Key Largo.
- WHAT TO DO
- WHAT TO EAT
Key Largo sits sixty miles south of Miami International Airport, an easy seventy-minute drive down US Highway 1 across the Jewfish Creek bridge. It is known primarily as the dive capital of the Upper Keys, defined by the shallow living coral reef system in John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park and easy access to the mangrove shallows of Florida Bay. Key Largo is worth visiting if you want to dive barrier reefs by morning and eat whole scored yellowtail snapper beside the boat slips by nightfall.
Last updated 7 Sept 2026
Field notes
Photographs · Wikimedia Commons
Build a Key Largo itinerary.
Choose up to 4 threads that pull you in. Your plan arrives organised around them.
The Bed
Where to stay in Key Largo
Which part of town to book, and what each one costs you in walking, noise or quiet.
The Comparison
Key Largo, or somewhere near it
The places you are realistically choosing between, and the honest case for each.
The Local Record
Where to read more about Key Largo
The blogs, boards, guides and operators worth bookmarking.
What to do in Key Largo Florida United States
The town stretches along a narrow spine of the Overseas Highway, where life divides neatly between the Atlantic reef line to the east and the mangrove shallows of Florida Bay to the west. Days rotate around boat charters, wet neoprene, and casual fish shacks where deckhands and travellers share battered picnic tables. It suits independent travellers who prefer salt spray and unpretentious waterfront dining over resort polished perfection.
24 hours in Key Largo Florida United States
Book an 8:30 a.m. snorkel boat out to Molasses Reef from John Pennekamp, then dry off over blackened mahi-mahi sandwiches at a dockside marina. Spend the late afternoon paddling Blackwater Sound before catching sunset over cold lager and smoked fish dip along the bayside. Select 1 Day above to see it.
2 days in Key Largo Florida United States
A second day lets you hike the shaded trails of Dagny Johnson Key Largo Hammock Botanical State Park before driving south to Tavernier. Eat scored hogfish with black beans at an old roadside joint, then inspect injured pelicans and raptors at the Wild Bird Rehabilitation Center. Choose 2 Days to expand the plan.
3 days in Key Largo Florida United States
With three days, head into the backcountry shallows of Everglades National Park by skiff from Flamingo or book a full-day wreck dive on the Spiegel Grove. Linger over a slice of tart key lime pie at an unhurried bakery porch without monitoring your watch for the airport run.
Key Largo Florida United States itineraries by interest
Scuba Diving in Key Largo Florida United States
Descend sixty feet to the coral-encrusted Christ of the Abyss statue or explore the five-hundred-foot steel deck of the sunken wreck USS Spiegel Grove.
Local Seafood in Key Largo Florida United States
Order cracked conch, smoked fish dip with saltines, and whole yellowtail snapper scored and deep-fried at open-air docks along the Overseas Highway.
Kayaking & Canoeing in Key Largo Florida United States
Paddle rented sit-on-top kayaks through shaded red mangrove tunnels and calm tidal creeks into the shallow flats of Blackwater Sound.
Snorkelling in Key Largo Florida United States
Take morning catamarans out to the shallow patch reefs of Grecian Rocks and Molasses Reef to spot parrotfish, nurse sharks, and brain coral.
State Parks in Key Largo Florida United States
Walk hardwood hammock trails and rent glass-bottom boats inside John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park off Mile Marker 102.5.
Inshore Fishing in Key Largo Florida United States
Hire flats skiffs from local marinas to stalk bonefish, tarpon, and snook with light tackle across the shallows of Florida Bay.
Birdwatching in Key Largo Florida United States
Spot white-crowned pigeons, osprey nests, and roseate spoonbills along the quiet nature boardwalks at the Florida Keys Wild Bird Center.
Craft Beer in Key Largo Florida United States
Drink cold IPAs brewed with mangrove honey and key lime on the shaded gravel patios along the bayside Overseas Highway corridor.
Baking & Desserts in Key Largo Florida United States
Sample tart yellow custard key lime pie topped with browned meringue or whipped cream at longtime roadside bakeries along Route 1.
Sailing in Key Largo Florida United States
Board daytime or sunset charter sloops out of Caribbean Drive to drift over the Atlantic shallows and clear emerald channels.
Nature Reserves in Key Largo Florida United States
Hike the flat coral rock paths through tropical hardwood hammock canopy at Dagny Johnson Botanical State Park at Mile Marker 106.
Wreck Diving in Key Largo Florida United States
Dive the Duane and Bibb, deep Coast Guard cutters sunk as artificial reefs holding barracuda, goliath grouper, and massive jacks.