Hotel at a Glance: 24 North Hotel

Perched near the southernmost point in the contiguous United States, 24 North Hotel marries Caribbean-style luxury with all-American amenities and conveniences. Decorated with simple linens and turquoise accents, many guest rooms here look out over either the hotel’s azure pool or the sapphire waters of the Gulf of Mexico; other amenities include refrigerators, microwaves, and coffeemakers.

• Take a dip in the sun-splashed outdoor pool or lounge beneath an umbrella on one of the inviting deck chairs.
• Stay active in the onsite fitness center, which features cardio machines as well as interval training equipment.
• Order up a mojito at the hotel’s lively bar; it’s what Papa Hemingway would have wanted.
• Get caffeinated at the on-property Starbucks.

Key West, Florida: Dazzling Sunsets, Six-Toed Cats, and Cuban Culture

Located just off Florida’s southernmost tip and north of Cuba, the island of Key West is undoubtedly the most famous of the Florida Keys. Frommer’s calls it “the land of the eternal vacation.” Most tourists come to Key West’s gulf-side beaches to snorkel, surf, or fish, but no trip to Key West is complete without a visit to the Ernest Hemingway Home & Museum, where the author lived, worked, and kept his six-toed cats. More than 50 descendants of those famous felines still prowl the grounds of the museum to this day.

At nighttime, locals and visitors alike converge on the Mallory Square Dock to watch the sun dip below the Gulf of Mexico, casting swaths of deep orange and pink against the horizon. The spectacle is so breathtaking that it inspires a sunset celebration each night. The dock comes to life with traveling psychics, one-man bands, and food vendors serving fresh-squeezed lemonade and plantain chips.