Everglades Airboat Tours for Key West Visitors

Why Key West travelers make room for the Everglades

Key West is the end of the road: Duval Street, the Southernmost Point and the nightly sunset celebration at Mallory Square. It's a great place to finish a Florida trip, but it's all island and ocean. The Everglades is a different world, with miles of freshwater sawgrass, tree islands and open sky on the edge of Miami-Dade County.

If you're flying into Miami and driving the Overseas Highway, your route passes close to our dock anyway. That makes a private airboat tour easy to add at either end of the trip. You'll have a boat to yourselves, a captain who knows the marsh, and the chance to see alligators and wading birds up close. Sightings vary with the season and water levels.

Our tours run outside Everglades National Park, along the Tamiami Trail, which means your captain can legally take you closer to alligators, wading birds and other wildlife than park rules allow.

Planning stops on the way down? See our Key Largo and Islamorada trip guides.

The drive: the whole Overseas Highway

From Key West, you'll drive the full length of US-1 through the Keys, from mile marker 0 north to Florida City. That's roughly 150 miles to our dock.

• US-1 north through the Lower Keys, over the Seven Mile Bridge, and on through Marathon, Islamorada and Key Largo.
• Across the Eighteen-Mile Stretch to Florida City. From north Key Largo, Card Sound Road (electronic toll, no cash) is an alternative.
• North on Krome Avenue, or Florida's Turnpike to Exit 25, to the Tamiami Trail (FL-90), then west to the dock.

Allow about 3 hours 45 minutes to 4 hours without stops. Long parts of the road are two lanes with few places to pass, and a single accident can stop traffic with no detour. Heavy traffic on holiday and busy weekends makes the drive longer. Build in a cushion, and check live traffic before you set off.

Three ways to fit an airboat tour into a Key West trip

1. On your way down

Fly into Miami, go straight to the dock for a late-morning or midday tour, then start down the Keys. That gives you daylight on the Seven Mile Bridge for most of the year. Arriving in Key West in the evening is a good way to start the vacation.

2. On your way back

Leave Key West early, around 7am. You'll reach the dock in time for an early-afternoon tour, then spend the night in Florida City, Homestead or Miami before your flight. You'll leave the Keys with one last big experience instead of just a long drive.

3. With a night on the mainland

If you stay a night near Florida City or Homestead, the dock is well under an hour away. That opens up the sunrise, sunset and night tours that don't work from Key West, plus the longest tours on our schedule.

Best tour choices when you've come this far

Since the drive is long, pick a tour that makes it worthwhile. Our daytime private tours start at $250 for 1 hour and $350 for 1.5 hours. For Key West travelers, we suggest 2 hours for $450 or our longest daytime tour, 2.5 hours for $550. Those prices include the first two guests. Each extra guest is $60, and kids 5 and under ride free.

If you're staying a night on the mainland, consider the 3-hour sunset or night tour for $750. It's the longest trip we run. Most boats seat 6 to 7 guests. A group of more than 7 books multiple boats, so call (305) 766-1929 and we'll help arrange it.

Sunrise, sunset and night: only with a mainland stay

Key West has Mallory Square. The Everglades gives you a different kind of sunset, with the sky reflecting across miles of water and grass. Everglades sunsets range from about 5:30pm in late fall to after 8pm in June. The sunset airboat tour can be timed to start before, during or after sunset.

A night private airboat tour lets you scan the marsh after dark. For sunrise, we recommend starting 30 minutes before sunrise, which is simple from a Florida City hotel and impossible from Key West without driving through the night. Sunrise, sunset and night tours cost $450 for 1.5 hours, $550 for 2 hours and $750 for 3 hours. We're open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, so start times are flexible. Just don't plan to drive back to Key West afterward.

Stops worth making on the drive

• Bahia Honda State Park (mile marker 37): This park has some of the Keys' best-known beaches and views of the old railroad bridge.
• Old Seven Mile Bridge, Marathon: The historic span reopened to walkers and cyclists in 2022. It's a good way to stretch your legs above the water.
• Marathon: A natural halfway point for lunch.
• Robbie's of Islamorada (mile marker 77.5): Stop here to watch the famous tarpon feeding off the docks.
• Florida City and Homestead: Fuel up and take a last break. The Everglades National Park entrance at the Ernest F. Coe Visitor Center is a separate trip west on Palm Drive if you have extra time.

Transport options from Key West

Most Key West visitors drive themselves, and that's usually the most practical choice. Our van transport is $400 round trip per van for up to 13 guests, with at least 4 guests and a tour of 1.5 hours or longer. Keys pickups cost the same as our port pickups, but Key West is the far end of the island chain, so call (305) 766-1929 to discuss the distance before you book. Pickup and drop-off can be at different places. That can also work on the Miami side of your trip, such as a pickup from a Miami hotel and a drop-off somewhere else. See our pickup and directions page.

What to bring on a road-trip tour day

Keep an airboat bag at the top of the car so you're not digging through suitcases in the parking lot:

• Sunglasses, sunscreen and a snug hat.
• A light jacket for winter, sunrise or night runs.
• Bug spray for dawn and dusk.
• Flip-flops are fine. You don't need special shoes.
• Drinks for the boat. Alcohol is allowed, but the driver for the next leg should skip it.

We hand out ear protection in all sizes. If someone in your party uses a wheelchair, let us know when booking and we'll accommodate them. Our what to wear and bring guide covers the rest.

Book the Everglades leg of your Key West trip

Your captain will be a USCG-licensed, CPR and first-aid certified local Gladesman. Full payment is due at booking. Plans on a long Keys drive can change, so it helps that you get a full refund if you cancel 24 or more hours ahead. Reserve online, phone (305) 766-1929 or email info@airboatadventureseverglades.com. Tell us which direction you're driving and we'll suggest a tour time. For general questions, see the airboat tour FAQ.

Key West questions

How long is the drive from Key West to your airboat dock?

About 3 hours 45 minutes to 4 hours each way, covering the whole Overseas Highway (US-1) to Florida City and then north to the Tamiami Trail (FL-90), and heavy traffic on US-1 can add more. That's close to an 8-hour round trip before your tour even starts, so it's easiest to take the tour on the day you drive between Miami and Key West.

What's the best way to fit an airboat tour into a Key West trip?

Take it on your drive. Flying into Miami? Go to our dock first, take a morning or midday tour, then drive down the Keys in daylight. Heading home? Leave Key West early, tour in the afternoon, and stay near Miami the night before your flight. Either way, you only drive the Overseas Highway once in each direction.

What are good stops on the drive between Key West and Miami?

The drive is half the fun. Stop at the Seven Mile Bridge viewpoint and Bahia Honda State Park for the beach, Marathon for lunch, Islamorada and Key Largo for more food and water views, and Florida City or Homestead for a last break before our dock. Plan about an hour of stops on top of the drive.

Can we do a sunset tour and drive back to Key West the same night?

We don't recommend it. Even a 1.5-hour sunset tour leaves you about four hours of driving after dark to reach Key West, much of it on two-lane highway. Book a sunset or night tour on a night you're staying in Miami, Homestead or Florida City instead, or pick a daytime tour on your travel day.

Questions about prices, extra guests, kids, pickup, cancellation or weather? See our main Everglades airboat FAQ.