Every full-time RVer or Northern weekend warrior dreams of spending the winter down in the Florida Keys.
While half of the continent shovels snow in January, the only thing you’ll be shoveling is the pile of stone crab in your mouth.
Enjoy mornings out on the water and afternoons getting sunkissed with the leatherback retirees who have been drinking since mimosa o’clock. It truly is paradise.
But here’s the thing. If you want to visit the Florida Keys in the winter, which is its busy season, you need to plan ahead. Like way ahead, a year or more ahead.
Campgrounds are competitive and expensive. So as much as one may want to spend three to four months in the southernmost point of the Sunshine State, you may have to just enjoy a little taste of the island life.
Our suggestion, stay no less than a week in the Florida Keys.
But if a week is all you have, we’re here to share with you where you’d want to camp, what you’d want to eat, and what you’d want to do.
So lather up the sunscreen and break out the Flamingo t-shirts and cups, we’re going to the Florida Keys!
Where to Stay
Bahia Honda State Park
Full confession, we haven’t been able to snag a spot at this coveted State Park. But oh, is it on our wish list, along with everyone else, hence why we haven’t been able to camp here before.
Bahia Honda State Park is located on Big Pine Key, making it a great central location in the Keys. It’s coveted because it’s a State Park, meaning they’re still relatively affordable with nightly rates starting at about $36/night (as of 2024) compared to RV Resorts and private campgrounds and they don’t pack you in like sardines (we’ll get to that in a minute).
Bahia Honda is known for its wildlife watching for key deer, waterfowl, and marine life.
The dream sites are in the teens-twenties of Loop BTWC with back-in sites right on the water. A million-dollar view for less than a date night out at fast food these days.
Sunshine Key RV Resort & Marina
If you can’t get a spot at a state park, most likely your next option is going to be a private campground. Now if you’re looking for a way to save some money and if you spend your time primarily on the East Coast, you may want to look into a campground membership called Thousand Trails. You pay an annual membership and it gives you access to campgrounds for free (with limitations). Encore and Thousand Trails have two campgrounds in the Florida Keys, and they offer sites for about the same price as a state park!
If you’re not a Thousand Trails member (like us), you can still stay in these campgrounds, but you pay full price, and friends, it is not cheap.
For a beachfront site for five nights, we paid over $1700! But y’all it was worth it for this once-in-a-lifetime experience of waking up to this view with our senior fur babies.
Now they do have more affordable options for this campground that are still pretty spacious for an RV resort in Florida, but if you’re going all out for a glamping week in the Keys, then trust us, it was worth every penny.
We would 100% stay at Sunshine Key RV Resort & Marina again!
Boyds Campground
Another great private campground is Boyd’s Key West RV Campground which is conveniently located near Mile Marker 5, making it a great option to explore nearby Key West!
Now full disclosure, again, we have not stayed at this campground but have seen many of our fellow RV friends spend time here and it looks amazing! We love that it has great amenities like a fishing pier and waterfront camping. Another cool service they offer is … they park your RV for you! So cool right?! Imagine after a long day of driving to the Keys, you get to just pass the keys off to someone and they can handle the most stressful part of a travel day, parking!
Booking is required by phone, which is a bit of a hassle, but they’re all about Southern hospitality and having a personal connection with their guests, which is kinda cool.
Fiesta Key
Okay, we’re going to leave this one here as a last resort option. The first time we came to the Florida Keys, we booked our campgrounds only two months in advance (oh, you young fools), so there was pretty much nothing available. In fact, I think we snagged the very last campsite in the Florida Keys for those dates.
We can say this with confidence because we were parked into the worst, overpriced, crowded like a can of sardines site we’ve experienced in over four years of RV life.
After this campground was rebuilt following a hurricane, they reinstalled some of the posts on the wrong side of the site, forcing folks to have to back into sites right next to each other, and we’re talking pass the salt close, hopefully, we don’t hit someone’s slideout close.
Despite crummy back-in sites, Fiesta Key does have a really beautiful spot to watch a sunset with a coveted bench that you’ll be sure to try to get there early to snag in time for Mother Nature’s show.
We also loved that it had an on-site restaurant with some of the best key lime pie martinis we’ve ever had!
Oh and be sure to keep an eye out on the marina for wildlife, such as manatees!
If you want the campground vibes, but didn’t bring your own RV, this campground does offer adorable tiny house rentals with amazing water views!
What to do
Key West
Truth be told, one could write an entire blog on what to do in Key West in a week itself. But for this blog, we’ll stick to the highlights.
Do yourself a favor and rent a golf cart from HydroThunder to explore this town. Parking a full-sized car can get annoying, and it’s much more fun to get around this way than walking around.
