A Civil War Fort, a Coral Reef, and a Day of Spectacular Views
Plan Your Day Trip to Dry Tortugas National Park and Fort Jefferson
Most of Key West fits on one barrier island you can bike across in twenty minutes, but Dry Tortugas National Park breaks that scale wide open! This national park includes 100 square miles of open water, seven tiny islands, a Civil War–era fort built from 16 million bricks, and some of the clearest snorkeling water in North America.
Only a small fraction of national park visitors nationwide make it out here each year, which means you’ll get room to actually enjoy what you came for: a quiet beach, an empty stretch of reef, a fort you can explore at your own pace.
If you’re planning a trip to Margaritaville Beach House Key West, here’s what to know before you book.
Who Should Actually Go?
This trip rewards nearly every kind of traveler.
- Couples get a full day unplugged: no cell service, no WiFi, just a fort, a reef, and each other.
- Families with kids age six and up thrive here too, especially on the ferry, where air-conditioned cabins, included meals, and a slower pace give younger kids room to explore.
- History buffs get a fortress that once held the largest garrison of any U.S. military post, with a Civil War prisoner roster that included Dr. Samuel Mudd.
- Snorkelers can see a vibrant, active coral reef supporting marine life such as elkhorn coral, brain coral, sea turtles, stingrays, parrotfish, and tarpon.
- Birders make a stop on the Great Florida Birding Trail in the same square mile.
How to Spend Your Day
Fort Jefferson, located at Dry Tortugas National Park, is the largest brick masonry structure in the Americas, and it earns the full guided tour. A naturalist leads you through the hexagonal fortress and old officers’ quarters, sharing stories about its odd career as an unfinished military post, Civil War prison, and quarantine station.
Make a Day of the Fort; 16 Million Bricks and More
After the 45-minute tour, set your own pace: climb to the upper gun deck for the view, watch for frigatebirds overhead, or claim a quiet stretch of seawall and watch the water shift color.
Plan to bring a reusable water bottle and a picnic snack, or enjoy the provisions the ferry includes with your ticket. The islands have no restaurants, shops, or food vendors of any kind: no backup plan, not even bottled water. Anyone arriving by seaplane or private boat should pack everything they need before leaving Key West.
Go Snorkeling around a Historic Moat
The moat wall surrounding Fort Jefferson makes the easiest entry point, with calm, shallow water that’s forgiving for first-timers. Visibility regularly runs 50 to 70 feet, so you’ll spot far more than expected: spotted eagle rays, barracuda, the occasional nurse shark, and coral growing right against the fort’s foundation.
Both the ferry and the seaplane supply snorkel gear, so packing your own isn’t required, though anyone particular about fit may want to bring a mask they trust.
Day of Service: Keep the Party Going
Margaritaville’s annual Jimmy Buffett Day and Day of Service returns Friday, September 4, marking the third year properties across the brand have come together to honor Jimmy’s legacy the way he’d have wanted: good music, good company, and a little good done in the community.
This year, Margaritaville Beach House Key West is proud to support The Shadow Buddies Foundation, a nationwide charity that provides comfort dolls to children in hospitals and adults in senior care, giving them a friend who understands exactly what they’re going through.
Take up to 10% off your stay at Margaritaville Beach House Key West and receive two special edition commemorative cups! Get details at Keep the Party Going.
Transportation and Getting Around: Arrive by Ferry or Seaplane
Two ways get you to Dry Tortugas, and each shapes the day differently.
A ferry, The Yankee Freedom III, handles the bulk of visitors: a high-speed catamaran that departs Key West around 8 a.m. and reaches Garden Key by 10:30, with roughly four and a half hours on the island, a guided fort tour, breakfast, lunch, and snorkel gear built into one ticket. It runs as an all-day commitment door to door, but it’s the only way to camp overnight, and it costs less than flying. (Garden Key, the island where the ferry and seaplane both land, is home to Fort Jefferson and the only part of Dry Tortugas National Park that most day-trippers see.)
