Key West notes

About Key West

• Home and property

  Key West historic houses need the HARC map

  Key West's historic homes, porches, fences, paint, signs, and additions can sit inside a HARC review path, so the map matters before the work starts.

• Rules and licenses

  Key West residential parking is a permit system

  Key West residential parking permits shape daily parking for locals and visitors in the older part of the city.

• History and culture

  Hemingway Home keeps Key West's literary side close

  The Hemingway Home in Key West keeps the writer's island years close, with the old house, studio, pool, garden, and famous cats.

• Money and taxes

  Key West cruise and ferry days make the waterfront a money calendar

  Key West's port is a landmark waterfront system where cruise ships, ferries, foot traffic, shops, restaurants, and local schedules can all move together.

• Home and property

  Audubon House keeps Key West's wrecking era inside one home

  Audubon House and Tropical Gardens gives Key West a historic home story tied to maritime pilots, wrecking, tropical gardens, and old-island restoration.

• History and culture

  Key West Cemetery makes island history a walking map

  Key West Cemetery turns island history into a walk, with hurricane memory, high ground, family plots, old markers, and a city-run cemetery still in use.

• Cars and driving

  Key West Old Town parking garage can save the circle

  Key West parking is easier when drivers know the Old Town garage, transit connection, and evacuation exception before circling tight streets.

Nearby and wider Florida

Nearby stories, regional connections, and broader rules mentioned alongside Key West; these are not all subjects or rules specific to Key West.

• Outdoors

  Florida Keys mooring buoys are part of the water map

  In the Florida Keys, reef trips work better when boaters and snorkelers check sanctuary zones, mooring buoys, and current NOAA guidance first.

• Rules and licenses

  Florida Keys sanctuary rules shape water days

  Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary rules affect boating, fishing, diving, snorkeling, swimming, and reef visits.

• Cars and driving

  Florida Keys mile markers are part of the driving map

  In the Florida Keys, mile markers help people understand distance, addresses, directions, and where a place sits along the Overseas Highway.

• Home and property

  Florida lead paint disclosure follows pre-1978 homes

  Most pre-1978 Florida homes, apartments, and condos carry a federal lead paint disclosure step before a sale or lease is signed.

• Cars and driving

  Florida moped, scooter, and e-bike labels change the road plan

  Florida uses different lanes for mopeds, motor scooters, motorized scooters, and e-bikes, so the label can change license, tag, title, and local-rule details.

• Rules and licenses

  Florida boat rentals start with the livery permit

  A Florida boat, jet ski, kayak, paddlecraft, sailboat, or houseboat rental can carry a state livery permit check behind the fun.

• History and culture

  Key West gave Pan Am its first Havana hop

  Pan American Airways used a Key West-to-Havana flight in 1927, then opened regular service from Key West the next year.

• Outdoors

  Dry Tortugas starts in Key West, but it is not a quick drive

  Dry Tortugas National Park sits almost 70 miles west of Key West and can only be reached by boat or seaplane.

• Rules and licenses

  Florida's state pie and dessert share the table

  Florida gives key lime pie and strawberry shortcake separate official places, which says a lot about the Keys, Plant City, and the state's food pride.

• Cars and driving

  Overseas Highway carries the Keys railroad ghost

  The Overseas Highway drive through the Florida Keys follows a travel story that began before the modern road, when bridges, boats, farms, and rail lines shaped the islands.

• Cars and driving

  Seven Mile Bridge makes the Keys drive feel wide open

  Seven Mile Bridge is the open-water moment many people remember from the Florida Keys drive, with Pigeon Key and the old bridge keeping the railroad story nearby.

• Rules and licenses

  Key West Custom House keeps federal paperwork in a red-brick landmark

  Key West's Custom House started with customs, court, and post-office work, then became a museum that keeps the island's federal and maritime story visible.

• Outdoors

  The Florida Keys Overseas Heritage Trail is segment by segment

  The Florida Keys Overseas Heritage Trail is best planned by segment, with gaps, bridges, access points, and alerts checked before riding or walking.

• History and culture

  Key West chickens are part of the street scene

  Key West chickens feel like island color, but the city also treats feeding, trapping, health, and relocation as real local issues.