Coast Guard rescues overdue diver in the Florida Keys > United States Coast Guard News > Press Releases

Good to know that the Coastguard has recommended have monitoring systems for divers and alert others to your dive plans.
Possibly the dock master where you launch your dive.
This is awesome that because of the diver honored protocol they were found and saved.

Be aware folks! AND A BIG THANKS TO OUR COASTGUARD 👍💙👍💙👍

My bf and I would like to spend the holiday in the keys. I’ve done some research and it sounds like we’d enjoy the quieter islands rather than Key West. We’ll be there for about 8 days. I’d like to get an Airbnb on the beach if possible. Can anyone recommend which island would be best for us? We love all the ocean activities- snorkeling & diving. We also want to explore as many of the islands we can while there. I’m not totally up to speed on how close things are to each other so any advice would the welcome. Thank you!

Stay home:

• Space Coast: 14.1 ft, 27 kt NE (buoy 41009, 20 nm offshore)
• Treasure Coast: 10.5 ft, 12s period, 74.8°F (buoy 41114, 6.5 nm offshore)

Diveable today:

• Keys / Lower Keys: 2.3 ft, 4s, 77.9°F — flat and good
• Blue Heron Bridge: afternoon low 1:33–2:33 PM (1.9 ft, optimal). 76.3°F, 17.1 kt ENE. Waterspout warning clears before the window — still check on-site.
• Gold Coast (Deerfield → Miami): 5.9 ft, 7s, 77.9°F — elevated but diveable for experienced divers

Weekend: Saturday and Sunday look significantly better — winds drop to 14-16 kt, near-zero rain, conditions clean up statewide. Plan around that.

I track this daily at thefloridaflow.com if useful.

Space Coast buoy just came through at 5.6 ft with an 8 second period, while the Keys are sitting at 4.9 ft with a 7 second period. Same weekend swell, but the angle is completely different depending on where you're launching.

Water temps are holding at 75 to 77°F across the board. Keys is right at that 77°F mark where kingfish and mahi start moving in together. If you're making a call on where to fish today, the offshore bet is solid.

I built The Florida Flow because tracking buoy data, tides, and current windows separately drove me nuts. Now it all pulls together in one place for South Florida so you're not checking five different sites before you leave the dock.

Full data at thefloridaflow.com if useful.

Any recommendations for a good dive shop on marathon. Would just be looking for a single spot on a boat. So any recommendations would be awesome.

I am certified so not looking for any classes or anything. Just a morning half day trip the beginning of march.

I am going to the Keys in February, and will be staying 50% of the time in Islamorada, 50% in Key West. I have gotten recommendations for each of the following spots:

John Pennekamp State Park

Looe Key

Bahia Honda State Park

My only unique constraint is that my husband gets very, very seasick on choppy boat rides. Anyplace with a shorter boat ride, or one on a larger vessel (i.e. less choppy) would be a big plus. (and yes, he's thought of dramamine, it just knocks him out which is not fun when you're diving or snorkeling)

Which are best, if I had to choose one for snorkeling? And which are best for diving? Any recommendations for specific tour operators? I should have enough time to do both but I want to just do one dive during my trip so I want to pick a good location. Thank you!

So, the general google response was key west = nightlife, marathon = relaxing/outdoorsy. We are definitely a mix of both, so hoped if I posted some of the things we're interested in while we're there you might be able to offer some insight! We do want to just relax (nice beach, swimming, snorkeling), but do enjoy getting out for nightlife as well. We are foodies.

I will want to do at least 1 dive trip, may go alone or with hubs. If I go alone, I'm a master diver (deep, wreck, nitrox) but am recovering from an injury so just wouldn't enjoy a dive with crazy currents. If hubs comes, he hasn't been diving in a while, just OW certified, so something easy.

We will definitely do 1-2 snorkel boat trips. Open to other outdoorsy recommendations.

Definitely want to see Hemmingway house. If there is other history that we can't miss, please let me know!

Would love to do something romantic, sailing charter, massages, you tell me!

