Marathon

This fall, new offerings greet visitors traveling to the Florida Keys & Key West, with 125 miles of places with wide-open spaces stretching over scenic islands and vistas of turquoise sea and sky.

Creativity is seemingly built into the DNA of the Florida Keys. Without even stepping inside a gallery or studio, visitors exploring the island chain can encounter an eclectic variety of open-air artistry. Prime among the outdoor creations is a collection of thought-provoking large-scale sculptures.

Divers can help preserve the Florida Keys’ native reef fish populations during the fun, socially distanced Reef Environmental Education Foundation 2020 Lionfish Derby. Scheduled Thursday through Sunday, Sept. 10-13, the derby challenges participants to capture and remove as many non-native lionfish as possible from Keys waters.

The hard corals of the Florida Keys reefs have spent eons developing a simple system to perpetuate the species. It’s one of nature’s mysteries that works without human intervention or complete understanding.

Attention, crustacean fans: Thursday, Aug. 6, marks the start of the eagerly anticipated Florida Keys lobster season.

The Florida Keys & Key West reopened to visitors June 1, with officials urging everyone to take personal health actions to protect against the spread of COVID-19. A Keyswide county ordinance requires that facial coverings must be worn by visitors and residents while in business establishments and other public settings, as well as outdoors when social distancing of 6 feet or more is not possible.

Visitors seeking the work of visual artists can find it literally from one end of the Florida Keys to the other. Galleries abound — whether tropically themed exhibit halls, artist cooperatives or working studios where one can watch the creative process.

Although the Florida Keys remain closed to visitors due to the global COVID-19 crisis, a new social media contest enables travelers to re-create their favorite Keys memories in video form while staying safe at home.

The Florida Keys tourism council launched a “safer at home” initiative Tuesday to promote “stay-at-home” directives to combat COVID-19, while also sensitively maintaining awareness of the Florida Keys as a destination.

The Florida Keys remain closed to visitors until further notice, following directives from local government officials based on concerns about U.S. coronavirus threats.