Key West: The Don'ts of Key West, Florida

hey there fellow travelers mark here with walters world and today we're on key west in the keys of florida and today we have you are the don'ts of coming to key west and it is a super relaxed place so your domes aren't too worrisome when you are here but there is the one donut i need to start off with and that is don't mess with the chickens look you're going to get off your plane you're going to walk out of the airport and there might be a chicken just walking around there or maybe you're getting a food and a chicken hops up on your table and tries to get your food from you it happens and the thing is those chickens they're protected you can't hurt them so try to shoo them away because they can be quite aggressive with your food okay so just just just don't mess with the chickens though they will mess with you all right now my next stone for you is when you come here don't forget to bring biodegradable reef safe sunblock when you come and apply it often look we're at the southernmost point of the u.s here well at least continental u.s right we're we're here and you have to realize is that that sun is beating down on you all year long it doesn't matter if you come in december or july you are going to get a lot of sun so you need to make sure you're putting on that sunblock putting it on often even if you're not going out on the water to enjoy you know paddle boarding or swimming or diving or snorkeling or fishing or kayaking or any of the wonderful things you do on the water here you need to lather up because if you're walking in town there's not always a lot of shade when you're walking around and you will get fried when you are here i've already layered up a few times today and i can feel it so make sure you have that and since there is there are protective wreaths out from here if you're going to go diving and stuff use the biodegradable use the reef safe kind just to make it a little bit better for the environment when you are here because it does make a difference now my next stone for you is you know when people come to key west they get their picture with the southernmost point this big buoy in the background and the thing is my don't for that is don't expect to get a lot of alone time with the southernmost point because everybody wants to get their picture there you know right in front of the buoy but the thing is there can be a long line especially when there's a lot of tourists here there can be a long line to wait to get your picture it's like getting a picture in vegas in front of the sign you're just there but my advice to you is you know what it's okay to get people in your picture just stand back take the picture with the people in it or or be there and wave with the people in the background you can do that and get your picture but you're not going to get a lot of alone time okay so just just have a heads up with that now my next don't for you has to do with the people and one of the tastiest foods you have here and that is don't call it coch it's conch shells conch fritters a crack conch chowder the locals are called conks yeah it's conk not conch i know it looks like it's conch but it's not it's conch and if you get a chance to eat the conk when you're here eat it it is so good conch fritters it's it oh if you're not sure what conk is you know the conch shell there's a little thing that lives inside they take out and then you put in some batter and some dough and some stuff and you fry it up it's so good or you'll have it in ceviche it's so so tasty i'm sure the locals might be tasty too they're pretty fun but just don't don't eat the locals eat the conk from the shell okay but honestly like it's comp not conch okay because i've heard that a few times i just want people to know and speaking of those conchs meaning the locals don't forget that key west actually declared its independence just for a little bit and that's why you'll see conch republic on the flags here because they did have independence but just for a few minutes they declared it but it is kind of a funny thing here but honestly the people here really love being from key west they love being a conch and i think that goes into another dome don't really say the people here are floridians though they are in florida it's part of florida people in key west kind of feel like they're a bit different than the rest of florida so don't really say they're flirting just say hey they're konks now another thing is when you're thinking of key west probably the biggest food thing you think of here isn't the conch it's actually key lime pie and yes don't skip out on key lime pie when you're here obviously but for us even if you're not eating key lime pie here in key west you're someplace else don't think key lime pie is green if you see key lime pie here in key west that is green you should run out of that restaurant right away and just start screaming faker faker faker because key lime pie isn't green okay key lime pie is not green okay you'll see people debate whether oh is it whipped cream or is it meringue or is it just go topless you know you don't go tablets on the beach here but you can go topless on your key lime pie in some places moe's oh my god went to moe's restaurant they had a topless key lime pie it was fantastic but honestly the debate is irrelevant when it comes to the color of key lime pie just know don't look for green key lime pie it'll come out you're like this looks like a pumpkin pie or this looks like a lemon pie this looks like uh orangey brownie pie no no just no it's not great okay so know that now my next stone for you is don't