A seaplane, booked through Key West Seaplane Adventures, cuts the travel time to about 40 minutes each way, flying low enough over the reef flats that you’ll likely spot sea turtles, sharks, or shipwrecks from the air. A half-day flight delivers roughly two and a half hours on the island; a full-day option stretches that to six and a half. It costs noticeably more than the ferry, but it frees up your afternoon back in Key West, and the flight itself counts as part of the experience, not just a way to get there.
Neither transportation option is wrong. The ferry delivers a great value and the only path to camping; the seaplane delivers a memorable story and suits shorter schedules. Both depart from Key West and require advance booking, especially in peak season.
Once there, getting around Garden Key means walking, on hard-packed paths rather than pavement, with no roads or vehicles on the island. The fort's ground floor and outdoor walkways are accessible, though its narrow 19th-century stairwells keep the upper tiers out of reach for wheelchairs and most mobility devices. The ferry and dock offer ramps for boarding; the seaplane boards via a small ladder. Either way, call ahead when booking to arrange accessibility needs in advance.
Other logistics: Pack for sun and patience: it’s a long day, there’s no shade once you’re off the boat tour, and toddlers or anyone prone to motion sickness should plan accordingly. Want the idea of Dry Tortugas without the full commitment? The Florida Keys Eco-Discovery Center back in Key West has a Dry Tortugas exhibit and a model of the fort, free of charge, no boarding pass required. (See details below.)
Not sure how it fits your trip? Our concierge team can help you compare timing, book ahead, and build the rest of your day around whichever one you pick.
Why Dry Tortugas Is Part of Key West’s Story
Dry Tortugas isn’t a side trip from Key West so much as the far edge of the same idea. Key West has always built its identity around remoteness: the southernmost city in the continental U.S., closer to Havana than to Miami, the place where the road simply stops. Dry Tortugas pushes that same logic another 70 miles out. Ponce de León named the islands for the sea turtles his crew found here in 1513, then added “dry” to warn future sailors that no fresh water awaited.
It shares the same wide-open, slightly outlaw spirit that shaped Key West itself: a fort so imposing it never had to fire a shot, a prison for Civil War deserters and a doctor convicted in the Lincoln conspiracy, an island chain too remote to ever really be tamed.
Jimmy Buffett built an entire career on Key West’s shrug-and-set-sail attitude, and he sang often about exactly this kind of horizon: open water, a long way from anywhere, and a strong case for going anyway.
Back on Solid Ground: Family Fun Before or After
Splitting up for the day, or want to ease into a Dry Tortugas trip rather than start with it? Key West has a cluster of family-friendly stops worth knowing about, most an easy walk or short ride from where the ferry and seaplane both depart.
- Truman Waterfront Park earns its local-favorite status: a free splash pad, a shaded playground with a rope climbing structure, wide-open lawns, and a front-row view of Coast Guard ships in the harbor.
- The Florida Keys Eco-Discovery Center next door packs in free, hands-on exhibits on the coral reef, local wildlife, and the Dry Tortugas itself, making it a smart preview stop the day before your boat trip or a cool, air-conditioned recap the day after.
- The Key West Butterfly & Nature Conservatory on Duval Street creates wildlife encounters that skip the boat entirely, in a glass-domed habitat with dozens of butterfly species, exotic birds, and two resident flamingos who’ve become minor local celebrities.
- The Key West Aquarium at Mallory Square rounds things out with touch tanks, native reef fish, and a hands-on encounter with one of the Keys’ most common residents, the nurse shark.
String a few of these together along the seawall and you’ve got a full, easy day on either side of your trip out west.
Whichever way you choose to get there, Dry Tortugas rewards a little planning. Build it into your stay and you’ll come home with a story most visitors never get.
Ready to plan your Dry Tortugas day trip?
Margaritaville Beach House Key West is your home base for the best of the Florida Keys, from 70 miles offshore to right outside your door. Book your stay today!
