Day Tripping To Dry Tortugas
Place: Dry Tortugas National Park
State: Florida
Closest Cities: Key West, FL
Time of Year: February 2024
How we got there: Automobile, Ferry
70 miles off the coast of Key West Florida lies one of the least accessible national parks in the US, Dry Tortugas! That alone made this destination a must for us! Nothing is more exciting to me than to visit a place that most people have never heard of! Ponce de Leon first landed there and named it “Las Tortugas” due to the many sea turtles nesting on the shores. Later British sailors renamed it Dry Tortugas because there was no fresh water source available. Thus it became Dry Tortugas!
It is a little more expensive to get there than most US national parks but well worth the money and the effort! Here is how we got there:
Key West
There is only one place that gives you access to Dry Tortugas NP and that is Key West, Florida. Getting to Key West is an adventure in itself and I will tell you all about that in another post! After flying into Miami International Airport we took a day long road trip through the Florida Keys to reach Key West. It is only a 3.5 hour drive on Highway 1 however there is so much to see along the way that you will want to set aside a whole day for this road trip! If you have never been to Key West, then I am sure you have heard about it! It is a popular destination for the young and the old to relax, unwind and enjoy the views! Therefore, it is not a cheap place to visit! Hotels and Airbnb’s are pricey and traffic and parking in the area can be a nightmare. Many people opt to stay on one of the other keys for better prices and less crowds. That was not an option for us since we would be getting up pretty early for our daytrip to Dry Tortugas. We booked 1 room for 2 nights at the Fairfield Inn & Suites Key West and shared it with my parents! This was the least expensive option at $450 a night! A little steep but you got to do what you got to do to reach unique destinations! The room was nothing fancy however it did come with free breakfast and a free shuttle into the center of Key West.
Yankee Freedom III Ferry
There are only 2 ways to get to Dry Tortuga NP. By ferry or by seaplane! This means that there are only about 300 visitors per day. Tickets for the ferry sell out quick so plan to purchase yours a couple of months in advance. Here is where you get them: https://www.drytortugas.com/. If you already have a national park pass or America the Beautiful card then the tickets will cost you about $205 per person. If you do not have a national park pass it will cost you $220 per person. There are small discounts for seniors, students & active duty military. If you want to spend the big bucks, you can opt for the seaplane https://keywestseaplanecharters.com/! The ride over to Dry Tortugas is all open ocean so I didn’t feel we would get much better views from the air. The advantage to the seaplane is that the trip time over is significantly less meaning you get a little more time on the island. Its about double the price of the ferry, so the ferry is what we choose! We arrived at the ferry terminal bright and early on a Saturday morning ready for our adventure! They have a parking garage right next to the ferry terminal and it is about $40 for a full day. Here is the planned itinerary for the day:
FERRY DEPARTURE
CHECK IN: 7AM
BOARDING: 7:30AM
DEPARTURE: 8AM
ARRIVE AT FORT JEFFERSON: 10:30AM
DRY TORTUGAS & FERRY RETURN
FORT JEFFERSON TOUR: 11AM
LUNCH: 11AM – 1PM
DEPARTURE: 3PM
ARRIVE IN KEY WEST: 5:30PM
Here is the ferry and the seaplane:
The ride to Dry Tortugas takes about 2.5 hours and is pretty uneventful! It’s just open water all the way. I have heard that it can be rough seas in fact, it usually is. We went out on a rare day with very calm seas and the captain was commenting on how lucky we were! No barf bags today! We had checked in early so we were one of the first to board and got to choose indoor seats with a table. The Yankee Freedom serves a light breakfast with coffee and tea, muffins, yogurt and fruit for the ride over and having a table was very nice!
I was able to study the map provided and plan out our day. As you can see from the itinerary above, you don’t get much time on the island. It is approximately 4.5 hours from the time you disembark to the time you board again. I wanted to make the most of our time! This is the layout of the whole national park:
We spent the last hour up on the bow watching for land to come into view. Slowly but surely we started to see sandbars and then land way out in the distance. The water expanded out in front of us and the colors changed from deep dark blue to clear turquoise blue. We kept our eyes peeled for sea turtles but with no luck!
