. I have stayed in all of the state parks in the Keys. They are all great!

[Becky B.]

I tried to get reservations at ANY state park in the Keys for January--6 months ahead & they were all booked. We stayed at Knights RV park & it was OK. I love the middle keys. It's much more relaxed than Key West or Key Largo. I surely would check for availability before going :-)



Last week by Duck Key

[Phoedis]

Bahia Honda does have walk up sites as do all NP, however, you will probably only get one on a heavy turnover day like Sunday or Monday. I've never done it successfully. The other "secret" spot we love is a place called Venture Out on Cudjoe Key. Only 21 miles from Key West and an easy boat trip out to Looe Key for snorkeling. It is a lovely RV resort but mainly has park models. But there are some snowbirds who pull their rigs out. Some of the owners rent their lots through the management company. We have stayed there a few times for varying lengths of time. Mostly in April or May. Here is a link to their website: Venture Out - Homes / RV Lots for Rent
I agree that Everglades is too far to enjoy anything much more than the upper keys.

[JamuJoe]

Good input, thanks all!
We'll have the flexibility to watch for CG availabilities and seize the time frame for a run from Bradenton. To this point from Durango, every CG has been nearly empty. Guess the campers are further south!


Safe Travels,
Jamu Joe

[Someday'59]

Originally Posted by JamuJoe

To this point from Durango, every CG has been nearly empty. Guess the campers are further south!


Safe Travels,
Jamu Joe

Yes they are! We were in Savannah this past weekend and met a couple from FL. They told us they came north to Savannah because there was no availability in FL.