Tips for a Budget-Friendly Trip to the Florida Keys

After all of our trips to the Florida Keys, the biggest question we get is how to visit the Florida Keys for cheap. “What’s an affordable hotel in Key West?” or “What key should we stay on for cheap rates?” Here’s how to plan a budget-friendly trip to the Florida Keys, with tons of fun. Below you’ll find budgeting tips and recommendations for how to put together a less expensive family vacation to the Florida Keys.

If we’re missing a topic or don’t answer your question in this post about doing an inexpensive Florida Keys trip, leave a comment or send us a note and we’ll get you set up with the best budget information possible. Even though we like to enjoy luxury hotels and top tier tours, that’s not our standard way of travel so we have plenty of budget travel advice for the Florida Keys.

How to Budget for the Florida Keys

I wish I could say that the Florida Keys are the most low budget destination in Florida, but that’s simply not true. Due to their high demand and limited space, the Keys are one of the more costly places in Florida to travel to. Our budget Florida Keys tips are good year-round, but you’ll find that one of the least expensive times to visit is actually in summertime aka hurricane season.

But now let’s get into just what you need to consider when you’re plotting out your costs and what your Florida Keys vacation spend might look like. Whenever you budget for any vacation, you have to keep four things in mind:

• Transportation – flights / rental car / gas
• Hotels – lodging / vacation rental / resort
• Food – 3 meals a day and snacks
• Activities – cheap things to do are great, but big ticket fun is also nice

We tend to set a lump sum budget before we dedicate to our destination, and then if we can make our ideal vacation destination work we will fit it to our budget. The Florida Keys budget is an example of setting a total amount and then tailoring your plan to fit it. You’ll be able to figure out your costs and allocate amounts once you’ve set the maximum amount you want to spend.

Actual Florida Keys Costs per Day

Unless you’re flying into Key West and just staying there, a trip to the islands is for sure going to be a Florida Keys road trip. That’s a great way to set up an inexpensive Florida Keys vacation because you will be able to be flexible for where you stay and what activities you do since you’ll have a car. You won’t have to stay in downtown Key West but can choose something more budget friends just a key or two over.

To estimate daily costs, I’ve taken our last two trips to the Florida Keys and broken it down. This doesn’t account for flight or rental car costs since we live here, but just gas, lodging, food and fun. Consider our expenses as you make an affordable Florida Keys budget.

• Gas: 1 tank of gas gets you from Homestead, Florida to Key West and back to Homestead. Gas in the Florida Keys is the same price as on mainland Florida if you fill up on Key Largo, Marathon or Key West. If you are driving a gas guzzler, plan for two tanks of gas.
• Hotels in the Florida Keys:  this is the biggest cost at $200+ night assuming you go in off-season (July – October). For nicer Florida Keys resorts, you’ll be looking at $350+ per night in the off season. If you visit during peak season (November – June) you could be looking at $250+ per night for the budget hotel options, and over $400 per night for the fancier spots. Vacation rentals match these rates but then you need to take into account the multitude of fees.
• Dining – there are lots wonderful inexpensive places to eat in the Florida Keys (see below) so if you plan your dining to have great food on a budget, you will probably spend around $150 or less per day for a family of four. This doesn’t include fine dining, but just three quality, casual meals per day without alcoholic beverages.
• Activities – there are lots of free and cheap things to do in the Florida Keys, so you’ll not have to worry too much here. To average our spending over a week, it is about $80 per day for activities for four people. That doesn’t account for big ticket excursions like visiting Dry Tortugas National Park or doing a fishing trip, but includes things like state park activities, snorkeling tours and museums.

Here’s the Florida Keys budget breakdown, both doing the very cheap, most affordable style and then keeping things less expensive, but enjoying a few more nice meals and big ticket activities. 

For the latter, we made the budget based on getting a nice hotel at a great deal, enjoying two mid-grade meals and one nice dinner each day, and then doing activities on the cheap but doing two big excursions (fishing, private charter, or Dry Tortugas). The big ticket excursions tend to run between $600 and $900 for a family of four, which is why we limit the number of these. The last budget below is if you’re choosing to go nicer for most things, but still not going full-luxe.

