Tavernier: February, 2000

Travel We booked our air transportation on Northwest Airlines using Worldperks miles. The only downside was we had to do the trip from Wednesday to Wednesday in order to get seats on the plane. We flew to Miami and drove to the keys.

Accomodations We stayed at Ocean Point Condominiums and couldn't have been happier. We had a huge 2-bedroom condo with a beautiful ocean view. Each morning, a continental breakfast was included with the Condo.

Food Everyone recommended the Lorelei Restaurant and Cabana Bar to watch the Sunset and eat a great meal. I will tell you this, if you want to see the sunset there, go early to get a spot. The place was packed! We decided to forego the sunset and just have dinner. The food and atmosphere of dining on the waterfront was great. Highly recommended. Check out the following dining guide: Florida Keys Dining Guide

Activities We found numerous things to keep us occupied. On one of the days we went to the Theater of the Sea after diving. The Theater has a few different exhibits. There is a dolphin show and a sea lion show. They also have numerous marine animals that you can learn quite a bit about. We spent about 3 hours there one afternoon and had a very nice time. The show hadn't changed much since the last time we were there (3.5 years ago) except that they got a different seal for the show. We did the standard drive to Key West one afternoon. This time we took the tour of Harry S. Truman's Little White House. It was a really nice tour that we'd recommend. Robbies Pier at Mile Marker 77.5 had changed somewhat since the last time I was there. You used to be able to hand feed the tarpon. Now they only let you toss the bait into the water. Probably someone got hurt and sued them. Nonetheless, its still a fun stop.

Diving We booked our diving with Tavernier Dive Center. We did 8 dives over 4 days with the guys from Tavernier. The conditions were quite cool (temps in the low 70's) and we were only diving with 3mm suits so we did get a bit chilly. Due to the cold weather and just the general slow season, we were usually diving with a group of no more than 4 divers. One day, Tracy and I were the only 2 divers on the boat. I was surprised that they didn't cancel the diving for the day as I'm sure that what we paid didn't even cover gas for the boat that day. I talked with the owner Mike and he basically said, "In this business, customer service, and word of mouth is the thing that keeps you going. If I cancel this trip, you guys will be unhappy and tell your friends." He is right. So here's a plug for Tavernier Dive Center......if you are diving the upper keys, check them out. They live customer satisfaction.

Copyright © 2001 Kris Warmann. All Rights Reserved.