Key West (Insel)

Key West is an island in the Straits of Florida on the North American continent, at the southernmost tip of the Florida Keys. The island is about 90mi from Cuba.Key West is politically within the limits of the city of Key West, Monroe County, Florida, United States. The city also occupies portions of nearby islands.The island is about 4mi long and 1mi wide, with a total land mass of 4.2sqmi. Duval Street, its famous main street, is a mere 1.1mi in length in its 14-block crossing from the Gulf of Mexico to the Florida Straits/Atlantic Ocean. In the late 1950s, many of the large salt ponds on the eastern side were filled in, nearly doubling the original land mass of the island. The island is 3370acre in area.Notable placesCuban proximityKey West is closer to Havana (106 miles, or 170 km) than it is to Miami (127 miles or 207 km, farther by boat). Key West is known as a launching point for swims to Cuba due to its short distance.Port of Key WestThe first cruise ship was the Sunward in 1969, which docked at the Navy's pier in the Truman Annex or the privately owned Pier B. The Navy's pier is called the Navy Mole.In 1984, the city opened a pier right on Mallory Square. The decision was met with considerable opposition from people who felt it would disrupt the tradition of watching the sunset at Mallory Square.