The beach is okay but I would day it's better for sun bathing than swimming. Also you can buy beach pass to the sunset beach club,where I can do a lot of water sports for only 69 dollars for one whole day. If you don't like birds the stay away, cuz this beach is full of seagulls fighting for food and resting on the beach. read more

Smathers Beach - Smathers beach - Beaches Near Me - Key West, Florida

My bestest buddy in the whole wide world got married at Smathers Beach this weekend, so I spent some quality time in the area. The sand was pretty soft and the beach was deserted the handful of times we dropped in on the area, both before the wedding and for the ceremony. We spent an hour or so on a Friday afternoon just lying on the beach under the shade of a palm tree, and the warm sun and cool breeze was almost calming enough to make us forget about the hobo scrounging around the garbage can behind us. I do have to say that there is more than ample parking available along the stretch of the beach, and we never had a problem finding a spot...even when we had a five-car convoy heading down for the ceremony. I also saw a number of food vendors parking out alongside the road for some quick snacking if you feel the hunger coming on. The biggest downside is the water, which is not the crystal clear clean you look for at a tropical beach. There is a barrier of seaweed lying between the sand and the ocean that you must cross before entering the water. When you do step foot in it you will feel even more seaweed floating against your ankles, which creeped me out and made me think the Krakken was grabbing me to my watery demise. The sand under the water also leaves much to be desired, and is really muddy/clay-y. Long story short, Smathers Beach is great if you want to lay on the sand or take some pictures of the sunrise/sunset. Though if you are more a fan of jumping in the water I suggest checking out a different area that has better quality water. read more

Key West is not known for their beaches but this one isn't bad. In fact the Travel Channel voted Smathers Beach one of their TOP TEN beaches in Florida. In the winter during Spring Break it is packed but in the summer, forget it. You could drop a bomb in the middle and not hit anybody due to the intense heat of both the sand and water (both in the 90's) It is Key West's largest beach and runs along the southern shore of the island for almost 2 miles. Beach activity ranges from tanning, volleyball, and watersport/beachsport rentals. The sand is brought in from the Bahamas according to Key West lore and deposited here. Tropical storms also have a habit of sweeping the sand away, and nearly every other year the city of Key West replenishes the beach. You can leave your surfboard home when you stay here though because the miniscule swell is not even a ripple. Snorkelers have a swim zone to enjoy just offshore - small stuff...mostly. Vending trucks are parked outside on the street to offer snacks, beverages, chairs, and rafts. To get there through Key West, take South Roosevelt Blvd. To get there from the Key West airport take Bertha Street. It also aims east so if you get up early enough, you can watch the sunrise, then head over at night to see the Sunset at Mallory Square. read more

Great for kids and toddlers beautiful water Worth going . Nice people clean spot . No waves Food available changing rooms a bit dirty read more

We stopped by this beach for sunset while on a day trip to Key West (on 10/20/16), it was spectacular! I didn't expect it to be so picture perfect since I kept hearing Key West isn't known for its beaches. Well this one was THE perfect beach you always dream about. White sand, lush palm trees, calm ocean waters and colorful fluffy clouds. I'm so sad we didn't get to spend much time here, I would definitely just fly straight to Key West next time I go to Florida just to be able to spend a good solid week on the island. I noticed a lot of couples were doing lots of professional photo shoots at this beach, we saw like 5 couples doing so in the one hour we were there. I'm not sure I'd actually get in the water but I'd probably like to paddle board next time I come around. I recommend spending a full day here, you will not get tired of the scenery. read more

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Omg this beach smells like straight up poop! I stayed for about 10 minutes before I packed up my stuff and went elsewhere. I tried to go into the water but the sand was murky and sticky and the water itself was like a billion degrees which coupled with the stench and the brown color of the water made me think of all the icky bacteria just sitting in there. Take my advice and go somewhere else!! read more

This beach is pretty chill and it does the job if you want to relax by the water. They rent beach chairs for $10, the beach isn't rocky at all, and it wasn't packed for a Saturday. read more

Smathers Beach - Beaches Near Me - Key West, Florida

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Someone needs to clean up the MASSIVE amounts of seaweed covering the beach. Smells like poo poo