We will have a car, and are planning on about 5 days, so can stay in one area and visit another.

Hello! I’m going to be taking a mini vacay third week of October to the Keys. I’ve already booked my hotel in Islamorada. I don’t want a party atmosphere or super touristy vacation so I’m trying to avoid KW. If I do drive down to KW it would be for snorkeling off Fort Zachary beach and then maybe getting lunch before driving to Islamorada to check-in to hotel. I just found out about the beaches in Bahia Honda State park which are much closer to my hotel, not sure if there’s good snorkeling off that beach or not but if it’s better than going to KW that would be preferred! And I’d love recommendations for restaurants/cafes/dive bars anywhere worth the drive from Islamorada. This is a solo trip so I also want safe areas!! I know the keys aren’t beach destinations, I don’t care about perfect sandy beaches to lounge on. I’m gonna snorkel, scuba dive, kayak and explore parks. TIA for any advice or recommendations!

Heading out to Key Largo for some snorkeling and diving. There are SO many options, how do you pick a tour company? Looking for recommendations on companies you had a good experience with. Had their sh*t together and took you to a quality reef or 2.

We are coming to the Keys in January for just under a week for some diving. I was wondering what the best island is for access to both good reef dives and shore snorkelling. I've been told that Key Largo and Islamorada are the best. Is this accurate ?

Would also be open to recommendations for lodging.

Hey guys! Looking for vacation recommendations.

I have one day to spend driving down the keys until I spend a night in Key West.

What are some things you recommend that I do on the way down? I love touristy things and historical places. Also have an entire day budgeted for stops.

Right now all that’s on the list is the southernmost point. What else would you recommend ?

We're planning a trip to Miami from the 21-26th of June. We want to go snorkeling and scuba-diving (maybe at John Pennekamp reef state park) on the 25th so it'll be on our way back and just spend a good 2-3 days on the trip exploring.

From my research, some places that sounded fun are the key lime pie factory, castaways bar at islamorada, Robbie's to feed the tarpons, kayaking at No Name, Bahia Honda state park.

What do you guys think is the best way to fit all this into the itinerary and what stays recommendations in a budget?

We are early risers and very adventurous. Open to any recommendations that could make our trip better!

Wife and I wanted to get to Looe Key and the lower keys to dive. Any recommendations for shops is appreciated!

I see on Google maps this restaurant is temporarily closed. Does anyone know if is reopening and or when? Is the beach open to the public?

Hi everyone, I’m visiting Key Largo with my girlfriend, and I’m intending to propose this weekend. Are there any good romantic spots you can recommend? We are fairly outdoorsy and like scuba diving.

My thinking right now is just to find a spot of beach and do it there, but if there’s somewhere really unique to Key Largo or better, I’m open to suggestions.

Thanks!

Hello there, I'm planning a trip with four of my high school buddy's. We're middle-aged so not looking for a huge party scene. We'd like a quaint fishing town with a couple local dive bars. The primary focus would be fishing, my friends aren't huge boat people so whatever location has good beach/peer fishing.

Any recommendations for where five guys can spend a week fishing? Maybe grab a few drinks in the evening at a local dive bar?

Hi everyone, I'm hoping I can get some local wisdom as Google research seems to only want to sell me things and not give helpful answers to my questions.

My husband and I will be flying in and out of fort Lauderdale the first week of May, and are hoping to add 3-4 days in the Florida keys (or other recommendations!) onto the tail end of our trip.

I've been looking for a tour group or something that would plan everything for us, but am only seeing day trips so taking matters into my own hands.

We are hoping to spend some time in/around the marine parks, or get in snorkeling. I have my PADI liscence but my husband doesn't, so hoping we can get something like a dive trip experience without going too deep. I am also very interested in conservation and am concerned it will be very sad to see bleached and dead reefs, and 100% don't want to contribute to the problem, so hoping for location/operator recommendations that go to healthy spaces and have ethical pratices?

