Key West · Things to do

907 Whitehead Street, open daily 9am–5pm, walk-in with guided tours included. Hemingway wrote here through the 1930s; the grounds are still home to six-toed cats descended from the one a ship's captain gave him. Allow an hour.

601 Howard England Way, open 8am to sundown every day of the year for $6 per vehicle; the fort itself closes at 5pm. A pre-Civil War National Historic Landmark holding the world's largest cache of Civil War armament, and attached to the best swimming beach on the island, with a café and chair, umbrella and snorkel rental. Re-enactors the third weekend of each month.

111 Front Street, open daily 9:30am–5pm, guided tours from $24. Florida's only presidential museum: Truman spent 175 days here across 11 visits, Eisenhower recovered from his 1956 heart attack in the house, and Edison lived in it during the First World War.

Seven coral-and-sand islands almost 70 miles west of Key West, reached only by ferry or seaplane — a full day out, booked well in advance, with Fort Jefferson and clear-water snorkelling straight off the beach. Check the park's current-conditions page before you commit, as weather cancels trips.

1316 Duval Street at the quiet southern end, open 9am–5pm with last admission 4:30pm. A glass-domed tropical habitat with 50–60 butterfly species flying free, plus exotic birds and two flamingos. Tickets are sold online, and — rare for Key West — there is free parking behind the building.