Any suggestions on where to stay(preferably cottages) and what to do?

A couple of years ago, we stayed at the Marquesa, which is pricey, but a nice, small hotel. (I think it has a website so you can do a search.) Be sure to go to the most wonderful restaurant called Blue Heaven. It is like going to a party in a friend's backyard -- a friend who has funky taste in decor,that is. Not expensive, but the food is AMAZING. I still fantasize about the desserts we had that night -- I am serious! Margaritaville is lame, unless you are a serious Buffett fan. The corny Conch train tour is kind of fun. Beaches are nice. There is plenty to do over a couple of days.

It really depends on which Key you want to stay on. If you really want to go all out stay on Little Palm Island. It is about 30 mile away from Key West. It is very decadent and expensive but most seem to think it is worth it.

Hampton-The beaches are NOT nice in the Keys. Did you drink too many margaritas or what??? The beaches are thin strips of trucked in sand and the water has a rocky bottom. Definitely need water shoes. The Keys are not known for their beaches.

That said, tharish, I would check out Islamorada. I highly recommend the Coral Bay Resort or Pine and Palms. Here is the website for Islamorada:
www.fla-keys.com/islamorada for Coral Bay..www.coralbayresort.com.

Hi, we just got back last saturday and stayed 3 nights on Islamorada at a Resort called the Chesapeake. It was really cute and friendly. You can either rent a bungalow or a regular hotel room. They have a web sight. The 4th night we stayed in Key West at the Wyndham Casa Marina and really liked that also.

I was in Key West 2 years ago, in July, and stayed at a property owned by Center Court (homes/inns/apartments--something like that). I no longer have the e-mail address but you can find them by looking on Google (that's how I found them). We stayed in a 1 bed/1 bath townhouse that had the bed/bath upstairs and the living room/kitchen area downstairs. This place was great and I highly recommend the Center Court people. They have properties all over Key West that include 1 bedrooms up to cottages/houses. We also had a pool next door to use whenever we wanted. It was actually right behind Center Courts' offices and we always had it to ourselves. I can't recommend this company highly enough. We were 1 block off of Duval, so it was easy to walk anywhere.

As another poster mentioned, the beaches in Key West are not great--very rocky! However, you can take a snorkeling cruise out to the coral reef--it's beautiful and a lot of fun. I found the company we used through the internet--Google again.

If you like to eat, you will be so happy in Key West. Every place we ate at was delicious but I did have some favorites. Cuban Brothers Grocery--delicious Cuban sandwiches! Mangia, Mangia--wonderful Italian! El Siboney--terrific Cuban food at great prices! I also ate at Rick's Blue Heaven--it's expensive but delicious. Be warned, though, there are chickens running around everywhere as you eat. One other place for good seafood--Bahama Mama's. You just can't go wrong with food in Key West.