In May my husband and I are taking a trip to Fort Lauderdale then down to the keys. We are in our early 50's looking for a quiet place, nice rooms, beach, snorkeling and good food. In Fort Lauderdale we are thinking of the Lago Mar Resort. In the keys we are not sure if we want to stay right in Key West or in surrounding keys. We are looking into Checca Lodge,Hilton Key West Resort,Hyatt Key West Resort,Grand Key Resort or Hawks Kay Resort. If anyone has stayed at any of these resorts please let us know.

First let me remind you that since the keys are coral, all the beaches there are man-made with imported sand and most are very tiny. For a real "beach" experience, you'll have to rely on Ft. Lauderdale. I've stayed at the Cheeca Lodge and although it's nice, I don't think we'll stay there again simply because Islamorada doesn't have much to do. The same would hold true for Hawk's Cay. It's sort of out in the middle of nowhere, so if all you want in a vacation is R & R, either it or the Cheeca would be good choices. In Key West, the Hyatt is - in my opinion - the far superior of your other choices. The Grand Key Resort is virtually new, but is near the airport and not much else. The Hilton gets mixed reviews although it's in a great location. Some people have had very good experiences there, but far more have been disappointed. I've stayed at the Hyatt several times. It's also on Front Street, just down from the Hilton, and is really nice. My favorite place is the Galleon, which is a timeshare that rents to non-owners and is next door to the Hyatt. They have fully equipped condos and the best rooms overlook the marina.

It's been a few years since I was there, but I think a fun romantic place to stay in Ft. Lauderdale is the Riverside Hotel on Las Olas Blvd. An older nicely refurbished charming place-each room is different, outdoor pool. Las Olas has quaint shops; kinda pricey but looking's free, many good dining choices and only a 10-15 minute walk to beach and close to the city's new Riverwalk area. I don't know Lago Mar. The Keys is a long drive that's o.k. once you get out of Miami. Lovely little bookstore right on main road in Tavenier makes a good road break. They'd have good current info on all things Keys. WhaleHarbor in Islamorada has an excellent seafood buffet. If you get to Key West have breakfast at Blue Heaven- outdoors and funky; huge pancakes and fruit under large trees with chickens wandering around.One of a kind.Also, Kelly's Caribbean, owned by actress Kelly McGillis (?) has nice outdoor courtyard dining.

Hi Linda! We went to the middle keys the first week in December and it was great! We stayed in Islamorada at a place called The Chesapeake. It was one of the most romantic hotels we've ever been to and the beach area is incredibly beautiful. While we were there ,we drove down to Key West and that was fun to visit but it isn't my type of place - too busy with lots of shopping,dining etc. Lots of people enjoy that kind of thing, but I like it quieter and more relaxing. We visited some friends who were staying at the Cheeca and it also had beautiful landscaping but they had to DRIVE to the beach area - I'd rather be on the beach but they said it cost alot more for oceanfront. Still a nice place.

Heard mixed reviews of Hawks Cay Resort. I have stayed at the Moorings in Islamorada and it is nice. In Key West I second the Galleon.

Susan thanks for such great info. My friends and I plan on going down there (key West sometime in June (I know hot hot hot) for my friends 3oth birthday. We don't want romantic places just some sun and fun (we're not taking any fellas). Any other suggestions as to where to stay, I'm not sure how many of us we haven't all decided yet somewhere between 5-10. Thanks any help will be appreciated

You ladies want to party Holiday Isle in Islamorada is the place for you.

There is great snorkeling at the live reef by John Pennecamp State Park at Key Largo. Just go in the park. There is a tour that takes snorkelers out to the reef by boat. They will even supply the gear if necessary. cost is very inexpensive. You should see an awesome number of very colorful fish and sea life.

Barney, everyone is telling us to stick to Key West. Why do you think Islamorado is more fun? Thanks!

Just got back last week from a trip to the middle Keys. We did go to John Pennekamp and want to clarify one thing.There is no good snorkeling from the shore there. They have one small beach (Cannon beach) with several sunken cannons where you will see a few fish, but not many. You do have to take a charter out to the reef, which is a couple of miles off shore. Or a more economical option (which we took) was to rent a boat and go to the reefs ourselves for snorkeling. By the way we stayed on Islamorada at the Cheeca Lodge and it was fine -had a nice beach area but we didn't get oceanfront and we were pretty distance from the beach. Saw Holiday Isle- it's not real great-right on the highway, lots of rooms face the road, very small beach crowded with beach chairs, but I've heard too that it's the place to meet people if you're single.

Wendy-My single friends from Ft. Lauderdale spend quite a bit of time at Holiday Isle and their infamous bar "The Kokomo." It is also the place where a lot of the single flight crews from the airlines hang out when they are laying over. I think it is worth a night or two if you want to party.