What’s new in Florida Keys

In 2024 Florida Keys & Key West presents a host of newly refreshed and expanded resorts, a new Florida Keys Eco-Experience Trail pass, and much more besides.

Also notable is a wealth of new hotel facilities opening up plus a new Lower Keys brewery. Plan a 2024 Florida Keys trip and experience these all-new island style amenities and activities.

Keys Airlift

Airline seat capacity is increasing at Key West International Airport (EYW) and the facility is currently undergoing a major Concourse A expansion. The expansion is set for completion in the first quarter of 2025, with a planned eighth gate slated to open by early 2026. United Airlines begins daily nonstop flights Dec. 21 to EYW from Chicago O’Hare, Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental and Washington D.C.’s Dulles international airports. replacing its 70-seat Embraer 170 aircraft on those three routes. JetBlue has resumed its seasonal service from Boston to EYW with daily nonstop service through April 30, 2024.

Keys Accommodations

At Everglades National Park, the all-new restaurant at the 24-unit Flamingo Lodge and Restaurant is scheduled to open by late December. The stand-alone 75-seat restaurant — with casual fare including burritos, wraps, sandwiches, soups, salads and desserts is open to all park visitors; and reservations are not accepted. The lodge, with studios and one- and two-bedroom suites with kitchenettes and balconies overlooking Florida Bay, has rates of $259 to $399 per night, plus tax, through May with a 14-day maximum stay. The park’s newly renovated pink Guy Bradley Visitor Center is open daily and features a Florida National Parks Association bookstore, interactive nature and art exhibits, and expansive views overlooking Florida Bay. The 2,400-square-mile Everglades National Park is the continental United States’ third-largest national park. Visit flamingoeverglades.com/dining/ and flamingoeverglades.com/flamingo-lodge-restaurant

The 125-unit Faro Blanco Resort & Yacht Club, located at 1996 Overseas Highway at Marathon’s iconic 1950s-era lighthouse, is undergoing a conversion to become Faro Blanco Resort & Yacht Club, Curio Collection by Hilton, in 2024. The property will include over 40,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor meeting space, an all-new spa and fitness center, one- and two-story bungalows, a pool deck with bar and infinity pool, and two-story poolside cabanas. Visit faroblancoresort.com.

In the Lower Keys, the waterfront Sun Outdoors Sugarloaf Key has opened as the Keys’ fourth Sun Outdoors RV resort. It features 73 full hookup RV sites with patio, complimentary Wi-Fi and outdoor picnic tables; a heated pool, boardwalk, Tiki bar with firepit. An additional 20 vacation cottages with patios and complimentary Wi-Fi are available. Amenities include rentals of kayaks, paddleboards and “AquaBanas” or giant water inflatables. Visit sunoutdoors.com/florida/sun-outdoors-sugarloaf-key

The legendary 311-room Casa Marina Key West, Curio Collection by Hilton, has unveiled its grand renovation with all new guestrooms — including 63 suites, many featuring oceanfront balconies and walkout beachside lanais. There is a new lobby Canary Bar, enhanced food and beverage venues and a new 5,000-square-foot oceanfront event lawn. Two outdoor piers for watersports are fully renovated, and offerings include jet-ski tours, paddleboard and kayak rentals, and snorkeling trips on a luxury catamaran. Visit casamarinaresort.com call 305-296-3535.

In Key West, La Concha Key West hotel is undergoing renovations and a conversion to a Marriott property with 160 rooms and 14 suites. First-phase renovations are slated for completion by the third quarter of 2024. Undergoing transformation are the lobby, bar and restaurant, pool and fitness center. In addition, the spa area is being converted into premium rooftop suites. The property originally opened in 1926 as a luxury hotel. Visit laconchakeywest.com

In Key West, the new two-bedroom, one-bath floating The Outpost can be booked for an “off-the-grid” experience as a private “conch cottage” in backcountry waters off Key West. The Outpost includes front and back decks, a game room and fully equipped kitchen and topside seating area. Paddleboards and snorkel gear are provided, and kayak and eco-tours can be booked. The floating cottage can sleep four with a minimum two-night stay. Visit mellowkw.com/eco-vacations

Also in Key West, The Capitana, an Opal Collection boutique waterfront hotel, offers three all-new beachside cabanas available for daily reservations. The six-person cabanas each feature a TV, mini refrigerator filled with complimentary soft drinks and water, and options to order food and beverages delivered directly to the cabana. Visit thecapitanakeywest.com 

Keys Sustainability

The Monroe County Tourist Development Council is launching a Florida Keys Eco-Experience Trail pass in December, featuring nearly 50 free geo-tagged, bookable experiences such as visiting Keys eco-attractions, taking a backcountry kayak tour or exploring the island chain’s wildlife refuges and state parks. Activities promote engagement with the Keys’ sustainability initiatives. Trail participants can discover unique nature tours, coral restoration opportunities and fishing, diving and snorkeling. The mobile-exclusive digital Florida Keys Eco-Experience pass features offers, added values and Keys-branded prizes. Visit fla-keys.com/experience.

In Key West, Reef Relief’s Plastic Free Key West program helps motivate businesses to voluntarily commit to reducing or eliminating single-use plastics through sustainable replacement strategies. A resolution supporting Plastic Free Key West to stem plastic pollution in waters was adopted by the Key West City Commission in early 2023. Visit reefrelief.org/plastic-free-key-west/

In Islamorada, the Dolphins Plus Marine Mammal Responder rescue group is targeting a spring 2024 opening of The Protect Center Whale & Dolphin Hospital as South Florida’s only teaching veterinary hospital treating injured whales, bottlenose dolphins and other marine mammals. The new facility is to include a 40-feet-diameter pool for long-term marine mammal rehabilitation, an educational classroom and a 3,000-square-feet marine wildlife conservation museum. Visit connecttoprotect.org/hospital or call 305-453-4321.

In Marathon, the 63.5-acre Crane Point Museum & Nature Trails is scheduled to unveil its all-new home for the Marathon Wild Bird Center by late January, with educational bird enclosures, a shaded outdoor seating area, and a hospital and rehabilitation facility. The facility can shelter more than 40 non-releasable birds and continues to treat about 750 birds annually. Since 1995 the hospital has rehabilitated more than 25,000 wild birds of different species and released them back into their natural habitat.  Visit cranepoint.net