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The Ernest Hemingway Home and Museum, Key West, FL

Photo: Andreas Lamecker, CC BY 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons. Cropped and resized.

MuseumsIconicHistory BuffQuirky Fun

The Ernest Hemingway Home and Museum

907 Whitehead St · Key West, FL

Why you should go…

Ernest Hemingway lived in this 1851 house on Whitehead Street from 1931 to 1939 and wrote works including To Have and Have Not here. Admission includes a 20 to 30 minute guided tour, with tours starting every 15 minutes. Dozens of cats live on the grounds, about half of them six-toed, and the museum says some descend from Snow White, a cat given to Hemingway by a ship's captain. The 60-foot pool, added in 1937, was the first in the Florida Keys.

  • #historic house
  • #hemingway
  • #six-toed cats
  • #guided tour
  • #literary landmark

Good to know

General museums guidance

Habits that pay off across this whole category, not rules for this one venue. Always check the official site for the specifics.

  • Check the special exhibition separately

    Touring shows usually carry their own ticket and their own opening hours, listed apart from general admission.

  • Look for the free window

    Many museums run community days, member evenings, or discounted late openings. It is worth a look before you pay full price.

  • Travel light through the door

    Large bags and backpacks often have to go to a coat check, and lines for it move slowly at opening.

  • Weekday mornings beat weekend afternoons

    School groups clear out by early afternoon midweek, while weekends stay busy from late morning on.

What's around here?

The closest stops to The Ernest Hemingway Home and Museum, ordered by straight-line distance. A few more like it, plus some different kinds of fun so you can build a full day.

  • Sightseeing
    Iconic

    Duval Street

    Free

    Walk Key West's main street from the Gulf to the Atlantic past bars, galleries, shops and Victorian mansions.

    Steps awaySwitch it up: Sightseeing

  • Sightseeing
    Iconic

    Southernmost Point Buoy

    Free

    Pose beside the striped concrete buoy in Key West that claims the southernmost point of the continental U.S., 90 miles from Cuba.

    0.4 mi awaySwitch it up: Sightseeing

  • Museums
    History Buff

    Harry S. Truman Little White House

    Under $25

    Take a guided tour of the 1890 Navy house where President Truman spent 175 days, with original furnishings and his desk.

    0.5 mi awayMore like this

  • Tours
    Iconic

    Historic Tours of America

    $50+

    Hop on hop off Old Town Trolley Tours and themed historic tours of Key West.

    0.7 mi awaySwitch it up: Tours

  • Sightseeing
    Iconic

    Mallory Square

    Free

    Join the nightly Sunset Celebration on Key West's waterfront plaza, with street performers, craft vendors and food carts.

    0.7 mi awaySwitch it up: Sightseeing

  • Sport & Outdoor
    Outdoor Adventure

    Bahia Honda State Park

    Under $25

    Swim and snorkel off white-sand Keys beaches, then walk up the old Flagler railroad bridge for a view over the islands.

    35 mi awaySwitch it up: Sport & Outdoor