drive in key west i mean it's not that bad of a drive though that the seven mile bridge coming in if you're driving in from the mainland can be a bit nerve-wracking if you're not used to those kind of drives but honestly parking downtown is horrible in the old part of town even not in the old part of town parking just sucks and the keys in general so just have a heads up and it's just easier not to drive there's lift there's ubers there's taxis from the airport no problem i would recommend doing that because parking is horrible and and another bonus stone is don't park in a local's parking spot because they have their designated spots and they will get you ticketed or towed like that okay so don't park in the right places so just avoid driving if you can when you're here now another don't i have for you is when you come here most of the time people will just go up and down duval street because there's tons of restaurants and bars and you can eat well there you can drink while there it is a really good time then you got you know mallory you know square you can go there and you can have a nice time there but you have to realize is don't think those the only places that have restaurants and bars in key west okay you can explore just a couple blocks off of duval street there's plenty of restaurants there and the prices go down a bit but there's places all throughout the town you could enjoy i know we went to moe's restaurant they've got caribbean food there and it was just fantastic oh my god i had the caribbean chicken it was fantastic my buddy had their it was a snapper like pasta cat it was so good but you can eat so well here and you can eat well not just on the main drag okay so just know that and i think that you know i talked about the lower prices off duvall i think another donut i have for you is don't let the prices for plane tickets and accommodation make you think it's expensive to visit key west i know when i bought my plane tickets to key west i'm like huh maybe i should go to europe instead for those prices and when i was looking for accommodation i'm like dang maybe i do the two-hour drive in from miami instead i mean prices for accommodation here are extremely high and flights to get here are high as well but when you get here i'm surprised with how i'm not going to say it's cheap but how many affordable eating and drinking options you actually have here in key west okay so so just know that yes you're going to blow most your budget on the accommodation in flight but you can have a really good time here without busting your budget okay i'm not saying it's cheap but it's not as bad as i thought it was going to be and speaking of not busting your budget but a great tourist thing to do is honestly seeing the sunset pretty much anywhere in the keys is gorgeous you know you can go to mallory square and you can watch it there the locals there's tons of people there'll be you know all kinds of stuff going on but just the sunset here is gorgeous and even like behind me the sun sets behind me here there's a little bar right there that i was at last night i just walked down here i'm like oh my god this is gorgeous like so gorgeous i forgot to get the video when it's actually happening i got it at the end and it's just honestly the sun sets here i mean i'm gonna guess probably the sun rises too but let's be honest if you're coming to key west to relax you're not getting up for the sunrise all right but don't miss the sunsets here now my next stone for you has to do with when you're packing things you might want to not forget so i would say is don't forget to bring your own snorkel gear when you're coming here you may say why mark i can rent it there yes you can rent your snorkel gear here but it's expensive you know and two do you really want to use the snorkel that someone else already had in their mouth i know they clean them out but just something to have a heads up for you know so don't forget your snorker gear i would also bring like water shoes if you're going to go walking around the water here um because there's it's rockier here than sandy in some places just fyi um also like i said uh bring that your you know your sunblock and stuff but also i would bring a light rain jacket because you never know when out of nowhere boom rain comes in now you don't need a heavy rain jacket just a light poncho thing you'll be fine but just something to think about to not forget to bring when you're coming here now my next stone for you is don't think that the only culture on key west is the ernest hemingway house and museum look ernest hemingway is a famous famous other world famous author who lived here for a number of years and really made key west pretty famous and also the six-toed kittens yeah the cats that are here you'll see those that's from him and those things but you can actually go to his house and that's kind of the most like famous house to visit here but there's more to see there's more tourist spots to go to aside from that there's a shipwreck museum you can go to i mean key west made a lot of money getting shipwrecks and going to the shipwrecks and getting stuff out of there actually made the city or the island the key actually very wealthy for a time period and there's a there's a museum that talks about that harry truman former president his winter white house was here you can go visit that and there's other historic homes you can see so it's not just the hemingway house and yes you should go to the hemingway house and yes see the cats and stuff but just know there's more than that another donut i have for you and you'll see this when you're