Key West

[Ladybug5]

Are cruise ships docking at Key West yet?

[Joe817]

This was easily found by googling the question: "are cruise ships docking at key west?               "

 

https://crew-center.com/key-west-florida-cruise-ship-schedule

[1kaper]

Yes. 
Some have. We are supposed to be docking there March 28 and John Heald confirmed today we would be. 

[kafraser78]

We are headed to Key West on the Dream in November.  🤞 we will still be allowed to dock there.

 

 

[satxdiver]

We are schedule to be in Key West on April 11.  We will be watching for earlier cruises stopping there and have been so far.  We have been to Key West many times on land and twice by sea and had fun.  Looking forward to doing it again.

[WorkerBee74]

Just know that the residents of Key West are pretty angry that they voted against having cruise ships there only to have it overturned by the state - I don't blame them.  Apparently because of protests etc, it might be a game time decision whether your ship docks or not.

 

We are luckyb enough to be able to visit Key West post-cruise by land and driving down so if you really want to see Key West that might be the better option.

[surf kahuna]

Tuesday March 22. , just checked Key West Mallory Square live web cam , Carnival ship docked at this moment ! Great News !!!!

[Moviela]

The folks in Key West are a bunch of "get off my lawn" types that attempted to take control of what they don't own. They were told you cannot break the law, even if you vote on it. 

 

Many ships will be stopping in Key West and they will be welcomed by the majority of residents.

[satxdiver]

Some KW residents may be unhappy but rest assured the merchants that cater to the cruise crowd are elated as they head to the bank.  Restaurants, bars and tour agencies are not shedding any tears and are welcoming the new arrivals.  

[WorkerBee74]

5 hours ago, Moviela said:

The folks in Key West are a bunch of "get off my lawn" types that attempted to take control of what they don't own. They were told you cannot break the law, even if you vote on it. 

 

Many ships will be stopping in Key West and they will be welcomed by the majority of residents.

 

40% isn't a majority but OK.  Not saying I agree or disagree, just saying you can potentially expect a protest right now while things are hot about it.  Also having just shopped around and seeing how much accomodations go for down there I'm not sure that Key West would 'sink' without cruise ship passengers, they seem to do quite OK without them.

Edited March 23, 2022 by WorkerBee74

[kctwinmommy]

1 hour ago, WorkerBee74 said:

 

40% isn't a majority but OK.  Not saying I agree or disagree, just saying you can potentially expect a protest right now while things are hot about it.  Also having just shopped around and seeing how much accomodations go for down there I'm not sure that Key West would 'sink' without cruise ship passengers, they seem to do quite OK without them.

I agree with you. My parents vacation there every November, having rented from the same condo owner for about 15 years now. And like you said, it is NOT cheap! The cruise ships seem to cause a lot of problems that many people don't want. And it's not like there aren't tons of other people who go there, by other means, for vacations.

[cruisingguy007]

2 hours ago, WorkerBee74 said:

 

40% isn't a majority but OK.  Not saying I agree or disagree, just saying you can potentially expect a protest right now while things are hot about it.  Also having just shopped around and seeing how much accomodations go for down there I'm not sure that Key West would 'sink' without cruise ship passengers, they seem to do quite OK without them.

 

Protest what? Cruise ship passengers can certainly be prevented from visiting these "protesters" private properties but they don't own the docks, the public right of ways or the town itself. Public taxes pay for roads and public upkeep and visitors pay those taxes also. Florida relies on tourism for a large chunk of it's revenue. People need to get over this idea that where you chose to live gets them any extra say to decide who/what is permitted beyond their property lines. People love freedom for themselves and their property rights but always think they have some special right to tell others what to do with theirs or the public in general. NIMBYISM is getting out of control in this country and preventing growth, development and private property rights. We have this same issue in CA with NIMBY's and faux environmentalist dictators who try and block everything because they got theirs, want to freeze time and don't want anyone else to get theirs. It's ridiculous.    

Edited March 23, 2022 by cruisingguy007

[Moviela]

5 hours ago, WorkerBee74 said:

 

40% isn't a majority but OK. 

The total votes for this exercise in futility was about 8,000 of 55,000 registered voters. That is 15%, if you count the total population over 18, it's about 70,000. So That means 12% wanted to control the universe, and a fat 88% majority is the one that I am referring to. 

 

The majority does welcome cruise passengers. 

[Knights on the Beach]

As it stands right now, no more than one cruise ship per day will be allowed to dock in Key West at Pier B, which is privately owned and has a long standing agreement with the city of Key West.  There are no limitations on the size of the ship.  However, KW will only allow smaller ships (up to 1300 passengers) to dock at one of the city owned docks IF there is no other ship docked at Pier B at the same time.  This is a "compromise" from the original plan of only allowing smaller ships to dock in Key West.  Otherwise, Pier B owners would likely have sued the city and the city would have lost.

