Best Dog-Friendly Camping near Islamorada, Village of Islands, FL

This campground has great reviews and we were looking forward to our visit.  Our site was right on the water, facing the overseas freeway.  We loved the location but we could not sleep, it was so loud with the traffic, trucks and cars.  Our site was 15 and faced the highway.  The park was lovely, the grounds and the beaches beautiful.  However, if you have dogs, it's a no-go.  No dogs allowed and they have to stay at your camp.  We were disappointed because potentially, we could return and stay for 14 nights, but with two nights of zero sleep, we were ready to go.  The nearest town is Big Pine Key and there's a Winn Dixie, UPS store, bagel shop and a dog park.  The dog park was packed so not an option.  Maybe check out other campsites that don't have the freeway noise.

So first ...the lits are privately owned. There is an HOA. Owner of site has authority over site not the staff. So if the staff makes an error with dates of your visit and the owners show up to stay at their site....you will need to pack up. Happened to us. The area is mostly fulltime/permanent traders that have been converted into a trailer house. Laundry room is not air conditioned. The "store/gift shop" is more of a check in and mail/package pick up. Dog friendly but not alot of grassy areas for dogs to play and do there business. 90% of area is like sand seashell material. There is a very small beach area...no dogs allowed. Kids playground is nice. Pool was opened...I did not go into pool area. We took our 2 digs down to Marathon FL to a dog park. Very nice and quiet with nice walking trail. I would not recommend this camp site.

This is a very nice campground which is part of the Miami-Dade County park system.  It is close to the Encore Everglades park (about 4 miles) so we stayed here after we departed.  The campground is divided into pods and each pod has about 15 or so sites.  We were in pod 4 site 20 (420 lol).  We booked this camp with the intent to stay for a month or longer as my husband had an opportunity to Captain boats in Miami.  

The park was very quiet.  Most of the campers were retirees, a few families with kids, but we were there in early January.  The grounds are nicely maintained with lots of places to walk and open space with trees.  They don't allow dogs off-leash and although it is adjacent to the rest of the Larry & Penny park, dogs are not even allowed in the main park, at all.  We did however find a few dog parks within four miles or so which were nice.

They have a very nice pool which was open daily Wed- Sunday 11am - 5pm.  It was raining and rather dreary during our stay so we didn't use the pool.  They have a nice Clubhouse and it looked okay with tables, chairs, books, puzzles, but again very quiet.  Not many activities except for a few and we didn't stay long enough to participate.  After a week, we decided to make moves back home to Lake Tahoe.  It was unseasonably cold, raining so no boat work and not an ideal spot for the dogs.  They don't have WiFi and since we were planning a longer stay, purchased the Starlink system since I work remote during the winter.  Starlink worked great, but costs $500+ to get started and then $120 or so a month.  If you are looking for an affordable long term/monthly stay, it is great.  The rates were $850 a month for full hook-ups.  They had last minute space available, too.  

If you are in the area, check out the Miami Zoo.  We were there when they had the "Zoo Lights" a super fun evening event.  They have other events at the Zoo and lots to do nearby.  You are closer to town than Everglades Encore, but still close to the agricultural area.  I recommend but not as fun or as many activities as some other places.

It was tight getting our 32ft pull behind back to our spot, but folks all came out to offer tips and help us get around. So we actually got parked in fairly short order.

The dog walk area near our site was pretty small and it’s bookended by tent camp sites. My dogs were more interested in the goings on than doing their business and we couldn’t really walk them away from it.

That being said. The location is great! As I mentioned in the title. It’s cozy and friendly and pretty quiet.

The marina is nice. And the beaches were great launch points for kayaks.

I would, and probably will, stay here again.

Curry Hammock State Park, located at mile marker 56, is just outside of Marathon in the Florida Keys on the Atlantic side of US 1. The park is compact, offering excellent gravel, well-leveled sites, and a super clean bath house.

The sites feel secluded because of the vegetation, but don’t expect much shade here. While there is beach access, it’s not much of a beach. Typical of the Florida Keys, it is rocky and weedy. It’s not Miami Beach.

Kayaking, SUP, and bicycling are the main recreational attractions. Kayaks and SUPs can be launched from a small sandy beach spot, where swimming is not allowed. Cyclists can access the Florida Keys Overseas Heritage Trail, across US 1 from the park entrance. The asphalt paved path is safely segregated from traffic on the Overseas Highway, allowing access to Marathon.

Curry Hammock State Park is a gorgeous Florida Keys gem; however, that implies hot, muggy, and buggy conditions during the warmer months, which are mostly all year. If those conditions don’t suit you, I would suggest one of the RV resorts down the road a bit.