Insider's Guide

Key West is well known for its residents’ welcoming and accepting attitude toward all people -- an attitude that gained formal recognition when local artist JT Thompson conceived the now global “One Human Family” concept.

As a co-producer of Islamorada’s annual Baygrass Bluegrass Festival, local singer/songwriter Robby McClung is passionate about generating more interest in that musical genre — and about bringing performers from around the world to enrich the Florida Keys' cultural and arts community.

Billy Kearins is the founder of COAST — a rustic, funky space made up of a retail store showroom, studio workshops, an event venue and more — originally on the fringes of Front Street, Stock Island, now in the historic Bahama Village neighborhood of Old Town Key West.

Key West is gloriously, outrageously abnormal — a place where wild chickens roam the streets and people feel comfortable wearing tiaras to lunch. A place where dogs are favored customers at more than one bar, and nobody thinks it’s strange to spot grown men dressed like Darth Vader or Marilyn Monroe (sometimes during the same evening!).

For more than 15 years, Randy Roberts has excited and entertained Key West audiences, impersonating a wide range of characters in a live multimedia tribute to some of the world’s most beloved female performers -- from the divine Bette Midler to the incomparable Cher.

Artists and artisans from across the globe flock to the Florida Keys and stay, making the island chain their home while helping shape its reputation as a cultural mecca. Whether textiles, jewelry, housewares, reclaimed wood furniture or other temptations, their quality handcrafted items are quintessentially “Keys.”

If one man’s junk is another man’s treasure, then the late Key Largo resident Stanley Papio was a treasure hunter extraordinaire. And ultimately, he became a treasure creator — crafting some of the edgiest and most eclectic metal sculptures of his generation.

Ben Daughtry’s passion for creating educational experiences in marine conservation led him to open Florida Keys Aquarium Encounters — where visitors can enjoy immersive experiences with reef fish, invertebrates, stingrays and even sharks without entering the ocean.

Family vacations in the Florida Keys mean moms, dads and kids can enjoy adrenaline-fueled fun in the 125-mile island chain that parallels the continental United States’ only living coral reef.

Captain Karen Luknis of Venus Charters cut power to the Suzuki engine as I watched her Pro-Line coast across Garrison Bight to a gentle stop at the dock, after helping another group of clients make lifelong memories.