Fly or Ferry or Drive from Ft Meyers to Key West?
 

We're off to Sanibel Isl next week for 10 days. We're flying into Tampa and picking up a rental car. While there, we're going down to Key West for 2 nights. Please advise best form of transportation to Key West: Drive (6 hours?), ferry (3+ hours), or take a flight from Naples airport (30+ minutes)? The flight is obviously more expensive, but it's tempting considering the time and being able to see the Keys from the air. Any help with this decision would be appreciated.

My suggestion:

Dump the rental car.

Fly to Key West, spend a day and a night there.

Rent a car at Key West airport. Spend the remainder of your time driving back to Sanibel through the Keys, The Everglads, and Naples.

I agree with Go Travel

The boat trip can be WAAAAAYYYY too rough!!

Warning: the ferry is NOT a reliable form of travel.

I was in Florida in February. I was in Key West for 5 nights. Had pre-purchased tickets for the ferry (from KW to Ft. Myers) and had arranged for a rental car to be waiting at the dock in Ft, Myers. so I could continue to my hotel in Venice.

Surprise. I went to the KW dock at the appointed time only to find out that the ferry was cancelled due to "high seas". And it was cancelled for the next 3 days.

So a leisurely 3.5-hour ferry ride turned into a mad scramble for a car and an 8-hour drive. Took me 4 weeks to get a ferry refund too.

ditto on the ferry...it is not reliable beacause of weather conditions...capeair.com and I think Continental fly there..one of C's smaller version planes anyway..probably be about the same as the ferry anyway..fly down and back and enjoy the trip or like others suggest...fly down AND drive back if you have never done it b4..stay on Old Town and cab to and from the airport if flying back..

Friends of mine just took the plane down from Naples to Key West, just for the day with their visiting grandson. They thought it was great. For two nights, I'd also take the flight. I think 6 hours driving from Sanibel is being conservative right now. It took friends over two hours the other day just to get from Sanibel to Naples, so make sure you allow plenty of time to get to the Naples airport!

By the way, I think there is now a shuttle bus that times with arriving flights to take you to downtown Key West if you don't want to "cab" it.

I've never taken the ferry or flown, always driven from Ft. Lauderdale or Miami down to the Keys. To be honest, while it's a beautiful drive, it's a long one, especially if you get stuck behind a slowwwww driver!

Thanks to all of your for your response. I think we'll book the flight both ways. We'll let the rental car sit at the airport while we're in Key West.

And here's the bonus. Did you know the parking is all free at Naples Airport???