If you go

The best time to visit the Florida keys is late fall through late spring when the air is cooler and drier. There is plenty to do in summer; there no longer seems to be an off-season.

Fresh tropical breezes and a vigorous anti-mosquito program kept most of the bugs at bay. The Florida Department of Health website updates daily and when I visited in mid-July, they had not had a case of Zika in Monroe County, which includes the southern edge of mainland Florida and the Keys.

Among the interesting places to stay are Historic Key West Inns. These are boutique hotels created from local houses. They are cozy, with just a few dozen rooms, modernized and located in Key West’s Old Town near restaurants and Duval Street.

The Florida Keys: fla-keys. com Historic Key West Inns: historickeywestinns.com The Stoned Crab: stonedcrabkeywest.com Ibis Bay Paddle Sports: keywestpaddle.com Blue Heaven: blueheavenkw.com Ernest Hemingway Home and Museum: hemingwayhome.com Mote Marine Tropical Research Laboratory: tinyurl. com/y9t8zvn9 Serenity Eco Therapy: serenityecoguides.com Turtle Hospital: turtlehospital.org Lower Keys Underwater Music Festival: lowerkeyschamber.com/festival.php Hungry Tarpon Restaurant: hungrytarpon.com Photo diary: tinyurl.com/ydh8kn68