[StarfishKey]

@rrokit: End of January won't be so bad as beginning of January, at least. There are a lot of places in the Upper Keys that rent out rooms, RVs, trailers, houseboats, and whole houses. You don't seem to be aware though that the Florida Keys are coral rock islands, so you will not be on real beaches most of the time. There are small beaches to visit here and there though, and the ones made by hotels are tiny but convenient. Bahia Honda further south has a beach, and in the Upper Keys John Pennekamp State Park has 2 small ones, and Harry Harris has a swimming area. But the Florida Keys are nothing like the rest of Florida that way - it's coral rock, shallow water, and not a lot of waves. Great for endless water sports, but not really a beach bumming kind of place. Key West of course does have its own beaches, but they're not huge either.

You can find tons of rental offerings on Craigslist - although of course be careful to check it out and not get scammed. As for specifics in the Upper Keys, Kings Kampground has a cute little cabin for rent that is affordable, and I think also 2 RVs. It is in a trailer park, but with a direct view of the sunset over the bay and boating access, and it's a friendly area with both tourists and people who decided to make their vacation a lifestyle.

You also of course have the option to rent an RV and stay in John Pennekamp State Park right near the beach, or in one of the many trailer or RV parks that offer space - many of which have tiny makeshift beaches and/or boating access. You can also check out airbnb.com for rental houses or rooms which likely are as nice as they look, but keep in mind that many of them listed are illegally renting - many neighborhoods in the Upper Keys have restrictions on how many nights you can rent out your home, quite a few requiring minimum month or even yearly stays. Plenty of homeowners ignore that because they're in need of money, but technically the local ordinances are in place to protect the neighborhoods from the constant racket of partying fly-by-night tourists, as opposed to long-term renters. I don't think the person renting will get in trouble, but if a neighbor reports it, the host might get in trouble.

Late January can sometimes be on the cold side for the Keys, hate to say it. You really never know. Most of the time, it's sunny all day every day, dry, fairly low humidity, and can be in the 70s or 60s and can drop down into the 50s at night. On the other hand, it might rain and be in the 80s, it just depends. But keep in mind that mid-Jan to mid-Feb is generally the coldest month in the region. Even so, it is still stunningly beautiful.

You should have plenty of options within your price range if you plan ahead, especially since you are not at the peak of holiday season, and you're not being that picky. If it were me, I'd probably pick a houseboat because it's the most unusual. But there are lots of choices, and likely you can find something that will make you very happy. Kings Kamp though is well-maintained and friendly, affordable, and has an amazing view with a pier you can go on to watch the sunset, or the stars. Manatees sometimes come right up to it, and you will see plenty of large white herons, etc. There are a lot of great places to choose from, depending on what you prefer.

[rrokit]

@StarfishKey: That is a whole lot of very good information. Going to dig into that. I love the idea of a houseboat!

@bigh110: Bahia Honda SP looks very nice also.

Thank you both for the informative posts!

[thefragile]

I was in Key West a couple years ago, I need to get back. Was there for only 4 days but it was a lot of fun. I loved driving around on my moped, that was the first time I've ever ridden one. I miss the banana banshee rum drinks at Fat Tuesday. And drinking the coconut water, so refreshing. And surprisingly, some of the best mexican I've had was on Duvall St, at Old Town Mexican Cafe. Hopefully I'll get there again in the next couple years.

[Restrain]

We have a timeshare in Key West, get down there every year. But we like touring the upper keys as well. One of the funniest things we have seen is some idiot showing off while feeding the tarpon and getting his hand engulfed by the mouth of a tarpon.

[LionLady]

Originally Posted by rrokit

OK, I am attempting to reactivate this sticky/thread, although my question is more Keys-in-general oriented than Key West specific. If this needs to be moved I'm good with that.

My wife and I would like to spend 4-5 days touring the Keys, perhaps the end of January 2015. We'll likely be driving in from NC so initially want to stay in the upper keys to get acquainted with that area, plus that's a real good full day's drive. After a day or two we'd move on to Key West to finish our tour. I'm not concerned about the return trip from Key West since we will be staying on the Space Coast after this.

Are there cabins that can be rented for 1-2 day stays, say $100/night, give or take? We don't require four-star accommodations and would be happy with an efficiency or beach house, even a one-room bungalow or cabin. We'd prefer to be on the beach, but I do realize that we're never really too far from the beach anywhere we go, so that would not be a major issue.

I've tried the usual, VRBO and others but I'm writing here looking for recommendations or first hand experience from locals or others who have done something similar.

Any help is appreciated, and thanks for reading!

Have you checked out TripAdvisor.com? There is a very active discussion forum about Key West in particular (as well as every other travel destination you can imagine). Right now, there are two different "first timers" threads for Key West trips. You can click on FAQs for places to see as well as where to stay. You can trust the listed "destination experts' " opinions and suggestions. The folks there can steer you clear of places as well as offer money saving ideas. My husband and I have been to Key West five years in a row, and plan to return again and again. Bahia Honda State Park, and Islamorada are two places to stop on your way south.

(my TA moniker is Sirabi) I will say that January is "high $ea$on." Room rates will be high. There is a big boat race that either starts or finishes in Key West, in January (my dad and his wife usually are there for the event).

BEWARE CRAIGSLIST LISTINGS FOR KEY WEST!!! I think it is one of the most scammed vacation destinations! I can recall at least 5 different folks who posted on TA from Key West after arriving at their "rental" - made via Craigslist - that either doesn't have anything at the address or the agency has no record of the reservation. Sad state of affairs.

