Calusa Campground Resort

Calusa Campground Resort & Marina occupies a gated property at 325 Calusa Street, at mile marker 101.5 on the bay side of Key Largo, with paved interior roads and a mix of sites spread between the bayfront, the canals and the interior.

Accommodation comes in three forms. RV sites sit on gravel pads with full hookups, 30 and 50 amp electric, water and sewer, with pull-through sites available. Park models are rented out, again in bayfront, canal and inland positions. And there are tent sites, which is worth knowing because tent camping is in short supply in the Keys and tends to book out.

For anyone bringing a boat, this is the part that matters. The resort has its own boat ramp and dockage, and from here you can reach either Florida Bay or the Atlantic by running out through Tavernier Creek or the Marvin Adams cut. That means a backcountry morning and a reef afternoon from the same slip.

On land there is a swimming pool, a playground, tennis and basketball courts, a clubhouse, laundry facilities, Wi-Fi and LP gas. Pets are welcome on a leash.

John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park is a few minutes down the highway, and the dive and snorkel operators clustered around upper Key Largo are closer still, so the resort works as a base for a week on the water rather than a stopover.