On 4/29/12 9:45 AM, Wayne B wrote:
On Sat, 28 Apr 2012 21:26:38 -0700, "Califbill"
wrote:

Thinking of a trip to the keys. What is the best time of year? weather,
heat, humidity. Any place better as a base than others? Skiff Rentals?
Good tarpon guides?

===

There's Key West and then there's everything else. Key West has the
night life and touristy hustle and bustle but it also has a great
water front with lots of charter fishing opportunities, boat rentals,
sunset excursions on sailing schooners, glass bottom boats, etc.
From a location standpoint, one of the best places to stay is the
Galleon Hotel.

http://www.galleonresort.com/

As Greg points out, house rentals are a good option for stays of a
week or more. There are many choices in all price ranges. If you
Google up "Key West house rentals" you'll get a lot of hits.

On the other hand if you prefer a quieter setting the mid-Keys area
around Marathon has a lot to offer. We once stayed in a place called
the Rainbow Bend Resort which has sort of a funky old Florida feel to
it. The rooms were nothing special but we were on the beach with a
view of the water. Best of all we had the daily use of a 13 ft
Boston Whaler, and the food was really excellent.

http://www.rainbowbend.com/

Best weather is usually in November/December and again in March/April.
Tarpon fishing starts to heat up this time of year.






I've stayed at Rainbow Bend. The rooms are as Wayne described and the
food was, too. We caught a large variety of fish right offshore on the
reef. Right offshore was maybe a quarter of a mile.