The Marquesa Hotel

In all the noise being made about Miami, it’s easy to forget that the classic Florida holiday destination still lies two hours’ drive from the mainland. Like any travel town in America, Key West has its charmless and overdeveloped side; but Old Town, home to the incomparable Marquesa Hotel, belongs to the locals, and to history—this is the Key West of Hemingway, of Tennessee Williams, an oasis of old-world refinement at the edge of the continent. The Marquesa is one block off bustling Duval Street, on Fleming—just close enough to be convenient, and far enough to serve as a sanctuary from the gift shops and corny tourist traps of the main drag. This block belongs to a different era, and the hotel itself is an assembly of four separate buildings, varying from the rustic charm of the original 1884 conch house to the sleeker (yet still elegant) modern additions. Guest rooms are just what you’d expect, breezy and open, with gently rotating ceiling fans and robust antique furniture; some feature wrought-iron beds. The decor is pleasantly spare and classic, easy on the floral prints and tropical coloring, instead opting for an old-school colonial feel. Café Marquesa is possibly Key West’s most elegant restaurant, though the hotel’s location invites some roaming: perhaps a visit to the Hemingway House or breakfast at Blue Heaven where some of Papa’s fighting roosters are still buried. Whether you’re here with your typewriter to work on your novel, or simply fleeing South Beach and its crowds of huckster entrepreneurs and pop singers in Versace, you won’t find better on Key West than the Marquesa. Please note: Children under 14 years of age are not allowed at the hotel.