As part of Recommend’s #AmazingDaysAhead messaging, here are virtual voyages of The Florida Keys & Key West to inspire bookings for summer & beyond.
The Florida Keys & Key West is promoting a range of virtual experiences allowing your clients to connect with—while staying at home during the COVID-19 pandemic—the Keys’ top attractions and unique activities.
The Key to Exploring (Virtually) this Florida Paradise
Virtual vacationers can take a deep dive into the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, surrounding and protecting the Florida Keys, with a 360-degree virtual reality check. They’ll experience Christ of the Deep, the Cheeca Rocks Sanctuary Preservation Area, a Keys coral nursery, the Aquarius Reef Base and the Benwood Wreck, which sank in 1942 after colliding with another wreck. Visit sanctuaries.noaa.gov/vr.
Dolphins Plus Marine Mammal Responder is scheduling Facebook Live posts for dolphin-watching, and Island Dolphin Care is posting short educational videos about Keys’ sea life, dolphins and fun activities to do at home with children, as well as “virtual meet a dolphin from the dock” viewings (visit islanddolphincare.org or the Facebook page). Meanwhile, Islamorada’s Theater of the Sea is hosting virtual Marine Mammal Adventures! with live dolphin, sea lion and parrot shows, and the History of Diving Museum is hosting virtual educational presentations, including on April 15 at 7 p.m., when it will live-stream Immerse Yourself! Search for the Salmon Shark: An Alaskan Adventure.
For the curious-minded, the Florida Keys History & Discovery Center features virtual lecture sessions about unique aspects of Keys history; the Dolphin Research Center hosts a “Live from the Lagoons” on Facebook Live at 1 p.m.; and Turtle Hospital—the world’s only licensed nonprofit veterinary hospital treating injured and diseased sea turtles—offers behind-the-scenes glimpses through Facebook.
Just for Fun!
Jimmy Buffett has launched Spring 2020 Cabin Fever Virtual Tour concerts from archived concerts on Wednesday and Saturdays—visit Margaritaville TV at margaritaville.tv or Radio Margaritaville on SiriusXM: margaritaville.com; on Saturday, May 9, there’s Live from Key West (2015). Sunset Sail Key West is launching 360-degree virtual sunset sails on Facebook Live, and the Ernest Hemingway Home & Museum is showing off its 6-toed furry residents on Facebook.
The Florida Keys Brewing Company, the Upper Keys’ first microbrewery with beer brewed locally in the Morada Way Arts and Cultural District, offers virtual behind-the-scenes activities such as a canning watch party (visit floridakeysbrewingco.com), and Key West’s Tropic Cinema has an online Stay-at-Home Screen Cinematheque Series, with flicks released on Thursdays, priced from $10 to watch over a 3-day period. The films are not available through normal streaming platforms (visit tropiccinema.com). Cinephiles can also take in Key West Film Festival’s #FlashbackFriday with a question-and-answer session from a past festival event in the island city.
Fringe Theater of Key West, a community-focused theater with offbeat and wacky performances, will offer archived Fringe Friday Performances, while Key West’s Books & Books @ The Studios, a nonprofit independent co-owned by author and Key West resident Judy Blume, offers round-the-clock online shopping with free shipping. Blume tweets and sends recommendations to email subscribers (visit booksandbookskw.com).
Coronavirus Relief
In Key West, art gallery Gallery on Greene has launched an online Coronavirus Relief gallery with works by Mike Lukovich, Andy Thurber, Ruben Alpizar, Wayne Garcia and Priscilla Coote. Fifty percent of sales goes directly to the artist and 50 percent goes to the nonprofit Sister Season Fund. Visit galleryongreene.com.
Get Up & Move!
Island Flow Yoga in Islamorada is offering online yoga classes through Zoom—visit islandflow.yoga, and Dance Key West, with Autism Movement Therapy, is offering complimentary online classes (visit dancekeywest.org).
Check out more Virtual Voyages, and to inspire future booking options, visit #AmazingDaysAhead.
