Key West House and Garden Tours

March 12 – 13th

Tour five elegant and unique homes of Key West. Proceeds help benefit the Old Island Restoration Foundation. Presented by the Old Island Restoration Foundation, this house and garden tour offers a rare opportunity to see inside some of Key West’s magnificent, charming and tropical residences.

Hot Havana Nights at the Botanical Garden

Celebrate Cuba Week finishes with the hottest event of the year, March 13. This annual event has returned to the Garden with the sounds of Havana Soul; enjoy mojitos, authentic Cuban food, original Cuban art, live auction and more. This HOT benefit always sells out so make your reservations early!

Fight Night in the Keys

March 20th

A Key West boxing tradition dating back to Ernest Hemingway’s days on our island with a series of evening bouts in a harborfront ring at Mallory Square. Fight Night in the Keys has seven matches slated, highlighted by a 12-round fight for the WBC international heavyweight title featuring defending champion Odlanier Solis.

Blue Angels Air Show

April 10 – 11th

Rock and rumble with the U.S. Navy Flight Demonstration team and the Blue Angels, as well as aerial demonstrations by military and civilian performers, and static military and vintage aircraft. Free admission to Naval Air Station.

World Sailfish Championships

April 13th – 17th

With a guaranteed top prize of $100,000, the prestigious sailfish challenge draws top teams and benefits the Don Shula Foundation for Breast Cancer Research, Camp Boggy Creek for youngsters with chronic and life-threatening illnesses, and other national and local charities.

Conch Republic Independence Celebration

April 16th – 25th

It’s the 28th Anniversary of the celebration whose slogan is “We Seceded Where Others Failed.” With activities ranging from wacky bed race to a lighthearted sea battle featuring tall ships, the Conch Republic’s 10-day birthday party showcases the independent and eccentric spirit that characterizes the Florida Keys.

Key West Symphony Master Concert No.1

The final concert of the symphony’s twelfth season will feature pianist Christopher Taylor who is back by popular demand to perform the beautiful Prokofiev’s Concerto No 2 for Piano and Orchestra. The symphony will also play the haunting music of Vaughan Williams’ Fantasia on a Theme of Thomas Tallis and the jubilant Beethoven Symphony No 5.

Key West Songwriters’ Festival

April 28th – May 2nd

The 15th-annual showcase of musical magic features 100 of America’s foremost performing songwriters, with 30 concerts staged in intimate, audience-friendly island settings.

We’re planning on going kayaking these next months. Our favorite time is sunset when the night herons are wading at the shoreline for their catch and the color of the sky is shifting between the purples, oranges and reds of our Winter nights.   We have great rates now on our beautiful rooms and look forward to your visit with us soon. Come stay with us and head out for an adventure!

We also like to go snorkeling from a kayak. The waters are so shallow and clear that you will be able to see the fish and coral in brilliant color!

Flats fishing is also excellent from a kayak and they can be rigged easily. Bonefish, Tarpon and Permit are abundant in the flats and backcountry and the water is clear and shallow so that you will be able to see them swimming towards you.

Kayak Fishing in the Keys Backcountry Flats

Come join us this Sunday February  7, 2010 at the Lighthouse Court Pool Bar for our SUPERBOWL XLIV party where we’ll be watching it on our  52″ flat screen. The bar will be serving 2 for 1 margaritas until Half Time, and happy hour will be extended until 10:30. We’ll also have some free chips and dips for munching. It all kicks off at 6pm !

Our Beautiful Sunset

Happy 2010! We hope you had a wonderful holiday season. We definitely did and are looking forward to all of the fun things to do that are upcoming. Here are some of our favorites.

January 16th

Florida Keys Seafood Festival

You can bicycle to this event at Bayview Park.  This is a family-friendly event that starts at 11:00 and includes local fresh Keys seafood, drinks, marine-related crafts, kids activities, and live music. Free admission makes it a must-do.

January 18 – 22

Key West Race Week 2010

Nearly 300 racing yachts compete for class championships in this international sailboat regatta. It’s really exciting to watch aboard a boat. There are many charters that will be going out.

Come Bike on Our Beaches

January 28-31

Key West Food and Wine Festival

This movable feast is a delicious gourmet experience. Our Key West chefs use indigenous ingredients to create sparkling dishes that you will definitely enjoy. The event starts with the beachfront Kick-off your-Flip-Flops-Barefoot-Beach Party.  Here you can enjoy island seafood, margaritas and jazz. It’s a fun time.

Another favorite is ‘Duval Uncorked’ on Saturday night, Jan. 30th. This is a mile-long wine tasting and food sampling party  accompanied by the Caribbean Queen Junkanoos.

January 30-31

Juried artisans and crafters display their talents on lower Whitehead and Caroline Streets in historic Old Town. For more info please call 305-294-1241.

Civil War Re-Enactors in Key West

February 25-28

Civil War Days Re-enactment Days

This event takes place at Fort Zachary Taylor, a National Historic Landmark which was on active duty status from 1861-1947. You can participate in the artillery, infantry, cavalry, navel and marine units. There will also be military parades, sea battles with schooner ships, and other interesting things to do during this unique historical event.

February 27- 28

Old Island Days Art Festival

The 45th annual juried fine art show is set on lower Whitehead Street in historic Old Town. The highly acclaimed show features oil paintings, watercolors, sculpture, photography and other offerings by artists from around the country. There are usually many things here that we want to buy and we usually go home with at least one new piece!

Looks like we’re going to be busy in the next few weeks. What fun! Come join us soon. We look forward to having you stay with us.

Albury Court was recently featured on the cable channel Home & Garden TV, on their program National Open House.  The program examines “what you can get for your money”  when buying real estate in different cities around the country.  The producers of National Open House selected a condominium at Albury Court to showcase what you get for $250,000 in Key West, Florida.  The program also featured Key West homes that were valued at $500,000 and $750,000.

The condo unit featured on National Open House is owned by Albury Court Hotel owner, Julia Fondriest.  The Albury Court complex, at the corner of Eaton and Frances Streets in Old Town Key West,  includes 38 hotel rooms, plus 4 privately-owned, residential condominiums.  Julie’s condo is a “studio” with 450 square feet of space.  Its a second floor unit, tucked into the roof-line behind the lobby of Albury Court.

Julie reflects are her new stardom:

“I am a big fan of HGTV.  It was a treat to participate in the National Open House program.  The crew took a lot of time to shoot video around the hotel and inside my condo.  They did a great job of making my 450 square feet look very spacious!”

Albury Court Condo featured on HGTV

The first showing of the program aired on Nov 14.  There will likely be several repeat runs of the episode in the coming months.