You’ve made it this far South, so you have to take the obligatory tourist photo at the Southernmost point! Be warned, there will most likely be a line, so try to get there early. Be sure to make friends with someone in line next to you to have them take your family picture or have a tripod ready if you happen to have the famous red and yellow buoy all to yourself.
Aside from the tourist hot spots, Key West is a fun town to soak in some history and experience the island culture without needing a passport. There’s Cuban influence, Puerto Rican influence, and Caribbean influence around every culture. Try new foods, talk to people from a different walk of life than you!
Snorkeling/Kayaking
The best way to experience the natural beauty of the Florida Keys is by water. Do yourself a favor and get out on the water for at least one day. You can do this by renting a boat or catamaran and enjoying a snorkeling or fishing excursion.
Or you can do what we did and just rent a kayak at the campground marina through Chartered Rental for $85 a day and paddle out right from our beachfront campsite.
This was one of our favorite adventures in the Florida Keys. We got to bring Butters along and she loves being on the water. Now keep in mind, you’re in nature. Yes, there are sharks in the Florida Keys. We’ve watched too many episodes of Shark Week to allow Butters to go swimming in the ocean, but that’s just our personal preference as paranoid fur parents. If it was just us, we would’ve done a lot more snorkeling and swimming.
The kayak rental comes with life jackets, and Butters has her own Ruffwear life jacket we use for our water adventures, the rental company does not have dog life jackets.
We spent the day paddling looking for sea turtles, and enjoying a cold Corona on the beach of a small island we found near Bahai Honda.
We ended the day with a sunset paddle just the two of us and it’s something we’ll never forget!
The Turtle Hospital
If there is one thing we recommend doing while in the Florida Keys that will inspire you to be a better human and steward of our lands and oceans, it would be visiting The Turtle Hospital in Marathon.
Now, I recommend booking a morning tour for this adventure, because honestly, it will leave you feeling inspired but a bit somber wondering how the heck can humans suck so bad and their actions hurt these precious creatures. So you’re going to need a bit of pick me up after your tour.
We have a deep connection to sea turtles. During our honeymoon in Mexico, we stumbled across some hatchlings from an unmarked nest near our resort and helped the last two surviving squirts find their way to the ocean. It was emotional and life-changing, and sea turtles have become a symbol in our marriage.
Of course, this stop was at the top of our list! You’ll need to make a reservation ahead of time, as they book up during the peak winter months. You’ll be given a guided tour of the hospital and facility and even get the chance to feed some of their resident turtles.
The work The Turtle Hospital does to educate and save these magnificent creatures is truly inspirational. It’s a must-experience for the whole family.
Dry Tortugas
Did you know there is a National Park that you can’t drive to? You have to get there by boat or airplane.
It’s also not dog friendly, so in full disclosure, we have not been to Dry Tortugas National Park, but if we could have found a way to have someone stay with Butters and Tiskies for 5 – 9 hours, we totally would have.
Dry Tortugas is one of the least visited National Parks because it is so expensive to get to. There are half-day and full-day transportation via ferry or seaplane. A half-day seaplane transportation starts at about $500 per adult with it taking about 40 minutes to get to the island and 2.5 hours to explore, while a more affordable option would be a ferry ride with rates starting at $235 an adult with it taking about 2.5 hours to get to the island, and giving you about 4 hours to enjoy the island.
If the price isn’t a problem and if you don’t have to worry about leaving your fur babies behind at camp for 5+ hours, this National Park is an absolute must-visit for its history and amazing snorkeling opportunities!
Shopping
You’re going to want to remember your time here in the Florida Keys for years to come, and one of the best ways to do that is to purchase some souvenirs that will remind you of your time spent in paradise.
If you’re looking for your typical souvenir items such as shirts, pins, stickers, ornaments, etc. Then check out the End of the Road gift shop in Key West!
If you’re looking for something with a bit more of a local touch such as art, locally made candles, etc. then you’ve got to check out the Rain Barrel Village in Islamorada.
This place has several boutique shops to choose from with unique gifts from local artists. You can’t miss it, it’s the place with the giant lobster out front!
What to Eat
Stone Crab
A Florida seasonal delicacy. A must-try for any seafood lover. Stone crab.
What makes these crab legs so special is their sweet meat, large size, and they are sustainable food source when harvested properly as stone crabs grow back their legs.
You can find them at many seafood restaurants throughout Southern Florida and the Keys, but we really enjoyed them for Anthony’s birthday dinner at Lorelei Restaurant in Islamorada.
Conch
Wait what? Like a conch shell? Yep. It’s a bit chewy, but when cooked right conch meat is absolutely delicious.
