After Christmas my family and I spent a week relaxing and re-charging in Islamorada, FL. It was our first time in the area and we were looking for somewhere easy to get to and warm enough for bathing suits! Islamorada is halfway between Miami and Key West and was an easy, direct flight from Charleston to Miami. From there it’s an 1:30-1:45 drive to the collection of islands in the Florida Keys.
We rented a great house that was right on the beach and had a pool/hottub in the backyard. I can’t tell you how amazing it was to have everything we needed right there, especially with kids. We were able to put the girls down for naps and still enjoy time outside! We brought our lollipop monitors and easily hooked them up to the house wifi. Personally I think the house could use some updating, but that could just be the interior design lover in me 🙂
The house had floats, tons of toys for little ones and beach games that were perfect for all the time spent outside. There’s a great spot across the street, Robbie’s, were you can rent fishing poles, kayaks, paddle boards and water activities. Brian rented fishing equipment from here, but I wish we’d also done paddleboards! It’s the same price to rent for a week as it is two days, so if you want to get anything, I’d recommend getting it as soon as you’re down there so you can take full advantage of it for the price!
We picked up fresh fish for dinner a few nights from Lobster Walk and can’t recommend it enough! The staff was incredibly helpful and everything is brought in fresh daily. We cooked lobsters for New Year’s Eve and had amazing crab legs and grouper other nights! We love dining out, but with kids it’s so much easier (and relaxing!) to pick up fresh seafood and cook it at home with a glass of wine.
We went to Lorelei’s for sunset drinks and dinner one night and they had live music right on the water! It was insanely packed, so I’d definitely get there early for a table. Food was mediocre, but it seemed like a place you’d go to for the music, drinks and sunset 🙂
We drove down to Key West for a day and I somehow only managed to get a picture of the key lime pie we  brought home. Definitely a fun day trip to walk around the see the area!
We really just used the trip to relax by the water and enjoy family time, so we didn’t explore too much of the islands, but here are some spots I have saved for next time:
more spots to checkout:
+ Midway Cafe: a great, low-key spot for breakfast!
+ Theatre of the Sea: really wished we’d had time to take Olivia! For any marine loving little ones this looks like such a fun spot!
+ Chef Michael’s: looks delicious for dinner!
+ Islamorada Beer Company: for a fun afternoon sampling local beers
+ Robbie’s: for renting a boat for the day or any water activities!
what I packed:
xx
