Most fun inn Key West!

• Super friendly innkeepers
• Free beer & wine happy hour

A bed and breakfast with a sense of humor! That's how we want our guesthouse to be known.

We strive to make your visit a fun packed stay, whether it be for one night or many. This is more than a business to us. It's our life! We truly enjoy meeting new friends and want you to feel like you're coming home for a visit.

Get to know us... let us get to know you... and hopefully it will become a place you cannot wait to get back to.

The Garden House is located at 329 Elizabeth Street, smack in the heart of the historic district in Key West, Florida... just two blocks over from Duval Street and 1½ blocks from the Historic Seaport.

There are ten rooms, each with a private bath (9 with shower, 1 with a tub), a heated pool/spa that's perfect for mingling with the other guests, or relaxing in after a night on the town.

The Garden House bed and breakfast is not a luxury hotel but a place you will feel very comfortable in, with just the right amount of amenities to make you feel right at home. Each room is decorated in a tropical flair, with upgrades being applied on a near daily basis now.

We also offer a continental breakfast, served poolside daily from 8:30 am to 10:30 am, and a nightly beer and wine happy hour from 5 to 6 pm - both included with the price of your room. Daily room service is provided at our bed and breakfast, and our staff is always eager to help with anything you might need, from directions to dining suggestions. And since we're so close to anything and everything you might want to do, it's nice to remember that you are always within crawling distance back to the safety of your room.

Please enjoy your tour of the Garden House... you can't get any closer to the fun than right here!

Rooms:

Royal Poinciana - Queen Room:

This lovely room, with its private patio, gives you more of the already abundant privacy at The Garden House. With a comfortable queen bed and private bath (plus its location of just a few steps from our lagoon), you will find yourself feeling timeless. Many guests choose to stay in this room so they can enjoy their continental breakfast in the privacy of its shaded patio. Remember if you wish to book the Royal Poinciana you should book as early as possible... since it is one of our most requested rooms!

Amenities include:

• Ceiling fan
• Chair & ottoman
• Bed & bath linens
• Color TV (with cable)
• In-room mini refrigerator
• Private bath (with shower)
• Telephone (with free local calls)
• Private A/C (for your personal comfort)
• French doors (leading to private porch)

Gecko Grotto - Queen Room:

Decorated in a comfortable island style... the Gecko Grotto is located adjacent to our heated lagoon style pool, and houses a queen size bed, and private bath. The theme is truly Key West with its white wicker furnishings, palm comforter, and accent pillows. Wall mounted Gecko's parade from room to room and little island touches are sprinkled throughout. The floors are covered in coral colored Mexican tiles, and the soft yellow walls emit a feeling of coziness throughout.

Amenities include:

• Luggage rack
• Bed & bath linens
• Color TV (with cable)
• In-room mini refrigerator
• Private bath (with shower)
• Telephone (with free local calls)
• Private A/C (for your personal comfort)

Tropical Breeze - Queen Room:

This cozy room offers island life the way you imagined it. Four sets of louvered windows allow for a constant breeze to filter through should you prefer a more natural air flow... although individual A/C units are provided. The walls are painted in shades of moss green with natural cane and wood furnishings. Wall mounted reading lamps provide ample light when needed, as well as a conveniently placed chair for reading, lounging or watching television.

Amenities include:

• Ceiling fan
• Full length mirror
• Bed & bath linens
• Color TV (with cable)
• In-room mini refrigerator
• Private bath (with shower)
• Telephone (with free local calls)
• Private A/C (for your personal comfort)

Note: This room is located on the second floor.

Paradise Palm - Queen Room:

This room is decorated in a tropical motif, with a palm matelassé and herb-green pinstriped bed skirt. There are wood furnishings throughout, along with nautical prints and knick-knacks. A cane chair is provided for reading and the oversized bench provides for additional seating. Double doors open onto our second story landing where you are only steps away from a beautifully landscaped upper deck.

Note: This room is located on the second floor.

Amenities include:

• Bench & chair
• Bed & bath linens
• Color TV (with cable)
• In-room mini refrigerator
• Private bath (with shower)
• Telephone (with free local calls)
• Private A/C (for your personal comfort)

Double Delight - 2 Double Beds:

The Double Delight is a large room consisting of two double beds, an in-room vanity and separate private bath, with shower and commode. Set up much like your typical hotel room with matching bedspreads, wall mounted reading lamps and centered nightstand this room provides the perfect setup for couples, friends or family members traveling together. In addition to the two full size beds are a triple dresser, full length mirror, color television, A/C unit, luggage rack and miniature refrigerator.

Directly across from this room is our upper sundeck which provides a great lounging area to read and/or nap for those individuals not looking to sunbathe. The lushly landscaped area provides ample shading to enjoy your continental breakfast or late afternoon libation. The Royal Poinciana in full bloom, in early May, is a sight to behold, and don't miss the adorable buds of the surrounding miniature roses that line the outer edge of the deck.

Note: This room is located on the second floor.

Writer's King:

The Writer's King is located at the end of our second floor balcony located directly over the Lagoon where you can listen to our gentle waterfall on cool evenings.