downtown is don't feel bad if you take the trolley tour or the train tour i know it looks super touristy i know it looks super silly but honestly it actually can give you a lot of information about key west and the thing that's going on and where to eat and the people and all kinds of stuff so definitely take it and just learn a bit and it's a nice relaxing thing to do for a little bit during the day now with a beautiful place like this i know i talked about the sun block before but also don't forget to stay hydrated when you're going around the island because whether you're running a bike and riding around or kayaking or fishing or or paddle boarding or just enjoying the really cute houses around town or going to the southernmost point you're going to get high you're going to get dehydrated make sure you're staying hydrated bring a refillable water bottle and refill that thing when you go to the bar and you finish up it can refill my water bottle they'll fill it up for you you can take it with you when you go but you want to stay hydrated make sure you got your you know your hat as well to protect you from the sun because it can be dangerous now my next stone for you are for those of you that stay on the east side of key west now the restaurants and bars and most of the stuff is actually on the west side of key west you know towards the sunset there's a lot of things there but honestly don't expect any food or drink options on the east side of key west you have to go to the next key over to find things i mean you got the boat house you can come to and grab some beers but there's not a lot on the east side you're going to be needing to take an uber or a lift to get to the other the historic part of the island uh to go eat and drink there oh my tastiest donut i have for you is don't forget to eat like a seafood king when you're here in key west because whether it's snapper grouper mahi mahi the local shrimp the local crab the conch oh my god the seafood here is fantastic and honestly whatever is fresh you can get it on a sandwich you can have just cook it for you on a grill it'll be phenomenal okay so don't skip out on the seafood just get it every time if you're not sure and you're looking hmm what do i get they have steaks here they have this seafood seafood and then after that have more seafood okay because it's awesome here though i will say don't expect to get the spawny lobster or the rock lobster all year round you can get the main lobster rolls all year round but the local lobster you can only get it in season so sadly when i'm here now i can't have it but i know how good it is i got a friend of mine who comes down and catches them when you can actually come down and catch them in july it's so good it's so good anyway but sadly don't expect to get the rock lobster the spiny lobster all year round sadly with that fantastic fantastic seafood now another donut i have for you is when people think of florida they think oh it's sandy beaches everywhere look in key west don't think you're going to get those florida sandy beaches yes they do have a few sandy beaches here but you have a lot of mangroves that you can see behind me and you've got a lot of the sea wall and stuff so it's not all sandy beach things all right so just be prepared for that hence why you want to have the water shoes and stuff when you're going to go out just to be a little more comfortable when you do go in the water now another critter don't i have for you i know i talked about the chickens the beginning now we're getting near the end of the video i need to talk about some of the other animals here and that is one don't feed the iguanas when you're here the iguanas here in key west are like pigeons in new york or or london they're just they're just like you know they're they're local rats basically and they will come scurry up and try to take your food like the chickens do but the iguanas are all over so don't mess with them also if you see manatees don't give the manatees fresh water i know they like it but don't do it because then they come in and the boats they get hit by the boats and the propellers it's bad so so don't don't do that when you're here and i think my final donut i'm going to give you from here in key west is don't expect a lot at the airport look when you fly into key west i mean it's literally some dudes roll the ramp out to the plane and you get out that way it's not the oh the gate is extending up no no this is old school airport style okay they roll it up you walk between the green lines going in to the the uh the airport the arrivals and it's like one or two belts and that's it i mean it's got a bathroom the belts and some rental car places i mean there's not a lot of space so don't be like expecting to wait at the airport a long time for your ride luckily there's a taxi stand right outside the arrival so so you'll be fine but just don't expect too much at the key west airport but honestly you're not gonna you're only going to the airport because you're sadly leaving or you're just kidding have some fun so get here to key west don't worry you have a great time yes the accommodation and flights are pricey but once you're here you can have a great time at a great price and and have just a wonderful time lots of great people lots of people here that want to have fun too so have a great time and i'll say bye from here in key west

Channel: Wolters World

Views: 695,031

Keywords: travel, europe, wolters world, travel advice, tourist attractions, travel vlogger, honest travel, Walters World

Id: I_y8ltO7KBU

Length: 14min 14sec (854 seconds)

Published: Sun Jun 06 2021