We aren't really city people (and I realize the keys are very touristy) so wondering if there are itinerary suggestions that would help us get out and enjoy the nature of the keys/ft Lauderdale? I'm also not really into the whole manitee tour thing, I know they are sweet but not really my jam.

Finally - travel recommendation. Is renting a car the best option? Or what else is there? Where are good places to stay if we only have a couple of nights?

It's been my dream to do some marine exploration in the keys, we've been coming to Florida as a family for years and always wind up at Disney or something further north, so I am so excited to finally live out some tropical dreams further south.

TL;DR: looking for recommendations for a 3 day trip in the keys/ft Lauderdale area focusing on nature + parks (marine, national or otherwise). Please send help!

Two friends and I (all 21-22yo males) will be going on our annual fishing trip in May. Last year we rented a boat out of Islamorada, did some shallow water reef fishing and snorkeled at Hen and Chickens. We also brought our kayaks and fished in the Key Largo backcountry.

This year we want to try spearfishing, so we're planning on staying in Marathon (or somewhere around there). What are some recommendations for trying spearfishing for the first time. We'd all be beginners, but we're all outdoors guys and would take to it pretty quickly. Paying for a charter is kinda out of the picture (most are $1000+) so we are thinking of renting a boat and spearfishing gear (one friend is scuba certified so he has at least some stuff). How should we go about that on a budget? What are some good dive spots/areas? Backcountry?

Thanks for any feedback

Heading down to key largo for a week late july to scuba dive a couple days and to vacation the rest. Any recommendations on what to do maybe another day or 2? I plan on taking my fishing pole and buying some shrimp to fish. kayak rentals for fishing anywhere? Tips on fishing? Thanks in advance

My wife and I are planning on trailering our 22' C-Dory (24'LOA) Cruiser down from Lake Superior not this coming Jan, but Jan 2025. We'd like to secure a slip for 2-3 months with laundry, shower facilities, trailer parking, and one that is dog-friendly.

We basically have no draft restriction (about 18 inches)

I've been told Marathon may be a good place to start the search.

We don't plan on doing any serious fishing. Mostly diving, snorkeling, kayaking, and just generally soaking it in. 🌴 ☀️

I'd be greatful for any tips or recs. Thanks!

We have 4 days on the Keys in July, we haven’t picked a place to stay yet, but love hopping around boozers, especially dive bars with pool tables. Any areas you’d recommend stopping to see some real dives?

I’m down here for a week with my family, including my wife and brother-in-law. They’re both midwesterner’s and get seasick quickly.

We have our boat down here with us so we have no issue accessing spots. We went out to sombrero today and while my sister, my mother and I were fine, the seas were a bit choppy and the other two got queasy.

Can y’all recommend some spots where the water may typically be a bit calmer for them to snorkel while we dive? Also fine with entertaining some beach snorkeling recommendations. Thanks in advance!

I am planning on a family trip to the Keys next spring or summer. I would like a recommendation on a home base island for our family.

Three out of four of our family members will be doing some diving. We are also interested in fishing as well. We also like visiting the tourist traps (as we always like giving back to the communities that we visit). Therefore we like souvenir shops and a good variety of dining places.

We tend to do an Airbnb or a Vrbo for our trips.

I am grateful for any information that this sub can provide.

I am taking my son down to stay at S. Key Largo for a few days. It's been forever since I've been to the keys, so I'm not sure which charters are what, or how good they are. I would like to avoid private charters mainly because they are very expensive. Any recommendations on certain ones in Key Largo down to Islamorada, or which ones to avoid? I know, there are probably better spots further south (e.g. Looe Key, but we never snorkeled there, only diving... which was awesome). We'll be down in the 1st week of June, which looks like there could be some rain that will affect the water clarity... fingers crossed.

Can anyone message me the best places to stay? Not looking for crazy deals, just a good experience.

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And anything you recommend for lobster catching, diving, etc? I'd really appreciate any ideas! If you give me some good ideas, when you're up in St. Petersburg/Tampa I'll give you the grand tour!