Key West Sunset Cruises — Local services in Key West

l'll start by saying I have been on multiple dinner cruises in Florida. This one is by far the worst one I have been on.

When we first got on the boat, we were divided into two groups. 10 minutes after leaving the dock, our group was called to the lower deck to eat. The food was average, at best. We were assigned to table 4, which had four chairs. We were shocked we had to sit with another couple. We inquired about moving to an empty table and we were told we could not. Kind of weird having dinner, with strangers, on our anniversary.

We were one of the first in line for food and we were not done yet when they announced group 2 to come down. There was still someone in line to get his dinner!! Very rushed.

We went upstairs and immediately noticed that there were only 3 benches to sit on, which fit approximately 15 people. There was also 6 chairs in front of the bar. With the amount of people on the boat, many had to stand for the entire trip. No one was allowed on the lower level, where we ate, after the second group was done eating. I overheard several people discussing the same issues as I am typing. Rushed dinner. Minimal seating. Average food.

Save your money and go have dinner on the dock at the Opal. Ten times better food: you can sit without sharing the table with chairs and you will not be rushed. Same view...

Save time and money! Look at the water from the dock and enjoy a great meal at any of the local restaurants. Once and done for my wife and I.

We had to be there 1 hour prior to departure for no obvious reason and then there was nowhere to wait other than sit in the sun dockside. Looked like a storm was going to roll in but the worst of it missed us.

We were divided into 2 groups for dinner. One group ate while the other stayed topside in the sun, or for our case the pouring rain. What fun! We waited 25 minutes in line for the very limited buffet, 8 items. How can it take so long for someone to get through such a small buffet??? Food was, at best, okay. Nothing special and certainly not as good as any of the local places.

We spent the evening circling the harbor, without a single mention of any potential sites of interest or historical. We never got more than a few hundred yards offshore. On top of everything else, the weather prevented us from seeing the sunset! The only thing that was NOT the fault of the company.

I would NOT recommend this activity, just in case that has not been made clear. Enjoy Key West, there is a lot...

This port technically has 2 separate cruise ship terminals, practically right next to each other but NOT connected. One is directly accessible from the main tourist area of (Old) downtown Key West.

The other, while clearly visible from the first and maybe only 100yds away is in fact located on the Navy base, and requires a special shuttle to get on and off the base. While these shuttles are free, (pre-arranged by your cruise line the same way as a tender service) it is important to note that you will need to give yourself extra time to get back to the ship. Even though it's close as the crow flies, its a 20-30 minute ride. It is an active military base and this is your only way to get through their security so DO NOT miss the last shuttle.

I'm assuming Carnival has a contract in place with them, (that's who we were cruising with) and that it's likely one of the ways they can help keep things affordable. We didn't mind at all really, but it would have been nice to know the situation in advance so we could have better planned our day. We loved Key West and can't...