Destination attracts the famous and not so famous alike
Tinseltown is lending a helping hand to the Florida Keys’ tourist trade.
Chad Newman, film commissioner for Visit Florida Keys, says his jurisdiction is frequently chosen by the TV and film industries as a setting for their works, with the Florida Keys’ being used because of its having a number of appealing attributes.
Among those who chose the destination were the producers of the Netflix series Bloodline, which Newman reports “really shows off the Keys.
“To this day people still come up to me and say, ‘I saw the show on Netflix and want to visit.’ They want to see the locations they saw in the show,” Newman reports.
Newman – in Toronto for the Toronto International Film Festival – says celebrities will be at home in the destination but that also holds true for those whose pictures don’t appear in the likes of People and Us magazines.
“You can go into a bar and be next to a millionaire or be next to someone who lives on a (modest) boat,” he says, adding the Florida Keys attracts artists and writers, with Enrest Hemingway having spent much time there and the Key West house he lived in now serving as a museum.
Playwright Tennessee Williams was another literary giant who appreciated the destination.
Visitors can enjoy live theatre and can also easily find live music in bars that don’t have cover charges. There’s also an annual Florida Keys underwater music festival that has dive boats drop speakers into the water, enabling divers and snorkelers to hear such water-themed tunes as Yellow Submarine.
Key Largo – one of several islands making up the Florida Keys – “is all about diving,” Newman reports.
The Florida Keys is also home to John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park, a 70-square-nautical-mile marine sanctuary, and water sports enthusiasts can also experience the likes of kayaking through mangrove channels.
The Florida Keys is linked to mainland Florida by bridges and Key West has a plaza that is considered the southernmost accessible point in the continental United States. The plaza – a popular point for selfies – is closed for restoration but a replica site a stone’s throw away is now being used as a substitute.
Among Florida Keys’ lodging options is the Casa Marina, which states it provides “1920’s History in Key West with a New Contemporary Style.”
Other accommodation choices include B&Bs and guest houses, and those who appreciate chain hotels can find the likes of a Hilton.