Family of 4 Budget	Gas	Hotels	Dining	Activities	Total Daily
Tight budget / day	50	200	120	20	390
Medium budget /day	50	250	160	80	540
Budget w/ luxe /day	50	320	220	275	865

Of course, you can always set a lower budget and book your Florida Keys resort or lodging in advance on a great deal, but if you’re planning 2-3 months out, these costs are pretty accurate (2024 prices). And our tight budget Florida Keys amount is doable, but you must stay strict with your spending and book in advance. Here is the TOTAL COST if you’re doing a week (6 nights and a half day)

Family of 4 Budget	Gas	Hotels	Dining	Activities	Total Daily
Tight budget	50	200	120	20	2535
Medium budget	50	250	160	80	3510
Budget w/ luxe	50	320	220	275	5623

Is a Florida Keys Trip Worth the Cost?

Now that you’ve seen how much a week in the Florida Keys costs if you’re on a variety of budgets, do you think it’s worth it? I certainly do. I love getting to swim, see dolphins, enjoy kayaking and walking through Key West. The amount of wildlife we see and the beautiful sunsets make each day special. I would much rather spend a week at the high end of the Florida Keys budget enjoying the islands that spend a week at a theme park for twice the cost.

Note: we’ve done theme park trips and done them on a budget and we’re always floored by our final costs. Here’s a great article from NerdWallet about the actual costs of a Disney vacation for a family of four, with the lowest cost coming in at over $6000 for a week… So you decide if a Florida Keys trip is worth the cost.

Affordable Florida Keys Hotels

Something we’re always a fan of is using points for travel, and since there are Florida Keys resorts and hotels that are a part of major travel brands, such as IHG (Holiday Inn or Kimpton), Marriott, or Preferred Hotels (love the Hawks Cay Resort) you’ll actually be able to find accommodations that you can use points for. There are also lots of independent hotels, such as the Laureate Hotel or Marker Resort in Key West.

When it comes to Florida Keys budget hotels, there aren’t too many in the Middle Keys, but you’ll find some small inns and roadside motels that could work well. We HAVEN’T stayed in any roadside motels in the Florida Keys, so we cannot recommend any one in particular, but there are quite a few, including these cute ones we peeked at and/or researched:

• Seafarer Resort – not fancy, but has some fun amenities
• Rock Reef Resort – pool and beach access at property
• Creekside Inn Islamorada – great location with good outdoor space, some renovations
• Sands of Islamorada – I think this looks like a great option (seen in person) but no recent reviews
• Siesta Motel Marathon – it boasts being awesome and is in a great location
• Looe Key Reef or Old Wooden Bridge Resort – these both look awesome and we’re actively planning to stay here soon! (low season is a small window in fall)

As a reminder, MOTEL is different than HOTEL. If you are choosing to book an inexpensive motel in the Florida Keys, know that it’s NOT going to be fancy. You may have amenities like a pool, kayaks or beach access, but you should not expect a property that is 100% 5 star across the board. Always expect cleanliness, but do not expect luxe.

Where to Stay in Key West on a Budget

Key West is wonderful for finding unique places to stay for any range of budget. We’ve enjoyed staying in some beautiful hotels (loved both the Perry Hotel and Coconut Beach Resort) but there are budget-friendly options too, including vintage bed and breakfasts. An option like staying at the Laureate Hotel can be budget friendly because it’s so spacious and can be shared accommodations (it’s an all-suites hotel). Staying at the Marker Resort or similar is lovely, but not what we’d consider budget-friendly.

The best way to find budget accommodations in Key West, or any of the Florida Keys, is to plan in advance. The trend of getting great last minute deals has passed, especially in a destination like the Florida Keys, so proper planning is much more important now.

Another way to land within the budget you’re working with is to consider what part of town you’re staying in. There are some wonderful hotels on Roosevelt Boulevard, NOT downtown, and these tend to offer lower prices year round. We’ve found great deals consistently with the Gates Hotel and 24 North Hotel, both on Roosevelt BLVD, but even they can be pricey during the holidays or FantasyFest.

Plan to spend more than $190 per night for a hotel or B&B in Key West. More nights in one place usually gets you a better rate, but not usually by too much. And remember, staying directly downtown does add a premium to your nightly rate.

Florida Keys Vacation Rentals and AirBNBs

Because the Florida Keys is such a fun, desirable destination, booking a vacation rental or AirBNB in the Keys may be more complicated. Minimum night stays are very common and accommodations for just a couple vs a family are more difficult to find. As you’re planning, consider choosing a vacation rental that’s central to at least half of your activities plan. If you can get a better rate by staying in one spot for three or four nights, do it. It’ll help make the Keys vacation inexpensive AND you’ll have a consistent home base to return to each day.

