As Jimmy Buffett extols, “Changes in latitudes, changes in attitudes.” If the dog days of Miami’s summer are getting you down, maybe it’s time to hop in the car and head south for a daytrip to the Florida Keys. While a drive to the end of the road in Key West is best reserved for an overnight trip, you can still get into a Keys state of mind (saltwater, conch fritters, key lime pie and all) with a daytrip as far south as Islamorada. Punch these points into your GPS and your wories will melt away as downtown’s high-rises shrink out of sight in your rear view mirror.
The entrance to Schnebly Redland Winery
Stop 1: 10 a.m. Schnebly Redlands Winery & Miami Brewing Co., Homestead
Pay a visit to Miami’s tropical countryside, and the heartland where tomato fields and mango groves  provide the heart of the farm to table culinary movement. An hour’s drive from downtown, you’ll find long, one-lane country road surrounded by acres of farmland. The tempo slows down and the sights consist of flat green fields, lush sturdy palms, and a giant blue sky with cumulous clouds floating lazily in the upper strata.
Here, you’ll find Schnebly Redlands Winery, an only-in-Miami novelty that produces 22 varieties of wine from tropical fruits, like mangos, lychee, passion fruit, guava, starfruit, coconut and even avocado.
“It’s an escape from normal life—cell phones, traffic, noise pollution, cement,” says founder Peter Schnebly, a farmer and packager turned winemaker. In 2012, after eight years producing tropical wines, he added the Miami Brewing Co. to his portfolio. The craft brewery creates beers with a sense of place, like Big Rod Coconut Ale and Shark Bait Mango Wheat Ale.
Come for a tasting and tour ($7-$10) of the sprawling and lush Napa-meets-South-Florida facilities and stay for lunch at the newly opened RedLander restaurant onsite helmed by chef Dewey LoSasso.
The bar at Alabama Jacks. Photo courtesy of Alabama Jacks.
Stop 2: 12 p.m. Alabama Jacks, Card Sound Road
As you depart the mainland, opt for the road less traveled—Card Sound Road, an alternate route to Key Largo. You’ll soon come across Alabama Jacks, a roadside, water front fish shack where boats tie up and locals while away the afternoon with a fried grouper sandwich and cold lagers. The atmosphere is a little bit country and a lot of Keys color with license plates nailed to the walls, lobster trap and dive buoys strung from the ceiling and the requisite blue marlin mounted above the bar. Stop here for a bite to eat with live music and a boisterous crowd. Don’t skip the conch fritters and smoked fish dip.
A loggerhead sea turtle at the reef.
Stop 3: 3 p.m. John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park, Key Largo
No trip to The Keys is complete without an excursion offshore. Discover some of the most unspoiled sections of the Florida Straits (the third largest barrier reef in the world) with a two and a half hour snorkel trip ($30 adults, $25 children, not inclusive of gear rental) at John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park. The park extends three miles into the Atlantic and runs the length of the shore approximately 25 miles. You’ll learn about the delicate marine ecosystem and swim amidst a variety of coral formations, purple sea fans, yellowtail snapper and rainbow parrotfish. Keep your fingers crossed to spot an endangered loggerhead sea turtle, a stingray gliding along the sandy bottom or a pod of Atlantic bottlenose dolphins playing in the wake of your boat.
Trips depart six times daily and reservations are strongly recommended. Scuba and glass bottom boat excursions are also available, as well as boat rentals and kayak tours.
Surf and turf at the Green Turtle Inn. Photo courtesy of Green Turtle Inn.
Stop 4: 6:30 p.m. Sid & Roxie’s Green Turtle Inn, Islamorada
Take the scenic Overseas Highway another 20 miles south to Islamorada and watch as the green trees of Key Largo’s hardwood hammocks give way to unobstructed views of pale blue salt marshes. The aquamarine water of The Keys all but surrounds you. If you thought you escaped Art Deco kitsch in South Beach, think again as the neon glowing sign of Sid & Roxie’s Green Turtle Inn lures you in from the road for dinner. It was established in 1947 when the first motorists began making their way down to The Keys.
Today, while it’s no longer an inn to spend the night, the café is still open and imbued with Old Florida charm. While the fare and the vibe is casual, the dinner menu offers sophisticated dishes, like fresh caught fish “a la Roxie” with jumbo lump crab, tomato, onion and beurre blanc or “a la Sid” with Florida spiny lobster, orange ginger, vanilla and butter sauce. This is also your chance to end the day with a sweet and tart slice of key lime pie made with a macadamia nut crust.
A view of the beach at the Post Card Inn. Photo courtesy of Post Card Inn.
Stay the Night Option: Post Card Inn Beach Resort & Marina at Holiday Isle, Islamorada
You could turn around after Sid & Roxie’s. But if you’re not in the mood for a two hour drive back to Miami, check into the Post Card Inn Beach Resort & Marina at Holiday Isle a few miles up the road. The sprawling property features an onsite restaurant, tiki bar, pool, beach and marina, and the rooms and common spaces are surprisingly hip and updated with an eclectic beach house aesthetic. You could easily while away the next morning there with a margarita in hand gazing at the Atlantic with whatever Buffett song happens to pop in your head.
A version of this story originally appeared in The Miami Herald’s Tropical Life section, p. E1.
