Spend a Day At Dry Tortugas National Park In Key West: Everything You Need to Know
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As a National Park enthusiast, I want to try to visit as many as I can. And that includes the hard-to-get-to-ones well. On that list is the Dry Tortugas National Park in Key West, Florida.
What makes it so hard to get to? Well, because its an island WAY off the coast of Key West, takes two hours by boat and about $200 per person to get there. Not exactly easy!
But I wasn’t going to let that stop me!
Dry Tortugas is definitely more unique than most National parks I’ve been to. It is located on a small island and consists of an old fort that pretty much encompasses the entire island.
There are also very limited ways to get there that take advanced planning. So if you have any desire to visit Dry Tortugas, you’ll want to keep reading!
When booking our family trip to Key West, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to take the time to visit Dry Tortugas. It’s pretty expensive and takes an entire day. But I’m trying to visit all the National Parks and I couldn’t pass up the chance to cross this off my bucket list.
In the end, it was totally worth it for our family to visit, but it might not be for everyone. Ian this article, I’ll go over all the details on Dry Tortugas so you can determine if it’s worth it for you and your family.
How to Get to Dry Tortugas National Park
Getting to Dry Tortugas is very limited. You basically only have two options. You can take their ferry or book a seaplane. Both have advantages and disadvantages.
The ferry takes about 2/2.5 hours to get to the island so it’s kind of a long ride. Not great for people who get seasick easily! Because it takes so long, you’re only option is to go the full day. They leave at 9 am and come back at 5 pm. So you have to commit your entire day to visiting.
The cost of visiting Dry Tortugas via their ferry is pretty pricey. It’s about $200 per person (a little less for kids).
Booking a seaplane can be a great option if you can afford the cost. These typically run about $400 per person and up. They only take 30 minutes to get to the island and the views are iconic. You can also come and go at different times of the day with the seaplane.
So for some people, the cost of tickets and the fact that it takes up your entire day, might not be worth it. We actually enjoyed the ferry ride and those 2 hours did seem to fly by without anyone in our family getting sick!
Dry Tortugas National Park Tickets
To book the ferry, all you need to do is go to their website and book the day you want to visit.
The ferry only goes out once a day, at the same time every day. And tickets sell out fast, sometimes weeks in advance, so you definitely want to book early.
You can show up each morning to see if there are any cancellations, but I heard this is very rare.
Dry Tortugas Ferry; What to Expect and What’s Included
If you decide to take the ferry to visit Dry Tortugas National Park, it comes with a lot of perks! We actually really enjoyed the boat ride to the island.
The ferry itself is pretty big and spacious. Even though tickets sell out and it’s always fully booked, there were way more chairs than people.
You can choose to sit on the main level, which is inside. So you get protection from the heat, cold, rain, or even wind. The main level consists mostly of tables with padded chairs to sit at. The majority of the tables are chairs to a table and our family of four was able to sit at a table with the other 2 seats remaining empty.
You can also sit on the upper deck, or walk around outside to get some fresh air.
The ferry ride also comes with meals! And I was pleasantly surprised by how good it all was. Breakfast was available as soon as we boarded. They had coffee, fresh juices, and milk. you could get bagels with cream cheese, fruit, yogurt, and a few pastries.
For lunch, they bring in Jersey Mike Subs… which I LOVE! They had different sandwiches to choose from along with chips, cookies, and fruit.
Shortly before it’s time to board and head back to Key West, they open the bar for an additional cost. You can get hotdogs, corn dogs, and ice cream sandwiches. They even serve adult beverages like Pina Coladas and Daquiris.
What To Do On the Island
Once you arrive, you are free to do anything you like! There are two beaches, although both are very small. So I recommend finding a place to spread out your towels before doing anything else.
On a clear day, the beach area is crystal clear and great for snorkeling and can be described as one of the best beaches in Key West.
You can lay in the sun or go snorkeling. The water is a beautiful turquoise blue but if there is any wind or recent rain, it can be kind of cloudy and hard to see anything. You can also go snorkeling around the fort walls, where they have some really pretty coral and colorful fish.
The fort itself is open to walk freely around. When you first get off the boat, you have the option to join a tour group or go explore on your own.
The tour group has two choices. You can do an express tour which gives you the basic information about the fort and takes about 20 minutes. Or there is a longer tour that takes around an hour and a half the goes more into depth about the fort and history of the island.
But the fort itself is open to walk around, has several different floors to it and makes for some really pretty pictures!
Both lunch and the bathrooms are located on the ferry itself. The actual island has no services.
We took our time laying in the sun and snorkeling and then walked around the fort for a few minutes before heading back to the ferry when it was time to leave.
The Cons of Visiting Dry Tortugas
The biggest con to me was the price of the trip. I have a national parks pass so I don’t typically pay a lot of money to visit an NP! But since this was a rare opportunity, I decided it was worth it.
The other con is that it does take up your entire day. So if you want to visit Dy Tortugas National Park, you have to set aside an entire day to do so. The ferry also leaves very early in the morning, at 7 am promptly. So hopefully you are traveling with morning people!
The ferry goes fast over the water and has been nicknamed the “vomit comet” because so many people get seasick. We didn’t have a problem and I didn’t really see anyone else getting sick either.
Is Dry Tortugas National Park Worth It?
To be honest, Dry Tortugas may or may not be worth it depending on what you are looking for.
If you love National Parks or enjoy visiting unique places, then yes, Dry Tortugas is worth it! My goal is to visit all the National Parks so this island was a must for me and I’m super happy that I was able to experience it.
But if National Parks aren’t your jam, then you might want to skip this one. If you have young kids, they might get bored because there really isn’t much to do once you get there. The price is also a major factor.
So weigh the pros and cons and let me know in the comments below if you think Dry Tortugas National Park was worth the trip!
Do you have any questions about visiting DRY TORTUGAS NATIONAL PARK? Drop them in the comments below and I’ll do my best to answer them!
If you plan on visiting Key West soon, dont forget to check out the Top Things You Need To Know Before Visiting Key West to make sure you and your family have the best vacation ever.
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