Monroe County
Find What Inspires You
Escape the mundane with five subtropical and wildlife destinations in Monroe County, including Key Largo, Islamorada, Marathon, Key West and the Lower Keys. From snorkeling among the shipwrecks of the National Marine Sanctuary to the public art displays and amazing dining scene, Monroe County is brimming with activities that inspire. Key West is an exceptional LGBTQ-friendly location, with its own business guild boasting gay-owned and operated restaurants and retailers.
Whether you’re looking for a region with diverse cultures or a place where you can work remotely from the beach, Monroe County has got you covered.



- Dining
- Lifestyle
- Getting Around

Suitable for Any Taste
A Monroe County Florida map of all the great dining options would look like a blur, with award-winning cuisines and distinctive flavors. Marathon’s seafood festival and waterside restaurants offer a smorgasbord of tasty eats, from conch fritters to lobster and fish drawn from local waters. In Key West, fresh seafood delicacies include the city’s signature pink shrimp and stone crabs, while breweries like Islamorada Beer Co. and the storied Key West First Legal Rum Distillery serve up high-quality, innovative lagers and ales.

The Keys to the Good Life
Easy-going, leisure-driven communities extend throughout Monroe County, with nature preserves, sunset cruises and art galleries scattered from one end of the Keys to the other. Whether you’re exploring the distinguished public art throughout county buildings or just noticing the large-scale sculptures along the Overseas Highway, you’ll find the Florida Keys an explosive place of creativity with the most gorgeous backdrop of natural scenery. Monroe County is also home to the only living coral barrier reef in the continental U.S., ideal for snorkeling and deep-sea diving among an abundance of rare fish and shipwrecks.
If you’re a cinephile, the region is a film haven, boasting South Florida’s only nonprofit independent film multiplex and the Key West Film Festival — an annual celebration of contemporary cinema that was named one of the “25 Coolest Film Festivals on the World” by MovieMaker Magazine in 2022.
And CareerSource South FL is an excellent resource if you’re looking for Monroe County jobs.

Island Hopscotch for Grownups
Monroe County’s 126-mile-long archipelago is connected by 42 bridges that encompass the Florida Keys Overseas Highway. As Florida’s only All-American Road, the highway offers beautiful coastal views that will leave you entranced. Convenient public transportation extends throughout the county while Key West has been ranked as a Top 10 City for Cycling by People for Bikes. And if you’re traveling north for the day, several ground transportation options offer daily service to cities like Miami and Fort Lauderdale.
Get your landlocked friends and family to the Keys with two airports in Monroe County — Key West International Airport and Florida Keys Marathon International Airport. Key West International supported close to a million passengers in 2018, with expectations to increase traffic 2.4% annually over the next two decades.