Featuring a king size bed with Tiffany reading lamps, the Writers' King has a private bath, phone, cable and lots of A/C. One will most certainly be able to enjoy their vacation at our centrally located Garden House. And do not forget you can have your continental breakfast Lagoon side or sitting on your balcony. Isn't it nice to know you have options!

Note: This room is located on the second floor.

Hibiscus Room - Queen Room:

The Hibiscus Room is located just steps from our heated pool and adjacent to the Bougainvillea Room. Both share a large semi-private deck which has access to both the front yard and the pool area, with the Hibiscus Room being closest to the front entrance. This setup works out perfect for couples traveling together but still wanting their privacy.

Amenities include:

• Luggage rack
• Bed & bath linens
• Color TV (with cable)
• In-room mini refrigerator
• Private bath (with shower)
• Telephone (with free local calls)
• Private A/C (for your personal comfort)

Bougainvillea Room - Queen Room:

The Bougainvillea Room is located just steps from our heated pool and adjacent to the Hibiscus Room. Both share a large semi-private deck which has access to both the front yard and the pool area, with the bougainvillea room being closest to the pool. This setup works out perfect for couples traveling together but still wanting their privacy.

The large deck is great for socializing or lounging around all afternoon. In the evening it's great to take a quick dip in the pool and then join your friends for cocktails and conversation.

Amenities include:

• Ceiling fan
• Bed & bath linens
• Semi-private deck
• Color TV (with cable)
• In-room mini refrigerator
• Private bath (with shower & tub)
• Telephone (with free local calls)
• Private A/C (for your personal comfort)

Island Dreams - Queen Room:

Island Dreams is decorated in rich wood and cane furnishings, with photos of exotic tropical palms and low lighting of wood and pineapple based lamps. An intimate fern green tile covers the bathroom walls which house a single head shower and commode. The in-room pedestal sink and full length mirror make preparing for a night on the town simple and effective.

You enter this room from a side porch entrance, which meanders along a tropical pathway filled with the scent of jasmine.

West Indies King:

With its rich wood flooring, triple windows, wood and cane furnishings, double night stands, metal sculpted palm lamps with intricate shell shades, and writer's desk this room is spacious and "oh so" comfortable. Fern green tiles line the more than adequate size bath, with dual shower heads, pedestal sink and commode. The largest of our rooms... the West Indies King has full use of the front porch after hours where one can enjoy the evening breeze, wine in hand, and the lush tropical landscape - cascading hibiscus provide privacy from passer's by and the night blooming jasmine intoxicates the mind.

Parking... No Problem!

One of the first questions we get when people call to make reservations is... where do we park?

Good question!

And... here is our response.

Upon arriving always look for street parking... which is free... as long as the space is not marked residential. If it is... please don't park there... you will be ticketed.

If no street parking is available there is an alternate solution.

The church next door allocates 3 parking spaces located at the far end of the parking lot, clearly marked "Garden House," which they allow our guests to use for an $8 per day donation. Just let us know you have occupied one of the spaces when you check-in.

To date we've never really had much of a problem with this, but should neither solution be available to you consider using the Parking Garage on Grinnell Street (located directly across from Finnegan's Wake). Remember to drop-off your bags first so you will not be hauling them around town... and don't let the bartenders at Finnegan's treat you so well that you forget to come back and check-in.

Your Hosts:

John & Connie Manasco have lived in Key West for 9 years - after retiring from their jobs in Fairfax, Virginia. They've been married for 20 years - best friends for even longer - and have worked together throughout their entire marriage.

After six years of living in Key West we decided it was getting too expensive to live here, so we moved to the West Coast of Florida and settled in Cape Coral. Well, it didn't take long to figure out that we had made a terrible mistake and after just four months we found ourselves back in Key West once again. It seems we just couldn't get Key West out of our system!

Shortly after returning, I took a job with RE/MAX Southernmost, as the Office Manger, and was shocked to find that the Garden House was on the market. It had been a favorite guest house of mine every since we had arrived in Key West, but I had never really mentioned that to John. I would think about owning it every time we passed by and was totally shocked when he agreed to give up his days as a stock investor to become an innkeeper. Of course the original plan was that I would join him on a daily basis... but I loved my job with RE/MAX too much to give it up, and recently decided to become a Realtor in addition to being the Office Manager, web designer, advertiser, and part-time innkeeper.

I wonder if my husband will ever forgive me! He was perfectly content being retired.

Gone are those days of hanging out around town sipping margaritas, or sunning in the backcountry with good friends and a cold beer. Now his days are filled with getting up early every morning to set up breakfast, cleaning up afterwards, and scrambling to handle reservation requests and housekeeping chores in between. Not to mention the dozen or more trips weekly to fetch supplies or the Saturday afternoon grocery shopping. There's certainly been very little time for leisure over the past year, as renovations have been underway since buying the guest house, and everything from air conditioners to pool pumps have needed fixing or replacing. We've been through the changeover in staff, the injuries on the job, and the realization that it's true that women are from Venus and men are from Mars, and somehow we've come out of this relatively unscarred. There's no doubt about it... being an innkeeper is exhausting, but it's also rewarding. The people that you meet that touch your lives in such special magical ways will always make it worth the effort... and how can anyone complain when their daily lives are filled with 80 degree weather and 5 o'clock happy hour.