This place is definetly worth the stop, and the camping is extra fun about 33$ a night they also have 3 cabins u must reserve up to 11 months in advance., its also a nice place just to visit on your way to key west 5$ a car. the pictures dont do this place justice

One of the most exciting experiences we had while visiting Big Pine Key, was a snorkel trip out to the world-famous Looe Key (about 12 miles off shore of Big Pine). Looe Key is renowned for the well-preserved reef with extensive sealife and coral. We arrived at the docks for our scheduled tour departure time and were greeted with a friendly staff and were given our equipment. After chatting with several other excited tourists, we boarded the boat and took a seat for the half hour ride out to the reef.

During the ride, the guides explain a little about the sights we pass as we travel out, and some facts about Looe Key. The reef is a national protected area and a "no-take" zone, so we are strictly warned not to remove anything from the water. We are then given a lesson in snorkeling from wearing the equipment (fins, life jacket, mask and snorkel) to the best way to swim around.

When we arrive at the reef, there are several other boats anchored around the underwater treasure, but we anchor in a secluded area so we can enjoy swimming without too many other divers around. We jump off the boat one-by-one and the fun begins... At first it took me a while to get used to the breathing technique, but we I relaxed I observed Jewfish (large grouper), yellow-tail snapper, several nurse sharks, and even a couple reef sharks (which are quite scary and intimidating to be close to). I quickly swam back to the boat to ask the guides about this large fish, and they assured me that they were a normal sight and weren't aggressive.

The snorkel stop lasts 1.5 hours and you can get on and off the boat as you like (which I did several time to relax). It was a wonderful day all around and I HIGHLY recommend this experience while in the keys. Reservations are recommended and the tours are offered twice daily, year round. The price was around $35/adult for the tour and equipment rental.

I am a native Floridian. I've lived all over Florida, specifically in Miami for the last 8 years, and this is BY FAR my favorite east coast beach in Florida. The water is crystal blue, the sand is a powdery white, and there are beautiful dunes and sea oats as far as the eye can see. In addition, the facilities are excellent.

I've never been to this beach when it was crowded. Although I'm sure it gets crowded, as it is frequently on the "Best Beach in the World" lists, I've only been at quieter times, when it is EXTREMELY relaxing and peaceful. I cannot say enough wonderful things about this beach.

Bahia Honda State Park is 43 miles from Islamorada and well worth the drive! The park is open daily from 8:00 a.m. to sunset. Admission fees are $2.50 for one person, $5.00 for two people, and 50 cents for each additional person.

The beaches are large, and the sand is smooth, with plenty of places to get away from other people. The water is clear and shallow, making shell spotting, fish spotting and off shore snorkeling fun and exciting. I can spend all day wandering in the water, looking for conch, and then waiting patiently to watch them move!

Kayaks are available for rental - $10.00 per hour for a single and $18.00 per hour for a double. Half day rates are also available.

Two or three snorkeling tours are available each day. This is a "must do" activity - you wil love it! The reef they go to (Looe Key reef located in the Marine Sanctuary about 12 miles off shore) is beautiful and the fish are plentiful and colorful. It is an easy snorkel trip for kids and adults. Prices are $25.95 for adults and $20.95 for children under 18. Equipment rental is $5.00.

You will love this place!

Bahia Honda was recommended to us by an American guy on our flight over from Europe. So when we ran out of things to do in Key West after only one day we thought we’d better check it out.

My expectations of Bahia Honda were a little confused. I knew from our guidebook and the guy on the plane that the beach wasn’t exactly huge but, according to the in-flight magazine, it was rated amongst Conde Nast’s best US beaches.

Arriving at Bahia Honda the beach itself was easily overlooked, as your eye is drawn to the remains of the old road bridge. You can’t help but head up the severed bridge from where you have a great view of the turquoise waters, and the feat of civil engineering of Highway 1 linking together what appear to be little more than sand bars. In spite of the lack of creature comforts – this is just a road and a bridge that stops dead – it is mesmerising to sit as if on a high board watching the wheeling pelicans in the warm sea breeze.

Only as you turn to walk back down the road to ground level do you see from this vantage point what a jewel Bahia Honda is. Even on a slightly overcast day this narrow strip of land sparkled, a lush core of greenery surrounded by a skirt of bleached white sand set in a turquoise/jade sea.

Not being a beach babe, nor it being quite the season for it, the view of the beach was as good as it got for us. We walked down the seaward beach, a slender strip of sand narrowing to 2m in places, but found the going hard in a bank of prickly storm-tossed seaweed seemingly full of rotting fish. Where we could escape the smell, we were tormented by sand flies. With little to do but keep moving, we exhausted Bahia Honda’s charms within a couple of hours. I appreciate my description of the beach itself is not a particularly enticing scene, but on balance I would rather have seen this deserted out of season ‘real’ beach, than a groomed ‘artificial’ beach lined with beached sunbathers.