You’ll see conch chowder on lunch and dinner menus, but our favorite way to enjoy this Florida Keys delicacy is the conch fritters at Florida Boy Bar & Grill. An awesome local place that’s dog friendly and also serves some delicious ahi tuna nachos and some of the best key lime pie you’ll ever try.
Key lime pie
Speaking of pie, did you even visit the Florida Keys without a piece of key lime pie?! While you can find key lime pie at any Publix Market in Florida, and many bakeries will claim to have the best key lime pie … our personal favorite is the chocolate-covered slice at Key West Key Lime Pie Co. in Key West.
I have no shame in admitting we emptied out our tiny RV freezer in order to fit as many frozen pie slices as we could to last as long as possible, not knowing when the next time we’ll have a bite of that perfectly balanced tart and sweet creamy goodness.
Our supply lasted us a week. Trust us, you’re going to want to save room in the belly for this one.
Cuban food
When you’re this close to Cuba, you can expect to find some of the best Cuban food around, and no passport is required. Cubano sandwiches, plantains, fritas burgers, my mouth is literally salivating just thinking about it.
The place to go for some no-frills, damn-good Cuban food is Frita’s. We had the best frita burger and cubano sandwich of our lives here.
Rum
Make Captain Jack Sparrow proud, because what good is enjoying the sunshine of the island life without an adult beverage in hand.
Not a straight-up alcohol kind of guy or cal, don’t worry Key West Legal Rum Distillery has cocktails to enjoy after taking a tour of their distillery and sampling their wide range of rums and other alcohols. Our personal favorite, the Glazed Pineapple Rum makes for the absolute best cocktails to enjoy on the beach.
What to expect:
Weather
Tropical storms and hurricanes are common in the Florida Keys. In fact, Key West has a celebration each year at the end of the official hurricane season where they torch the hurricane warning flag.
Hurricane season begins in April, so you’ll see most snowbirds start making their way north before then, but that doesn’t mean an occasional thunderstorm won’t pop up before then. Be sure to always keep an eye on the weather, especially before enjoying a day on the water, and be sure to always put in your RV awning when leaving camp (even if for just a few minutes) because the last thing you want is to return to camp with a torn awning because of a sudden wind gust.
You’re on islands in the middle of the ocean, so expect frequent breezes, warm temperatures, and humidity. Rarely will you see the temperature dip below 60 degrees in the Keys!
Bugs
You’re in Florida there will be bugs. Humidity = mosquitoes. But you know what’s worse than mosquitoes? No-see-ums! Named because these little buggers are so small, you can’t even see them to swat them away. They can leave painful bites similar to a mosquito, and some people say that bug repellent doesn’t work on these little devils on wings.
Crowds
If you’re in the Florida Keys anytime between November – April, you can expect to see more crowds compared to the summer months.
Just about every RVer north of Georgia wants to spend the winter in Florida, with the Keys being the top destination. With that in mind, you’re going to want to reserve your campsite or hotels as soon as possible. Some campgrounds book up a year in advance and I’ve heard rumors that some campgrounds even let you book a few years in advance!
But much like the crowds at Disney World, you just have to mentally prepare yourself to share this beauty with others, and when you do find a quiet moment on the beach or fishing pier, soak it in and relish in the fact that you’re here and your neighbors up north are probably shoveling snow right about now.
Cost
Everything, and I mean everything is more expensive in the Keys. Groceries, fuel, and campgrounds.
So it’s best to stock up what you can on the mainland before making your way south to help save costs, and just be prepared to spend more at restaurants and grocery stores than you would in Texas.
When is the best time of year to RV in the Florida Keys?
The best time of year to RV in the Florida Keys is Fall – early Spring, primarily the months of November – March.
You’ll see retired folks and families who traded their days of tossing snowballs at each other for spending their days sunkissed tossing a football on the beach.
The summer months in the Florida Keys can be extremely warm and you have a higher risk of hurricanes, which you do not want to endure hurricane-force winds in an RV!
Are the Florida Keys pet-friendly?
Many restaurants have patios that allow leashed dogs, and even cats in strollers, to enjoy a meal with their families.
The Key West Aquarium and many charter boat companies allow leashed dogs to join in on the fun too!
Some folks may say that the Florida Keys is overhyped. They’re probably the ones who are secretly hoping to have it all to themselves.
While it is pricey and some spots can be a bit over-touristy, it’s definitely worth checking off the RV wish list.
Remember, your experience really can depend on budget and campsite. Our second visit was a night-and-day difference, and if it weren’t so absolutely perfect, we’d be tempted to try to redo it year after year.
Do you want to see more of our Florida Keys stay? Then check out our YouTube video:
Happy and safe travels,
The Traveling Tiongsons
Traveling Tiongsons 