Holy mac n cheese. This place is a slice of heaven. We loved the clean white sand. The pictures says it all. read more

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As a native Californian, I'm used to soft sand. The sands down by Truman Annex were a bit rocky for my tender feet. (Coral, said those in the know, is what is hurting your feet!) The sand at Smather's Beach is lovely, and the sunsets are a like a painter's pallette. We watched the sunset here and took maybe 50 photos a piece. Really, one of the most restful places in Key West! You can easily visit here before your crawl of shame down Duval Street. xoxo read more

The second best beach in Key West. Second only to the one at Fort Zachary Taylor. Don't miss this beach. It's very family friendly and there are resorts and condos nearby with little parking. read more

Smathers Beach - Lovely 80° weather. - Beaches Near Me - Key West, Florida

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Hung out briefly at smathers beach and didn't notice any thing smelly as some reviews mentioned. Beautiful white sand and saw some cool sting rays. read more

Smathers Beach - Smathers beach - Beaches Near Me - Key West, Florida

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Real nice oceanfront beach with restrooms. Clean with volleyball nets. Some vendors on the street (street parking) but no cafe or bar. Can walk beach and hire parasailing and other activities. Without bar it's only a four star. read more

Good: The sand was soft and fine. There is a rental place right on the beach for kayaks and paddle boards. Bad: the smell and the kelps.

Relatively large beach along the south shore of Key West. It's also good for catching the sunrise, and typically there aren't many people in the early morning except for joggers and walkers on the sidewalk. In the middle of the day, it's very hot and muggy. read more

This was a great day on the beach. We took a cab from the Port and it was about a ten minute drive. We asked to be dropped off in front of the Sheraton and immediately rented two chairs for $10 each. Anytime we needed a drink or to use the restroom, we walked across the street to the Tiki Bar outside at the Sheraton. We ate lunch at the Sheraton also, but there were plenty of food trucks next to the beach to choose from as well. I'm not familiar with other beaches in Key West, but this was not crowded and very peaceful to spend the day laying on the beach. read more

This is a good beach to relax on especially if you can find a spot under a palm tree. The water, however, not so good. It smells terrible and it is full of seaweed. The ground in the water feels muddy and uncomfortable on the feet. I would recommend to bring swimming shoes if you want to get in the water. Most of the water is very shallow and good for kids. read more

Beautiful beach. We spent two straight days here enjoying the beautiful scenery. They have water sports if you're into that stuff. You can rent a paddleboard or various other water activities. We went to get some sun and relax. The beach is simply lovely. The stuff you see in pictures. The parking is free too. That almost never happens at a beach. Get there early so you can secure a good parking spot and a coveted seat under one of their beautiful palm trees. The water does have seaweed but that didn't bother us. I didn't go to the bathroom that everyone complained about in their reviews because it sounded pretty horrific! read more

Smathers Beach - Paradise. - Beaches Near Me - Key West, Florida

So the beach is beautiful. Quiet peaceful but there's a reason why people are not here. You can't swim. Water has a sulfur smell aka like farts. Seaweed is crazy here too. No thank you. read more

It seems there are not many beaches in Key West. There are a few tiny manmade but this is the first one we've seen that offers a more typical beach experience. By typical beach I mean drawn from our experience with Jersey Shore, Lewes DE, Outer Banks and the Virgin Islands. This beach is long, not crowded on our visit, very few shade trees, and shallow water with calm/no waves water. We did not spot a bathroom but there is a smaller beach a bit down the coast that has bathrooms and food. We enjoyed it! read more

Ultimate relaxation place! Bring a snack, a football, sunscreen and turn off your phone. Jump in the Ocean and be peaceful. read more

Smathers Beach - Beaches Near Me - Key West, Florida

There's a doody problem at this beach. The official reason is due to periodic rotting of seaweed. But I know the difference between fresh human waste and seaweed. There are articles online describing the sewage problems in the Keys and it appears to be a year round chronic thing, not periodic. The defense seems to be that people don't come here for the beaches. That's a cop out. The beach may not be the only draw but it's one of. They need fix this. It's awful. read more

Smells like shit and it's super small. I wouldn't recommend this beach if you're visiting key west.

