I went on a round-trip bus ride from Miami to Key West for $50.
My Key West Tours trip was pretty good and I enjoyed visiting Key West.
There were some issues, but I preferred the bus over driving myself to Key West and back in a day.
As someone who lives in Miami, I don't visit the Keys as often as I'd like.
So, I decided to take a day trip via bus from the city to Key West. I'd done it nearly five years ago when I first moved to Florida, and I remembered I didn't hate it.
Although a few companies offer this bus trip, I booked my $50 round-trip ticket with Key West Tours.
Here's what it was like.
My day started early.
My day had an early start.
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Pickup times for my Monday trip ranged from 6 a.m. to 7 a.m.
This start time made sense because reaching Key West would take three-and-a-half hours without traffic.
If we left any later, we wouldn't have had much time to explore the island before heading back for the evening.
I had to leave my home even earlier to get to a bus pickup location, which I chose when I booked my ticket.
Like many things in Miami, this day trip felt geared toward tourists. Stops were only located on Miami Beach, downtown, and near the airport — where most tourists stay.
As a local, this was a little inconvenient. I chose a stop on the beach closest to me and where I knew I could safely park my car for the day without spending too much money.
The bus stopped a few times to pick up passengers, and we ended up having to switch vehicles.
Our tour guide told us there was a mechanical issue with the bus, so we had to relocate to another.
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The bus picked me up at my stop, and then we continued south to pick up more passengers along Miami Beach.
However, our guide told us there was a mechanical issue with the bus, so we had to switch vehicles once we made it downtown.
This was inconvenient, but I was glad our driving team noticed the issue before we left the city.
Once downtown, we hopped on another bus that was partially full with a different tour group when we boarded.
This second bus felt older than the one we'd been riding, but I still found a comfortable seat on the second level.
We spent over an hour picking up riders in different parts of the city.
About an hour after we left Miami, we stopped in Key Largo.
We ate breakfast in Key Largo.
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Once we passed Homestead and Florida City, we stopped at a small plaza for breakfast. This was the only stop we made on our drive.
Even though I was eager to get to Key West, I appreciated the break to grab food and a coffee before we started the long trek down the Keys.
After that, we went straight to Key West.
We crossed over 40 bridges to get to Key West.
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The ride along the Overseas Highway, which connects mainland Florida to Key West, took us across 42 bridges.
The time passed quickly, probably because it was such a scenic ride.
Although I have a car and could easily drive myself to Key West, I wouldn't have been able to appreciate the views as much if I were the one behind the wheel.
During the trip, our guide told us about the different excursions we could do in Key West.
I appreciated that people had a second opportunity to book their excursions on the bus.
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We received a guided tour on the way down to Key West.
Our guide gave us some good, general information in English and Spanish about where we were on the islands, which I appreciated.
While we drove through the Keys, our guide took orders for excursions like snorkeling, parasailing, and riding a glass-bottom boat.
They also sold tickets for the island's famous Conch Train, which travels by many Keys attractions.
This was a good opportunity for people who weren't sure how they wanted to spend their day to make plans before we arrived.
When we made it to Key West, the bus dropped us off on the northern side of the island.
We were free to head out on our own for the day.
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Once we arrived, I had about six hours of free time in Key West.
We were told to meet back at the same spot in the evening so we could board the bus and head back to Miami.
First, I headed out to my snorkeling excursion and spent about an hour exploring the water and seeing tons of fish.
I had to take a 45-minute catamaran ride to and from the snorkel site, so it took up a lot of my day.
After snorkeling, I didn't have much time left on the island, so I got lunch.
I enjoyed the food I had at Amigos Tortilla Bar.
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By the time I finally returned from snorkeling, I had about two hours left on the island before I needed to return to the bus.
I headed to Amigos Tortilla Bar for lunch. It didn't disappoint.
The service was quick, and I scored a peaceful counter seat by the window. The quesadilla was solid, and I especially enjoyed the elote.
On my walk back to the bus, I tried different types of Key-lime pie.
Key West is famous for its Key-lime pie.
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I headed back to the bus after lunch.
Since I'd visited Key West before, it didn't bother me that I didn't have time to explore more of the island's highlights.
However, if this were my first time visiting Key West, I probably would've skipped the snorkeling and booked a ticket for the Conch Train. That way, I would've seen more local attractions, like Hemingway's House and the Southernmost Point Buoy.
Still, I had time to stop for a slice of the area's famous Key-lime pie on the way back to the bus.
All in all, taking the tour bus was an affordable way to visit the island, and I'd do it again.
I enjoyed spending a few hours on Key West.
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The ride back to Miami felt even quicker than our ride to Key West. There was almost no traffic, and we were back in the city at about 9 p.m.
Since we'd combined two buses at the start of the day, drop-off took longer than pick-up.
We spent about an hour dropping everyone off at their locations, and I made it back to my stop at about 10 p.m.