As the ferry drew in closer, we could make out the lighthouse on Garden Key and Fort Jefferson on Dry Tortugas! This national park is actually made up of 7 small islands or keys, some of which can be accessed by private boat or kayak. Our trip today would only include Dry Tortugas. Approaching Dry Tortugas took our breathe away! Fort Jefferson rose up in front of us and the beauty surrounding it was incredible!
I couldn’t wait to get off the ferry to explore! Before I go any further, I want to give you an idea of what you may need for this trip. It does get a little chilly on the ferry especially if you go in winter like we did, so bring a jacket to keep warm! Snorkeling and swimming are the main activity on the island, so bring a swim suit, sunscreen, hat, towels, and a dry change of clothing! There are changing rooms on the dock so you do not have to wear your swim suit to and from the island. The ferry provides the snorkel gear as well as lunch!
Fort Jefferson
We grabbed all our stuff and made a beeline to the South Swim Beach to claim our spot under some trees on the white sand . Then we headed back toward the fort for the 11am tour. There is only one tour of the fort so if you are interested in the history this is your chance! While we waited for the tour guide, we snapped a few pics in front of the national park sign!
We only did half the tour because we wanted to have plenty of snorkel time. You can choose to do a self guided tour as well. The tour guide was very knowledgeable and we learned many interesting facts. Fort Jefferson was built between 1846-1875 to protect the southern coastline of the US. It is a six sides structure built with handmade red bricks. At it’s peak the fort housed around 2000 people and because it was along the busiest shipping lanes, it was a stop for many passing ships to resupply or seek refuge during storms. The fort was also used as a prison during and after the Civil War and one of its most infamous prisoners was Dr. Samuel Mudd who had a part in the assignation of Abraham Lincoln. Cesar and my Dad loved the history while I was in awe of the surroundings! Could being in prison at a place a beautiful as this be all that bad?? Just check out their views!
Just looking out your cell window had to be inspiring! Imagine waking up to this view everyday! The architecture was also incredible! It had to be to house heavy guns and cannons inside its walls! It was very much a fort built for defense!
I was bursting with excitement to get into that frigid water for a swim and snorkel! We picked up our snorkel gear from the ferry dock, grabbed our packed lunch that the ferry provided & changed into our swimsuits. We enjoyed our picnic on the sand which included a sandwich from Jersey Mike’s, chips, fruit, a drink and a cookie. The snorkel gear and lunch were all included in the price of our tickets.
The waters surrounding the fort and moat were like something I had never seen before! So picturesque! Cesar, my Dad and I snorkeled around the moat wall where we found tropical fish, an old anchor and crumbing pieces of the old fort. The water was chilly but not as bad as I had originally imagined! We were also able to walk around most of the moat wall.
The decision on which side of the island to snorkel on was a hard one so we ended up running over to the north side to take a dip and see what lies on that side! I am so glad we did! It was much different on the north side with many more types of tropical fish! I found some treasure! Green sea glass! Everyone made fun of my find saying it was just litter, but I think sea glass is beautiful!
It was such a perfect day and I didn’t want it to end! Before long it was time to board the ferry for our 2.5 hour ride back to Key West. Again, we hung out on the bow as we approached land and marveled at the view from a different prospective. My only regret is that we didn’t get more time! Camping is available on Dry Tortugas National Park which allows you to stay a few days. There are limited permits so plan ahead if camping is your thing! Weather is something to consider as huge storms seem to be a regular thing out that way! In fact, the day after our trip a huge storm rolled in with torrential rain. We were glad to be leaving Key West and cannot imagine what it is like when a hurricane comes through and there is only one road out!
We had a fabulous time day tripping to Dry Tortugas and I hope that you too will get a chance to visit this remote wonder as well! Please remember to visit responsibly and leave no trace!