Best of luck planning your trip!!

[rrokit]

LionLady, thanks for the advice on TA. I will check up on this, and look for you there!

[Hawaii4evr]

Key West is not own for big nice beaches. They are decent at best. If you want a FL beach vacation, you are better off in Miami or Destin. Key West is like New Orleans: a huge psrty scene and lots of charming historical sites.

[Restrain]

West coast beaches are warmer, a lot of white sand, especially Clearwater up by Tampa. Even in winter. East coast beaches are colder, colder water overall. Just think about this when planning your trip. A run west across Alligator Alley will bring you up the west coast.

[Hawaii4evr]

Actually, in winter, the Atlantic waters are warmer than the Gulf.

[StarfishKey]

The average water temps. recorded for Key West are 69 in Jan., and 89 in July and Aug. Clearwater's low is 59 in Jan., and high is 89 in Aug. That is a 10 degree difference in the winter, and no difference in the summer.

However it's pretty irrelevant how much warmer or colder ocean waters are overall, when you are dealing with hot cloudless sun and the extremely shallow waters that surround the Keys in general. If you've ever actually been in them, in the winter they are generally very pleasant, and in the summer, they are sometimes hot like a bath. The experience of course is going to be different if you are jumping off a boat to go diving or snorkeling, where the water is much deeper, but if you're going out directly from a beach (most of which are man-made in the Keys for hotels, etc.), few access points include very deep water at the beginning. Anne's beach (public) in Islamorada is so shallow for instance that you could walk out seemingly forever and never have your head go under - the water there is very warm all the time. Bahia Honda is a little deeper and rougher, but I've been there in the winter and never found it cold. Cold water is not something that the Keys suffers from, and the majority of tourists are coming from cold places where it will seem very warm in comparison to even their summer ocean/lake temperatures. If you look at the Keys on a satellite map, it's pretty clear where the warm water is - everything that is a light turquoise blue, where it is shallow, is warm in water and almost hot in summer. By comparison, many Northern coasts are surrounded by dark blue very quickly, because the water gets deep fast. That's why flats boats are so popular here, because so much of the water is so shallow that normal boats can't navigate it. It's very simple science - shallow water in hot conditions is going to stay warm, much easier than deep water.

Now if you're looking for miles and miles of very wide beach, the Keys are not the best place to come. But to not come here because you don't think the water would be warm enough is just silly - the water is so hot it's killing the coral. Also, realistically, Monroe County is the only county far enough south to avoid freezing most years, whereas Miami-Dade and everything North of it freeze or come near to freezing on average at least once a year. The lowest recorded temperature in Key West was 41, and that was in 1886, and then not again until 1981 - and not since. During that time, Key Largo reached 35. The average low in Jan. and Feb. in Key Largo however is 62 degrees F - much much warmer than most other counties of FL as you head up North along the coastline. The highest recorded temp. ever in Key West was 100 degrees F - back in 1886 [they had a crazy year then!]. Clearwater's average low in Jan. is 50 - 12 degrees cooler, and they get significantly more rain than the Keys monthly. Their record low was 18 degrees in 1962 - a full 23 degrees colder than Key West's record low.

Here are the average temperatures and rainfall for Key West, for those planning a trip. [The temps. for Key Largo at the Northern end of the Keys, 100 miles away, are only a few degrees lower, with some 1-2 inches more rain every month - Miami by contrast gets temperatures of yet another few degrees lower in the winter only, and yet another 1-2 inches of rain additional to what Key Largo gets monthly.]

Key West Climate:
January

• Average High: 75° F
• Average Low: 65° F
• Average Precipitation: 2.22 inches

February

• Average High Temperature: 76° F
• Average Low Temperature: 66° F
• Average Precipitation: 1.51 inches

March

• Average High Temperature: 79° F
• Average Low Temperature: 69° F
• Average Precipitation: 1.86 inches

April

• Average High Temperature: 82° F
• Average Low Temperature: 72° F
• Average Precipitation: 2.06 inches

May

• Average High Temperature: 85° F
• Average Low Temperature: 76° F
• Average Precipitation: 3.48 inches

June

• Average High Temperature: 88° F
• Average Low Temperature: 79° F
• Average Precipitation: 4.57 inches

July

• Average High Temperature: 89° F
• Average Low Temperature: 80° F
• Average Precipitation: 3.27 inches

August

• Average High Temperature: 90° F
• Average Low Temperature: 79° F
• Average Precipitation: 5.40 inches

September

• Average High Temperature: 88° F
• Average Low Temperature: 79° F
• Average Precipitation: 5.45 inches

October

• Average High Temperature: 85° F
• Average Low Temperature: 76° F
• Average Precipitation: 4.34 inches

November

• Average High Temperature: 81° F
• Average Low Temperature: 72° F
• Average Precipitation: 2.64 inches

December

• Average High Temperature: 77° F
• Average Low Temperature: 67° F
• Average Precipitation: 2.14 inches

All of FL offers good places to vacation, depending on what you're looking for. But if you're looking for warm-hot temps with a nice breeze and warm water, it's hard to beat the Florida Keys. The Keys are excellent for snorkeling, diving, and fishing, as well as partying and just relaxing. If you're looking for miles of wide sandy beaches though, heading further North will suit you better. None of FL has truly great surfing, but the Keys' surf is almost non-existent. By contrast, if you want to try paddleboarding which is becoming extremely popular both for its fitness opportunities as well as the amazing views down into the water, there is no better place than the Keys to try it.