Where's the party? So Smathers beach was once voted by the travel channel as one of the Top 10 beaches in Florida. Did I miss something? Is summer the off season? Perhaps during Spring Break this place is a fun party but, in the summer it was deserted and I can see why. there was soo much seaweed just floating on top of the water. Stagnantly sitting there, it was so thick you couldn't get passed it. We saw some kids with a boogie board trying to get passed the seaweed and into clearer water but they kept getting stuck. It looked thick as mud. The only reason I'm giving it two stars instead of one is because of the spring break potential. That would be the only reason for me to go back there. read more

Nice white sand but very windy with lots of sea grass washed up on shore but very relaxing

Palm trees for shade, street parking available, quieter than other local beaches... BUT could not swim here which was a big turn off, ended up going somewhere else. Way too muddy and murky. Our feet sank in 6" when we tried to walk into the water.. read more

This beach became our go-to-spot in Key West. We picnicked, grilled, ran and biked along the boardwalk, paddle boarded, did beach yoga and enjoyed a number of perfect sunsets right from the shore. A great place to go with your loved one, children or family. Not crowded and quite peaceful, it loved it so much it made its way onto our Key West bucket list! Check out the list of our 10 fave places in Key West, photos included! Enjoy :) http://mrandmrsadventure.com/2015/02/12/key-west-bucket-list/ read more

Loved this beach!!! In comparison to Ft. Zachary Taylor Beach, I'd choose Smathers. We arrived around 9:30am and there was plenty of parking and the beach was nice and quiet. We were able to rent beach chairs and an umbrella with ease, and the people working were super nice! The beach was not rocky, and there was no odor. There were plenty of activities, such as paddle boarding and kayaking available, as well as the option to rent floaties. 10/10! read more

I can't give it a three, because it's idyllic beauty is well above other beaches; yet I can't give it a five, because it's so painfully lacking in local culture and basic amenities such as free parking and WiFi. Smathers is definitely worth checking out at least once, yet only so long as it's not Spring Break or some other big event. read more

Pretty view, but just out of the car. The moment you open your door, it stinks like a public restrooms. We couldn't stay, it was horrible... :( read more

Horrible smell, got dropped off by UBER walked for less than 2 minutes and took an UBER back to the hotel. Will not recommend this beach.

Good clean spot and no so crowded. It is well kept cleaned by property owners across the beach. There is also a taco truck there right outside by parallel parking selling amazing tacos for lunch and evening. read more

This beach has great coast line but wasn't entirely usable for a family with two toddlers. We went during seaweed season and couldn't take the smell! We left and went to the state beach. read more

The sand is white and soft but, this beach is ugly. Not only is the beach ugly but it also smells disgusting. It smells like sewage! There is seaweed all over the bank of the beach. Parking was not an issue because no one comes to this smelly beach. Honestly, there are better beaches in Florida. Key West beaches aren't great. read more

with a name like smathers, it has to be good...but it's not. Beach does not come with nose plugs but it should. Beach will take your breath away...literally read more

I did not enjoy this beach. Maybe because I'm used to more beautiful beaches like Clearwater beach further North. The water is grungy-looking and lots of smelly seaweed all around. I know this cannot be helped much because the Keys just didn't luck up regarding beaches and clear water because of the local ecosystem. So if this is your only option, then you make the most of it! But if you're used to the beautiful beaches of the world- you will be disappointed. read more

If you like muddy type sand and a sulphuric smell go for it. We will be finding another spot.

There was rotting seaweed everywhere so the entire beach smelled like rotting eggs. We decided to go snorkeling but we were so disappointed because there was nothing to see at all. Go to Higgs beach or Bahia Honda instead read more

Came to this beach during our 4th of July trip to Key West, my friends live across the street from it, so it was super convenient to walk to. The beach is nice, wasn't very crowded, and the water was super refreshing during the ridiculously HOT days. There's lots of parking along the road so even if you have to drive over it's pretty convenient. We even saw a wedding going on while we were there! read more

Great beach! It's deff a good place to relax and not too far from where we were staying (off of Duval Street). I think it's a man-made beach but the water was warm and perfect. Although not a huge fan of all the seaweed, but still worth coming to, to relax. read more