As you search for vacation rentals in the Florida Keys you’ll typically find multiple rooms for multiple nights, making any booking several hundred dollars. Unless you’re a large family that would normally get two or more hotel rooms, you’ll be spending significantly more each night for a vacation rental in the Keys. A family of four will likely get a better deal booking a nice hotel room than booking a vacation rental due to nightly rates and fees.

Planning a group trip is really smart though and perfect to turn a trip into an affordable Florida Keys vacation on a budget-friendly trip. Between being able to split the cost of a Florida Keys vacation rental AND being able to split the cost of tour charters (see below) you’ll be able to lower the total cost per family significantly!

Using Points for Hotels in the Florida Keys

Yes! In Key Largo, Marathon, and Key West you’ll find lots of national travel brand hotels that do actually open their inventory for booking with points. We’ve used IHG rewards points in Key West and Key Largo multiple times. We’ve used Hilton Honors points and Marriott Bonvoy points. While the number of rooms each property allows to be booked with points is small, if you’re planning far enough in advance, you should be successful. This is a great way to plan an inexpensive Florida Keys vacation. You can then move that budget to more high end tours and activities if you want.

Inexpensive Florida Keys Activities

There are lots of activities in the Florida Keys that you can enjoy on a budget. The highlight of being in the Keys is having nature at your fingertips. Of course there are tours and paid experiences for getting into the backwaters of the Keys, but there are ways to do it on the cheap. Also, there’s a lot of history to experience all through the Florida Keys, and many of those sites are free or cheap. You’ll have plenty to do!

Florida Keys Beaches – Free or Cheap Things to Do

Beaches are a great option, although most are not at all like what you typically picture when you think of a beautiful Florida beach. There are beach parks and state parks from end to end in the Florida Keys if you know where to look. My favorite beaches include Sombrero Beach in Marathon, John Pennekamp State Park beach (good snorkeling), and Fort Zachary Taylor State Park in Key West.

There are five beaches around Key West and then as you travel from key to key you’ll come across more. Most of them are public access, but some are found within state parks that have a fee. Long Key, Bahia Honda, Pennekamp and more all have beaches and facilities for visitors. These are great, inexpensive activities when you’re trying to stick to your budget in the Florida Keys.

History Activities in the Keys for Cheap

You might not think of the Florida Keys as a historic destination, but it actually is! Especially when you get to Key West, there are all kinds of historic sites throughout the Keys. Whether you want to learn about the Calusa people or see where they quarried fossils to build the railroad tracks, there are lots of stops you can make. Windley Key Fossil Reef Geological State Park is really cool and is all about geology AND Henry Flagler’s railroad. Fort Zachary Taylor State Park has a Civil War era fortress to explore. If you brought bikes, you can ride on the old railroad trestle alongside the current Overseas Highway. There are lots of options!

Is a Charter a Budget Florida Keys Option?

Before you start thinking that chartering a boat to take you around through the backwaters is an unattainable tour option, when you do the math, you’ll find that it’s actually an inexpensive way to enjoy a luxury experience in the Florida Keys. There are a number of companies and captains that do half and full day charters to take visitors around the Key West National Wildlife Refuge and through the many bays and sandbars you’ll see.

Here’s why this is a budget friendly activity, or at least a better deal than you might expect: if you’re booking passage for four people on a boat for a half day excursion of snorkeling and wildlife watching, you”ll probably be spending $120+ per person plus gratuity and then you’re at the whim of the larger group tour. If you have four or more people and hire a captain for a half day, you get to control or influence the activities and sightseeing, and because there are multiple people sharing the cost, it works out to be less than booking a larger tour company. And how luxe is it to have your own captain?

We had the best adventure with Island to Island Charters going through tiny islands, narrow passages and jumping off the boat to explore sandbars. It’s still one of our favorite Florida Keys activities we’ve ever done.

You’ll have a great trip to the Florida Keys, I’m sure, but to make it more affordable and budget-friendly, be sure to plan it and book it in advance. In addition to getting better hotel rates, booking in advance allows you to prepay for activities, so if that helps you stick to your budget or increase your budget, book things when you know you want to.

If you have any other questions about planning an inexpensive Florida Keys vacation, budgeting for a higher end trip or need specific recommendations please leave a comment or send us a note. We’re always plotting and planning our next Florida Keys adventure and are more than happy to share more!