 

Also, many of the hospitality workers in Key West don't live inside the city limits and therefore were unable to vote.  So don't assume the vote represents a majority.

[LHARTWICK]

7 hours ago, Moviela said:

The majority does welcome cruise passengers. 

I sure hope so - and really hope they are kind to us when we visit!  Looking forward to stopping there next month.  It's been several years since our last KW visit.  It's a unique stop IMHO.  

[surf kahuna]

Wednesday March 23.  , just checked Key West Mallory Square live web cam , Another cruise ship docked at this moment ! Great News !!!!    Key West is a 4 hour drive for me a perfect weekend getaway. Since the early 1960’s I would drive to Key West multiple times a year and spend a few nights in an economical motel . For the past few years I could only afford to visit Key West on a cruise ship . Today it’s more economical to take a 4 night cruise with a stop in Key West than a 2 night motel stay in Key West . Looks like I can visit Key West again soon .

[satxdiver]

10 hours ago, cruisemom2 said:

As it stands right now, no more than one cruise ship per day will be allowed to dock in Key West at Pier B, which is privately owned and has a long standing agreement with the city of Key West.  There are no limitations on the size of the ship.  However, KW will only allow smaller ships (up to 1300 passengers) to dock at one of the city owned docks IF there is no other ship docked at Pier B at the same time.  This is a "compromise" from the original plan of only allowing smaller ships to dock in Key West.  Otherwise, Pier B owners would likely have sued the city and the city would have lost.

Carnival Dream has called on KW as recently as few days ago.  Published capacity of the Dream is 3,652 passengers and 1,369 crew and the ship has been sailing with a full passengers.  It appears that the city has little to no control over limiting the number of passengers arriving at KW.  Money has always talked louder than words.  We will be calling on KW on the April 11 Dream. 

Edited March 23, 2022 by satxdiver

[Knights on the Beach]

45 minutes ago, satxdiver said:

Carnival Dream has called on KW as recently as few days ago.  Published capacity of the Dream is 3,652 passengers and 1,369 crew and the ship has been sailing with a full passengers.  It appears that the city has little to no control over limiting the number of passengers arriving at KW.  Money has always talked louder than words.  We will be calling on KW on the April 11 Dream. 

  

I don't think I was clear enough when I said "There are no limitations on the size of the ship."  What I meant was there are no limitations on the size of the ship (or the passenger count) for the one ship per day that docks at Pier B only.  Carnival Dream would have docked at Pier B. It's been stated by the city attorneys that Key West has no authority to restrict ships at Pier B.

 

The new resolution specifies that the Mallory and Outer Mole piers which ARE controlled by the city, may only be used if no ship is docked at Pier B, and then only by smaller ships — with up to a 1,300-person capacity.

 

I'm not saying it will stay like this forever but this is what the city commissioners voted for a couple weeks ago as a compromise.  They originally wanted NO large ships to dock in KW. We own a timeshare in KW very close to where the ships dock and often spend 3-4 weeks there some years. We've been there when there are several large ships docked (pre-pandemic).  Since this new resolution will allow only one (most likely large) ship per day, the city IS somewhat limiting the number of passengers arriving in Key West.  They're also limiting revenue that will have to be made up somehow.

[LHARTWICK]

6 hours ago, satxdiver said:

We will be calling on KW on the April 11 Dream. 

We will be joining you on this cruise - looking forward to visiting KW again. It's been several years since our last visit.  Thanks to all on this thread for the info.  Happy cruising!

[xDisconnections]

It’s unfortunate, but yes.

[WorkerBee74]

On 3/22/2022 at 9:25 PM, cruisingguy007 said:

 

Protest what? Cruise ship passengers can certainly be prevented from visiting these "protesters" private properties but they don't own the docks, the public right of ways or the town itself. Public taxes pay for roads and public upkeep and visitors pay those taxes also. Florida relies on tourism for a large chunk of it's revenue. People need to get over this idea that where you chose to live gets them any extra say to decide who/what is permitted beyond their property lines. People love freedom for themselves and their property rights but always think they have some special right to tell others what to do with theirs or the public in general. NIMBYISM is getting out of control in this country and preventing growth, development and private property rights. We have this same issue in CA with NIMBY's and faux environmentalist dictators who try and block everything because they got theirs, want to freeze time and don't want anyone else to get theirs. It's ridiculous.    

 

Go give them a piece of your mind if you must, but I'm just making folks aware of the potential situation.  It's always different when you don't live there yourself, I suppose.