Azul del Mar

Six Suites, One Dock and the Whole of Florida Bay

Key Largo is a long island and most of it faces the wrong way for the evening. Azul del Mar has the right side, a narrow bayfront plot at the northern end where the land gives out into pale shallow water and the sun goes down over the Everglades. There are six suites, a lawn with palms, a small crescent of imported sand and a wooden dock running out over the seagrass. That is the entire property. No lobby to speak of, no restaurant, no wristbands, and a stillness after dark that people book a year ahead to keep.

Why It Works

Scarcity is the argument. Six suites means the beach is never shared with more than a handful of people, the kayaks are always free and the dock is yours for the sunset without negotiating. The rooms are properly finished rather than rustic, art deco lines, espresso wood and colourful work on the walls, with the bay filling the window. And the whole thing is run at the scale of a house, which in the Upper Keys, where resorts run to hundreds of rooms, is rare enough to be the reason to come.

Why This Location

The address is 104300 Overseas Highway, at the top of Key Largo, roughly an hour from Miami and the first proper stop on the drive down. That geography is useful: John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park and the dive boats are a few minutes south, the Everglades and Florida Bay open to the west, and the whole archipelago runs out ahead if you want to drive it. Bayside means calm water for a paddleboard at dawn and the sunset in front of the dock. The Atlantic beaches and the reef are a short crossing away by boat.

Fast Facts

• Price: premium for the Upper Keys, at boutique rather than resort scale

• Vibe: intimate, adult, barefoot, quietly stylish

• Rooms: 6 suites, art deco inspired, all facing the bay

• Best For: couples, honeymoons and anniversaries, small group buyouts of the whole property

• Our Favorite Thing About the Hotel: the dock at the end of the lawn, which turns every evening into an event without anyone organising one

• Dining: no restaurant on site, with the Key Largo seafood houses on the highway a short drive in either direction

• Amenities: private bayfront beach and dock, ocean kayaks, stand up paddleboards, snorkel gear, free private parking

• Attractions: John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park, the Florida Reef dive sites, Everglades National Park, the drive south to Islamorada

Art Deco Under the Palms

The suites avoid both extremes of the Keys, the tired motel and the beige resort. Lines are deco, colours are strong, the wood is dark and the artwork is chosen rather than bought by the pallet, and every window is pointed at the water. Sizes vary across the six units, so the choice is worth a phone call: some suit two comfortably, others open onto the lawn for a small group taking the property together. What they share is quiet, and the sound of water a few steps from the door.

The Beach, the Dock and What Leaves From It

The sand is small and private, and it does the job: two chairs, shade, and water shallow enough to walk out into. Kayaks and paddleboards are there for guests, and the bay behind the property is protected enough to use them at any hour, which is not true on the ocean side of the island. The dock takes a boat, receives a sunset cruise and gives the property its best half hour of the day. Snorkel gear is provided for the trips out to the reef.

A Grown Up Hideaway, and How to Book It

This is a couples address first, marketed and run that way, though the whole property can be taken for a family or a group when the six suites are booked together. It rewards planning: the winter months fill early, the sunset side is the point of the place, and a stay of several nights suits it better than a stopover on the way to Key West. Come for the water and the silence, and let the rest of the Keys be a day trip.