Gay Resorts in Key West (2027): Island House, New Orleans House, Alexander's and La Te Da, Property by Property
Key West is down to four gay-owned or gay-centered places to stay after Equator Resort closed in January 2025: two clothing-optional men's resorts, one adults-only guesthouse that welcomes everyone, and the hotel that shares its grounds with a nightly drag cabaret and the Sunday Tea Dance. Here is what each one's own site says about who can stay, where clothing is optional, what it costs and which weekends carry minimum stays.
Key WestGay Events
Drag brunches, circuit nights & every party worth knowing in Key West — in your inbox every week.
Key West's gay guesthouse scene goes back to the 1970s and is smaller than it used to be. Equator Resort, the men-only clothing-optional property on Fleming Street, closed on January 9, 2025, a closure the Key West Chamber of Commerce reported in a community-news post. That leaves the four places covered here, each built for an LGBTQ+ crowd: Island House and Alexander's across the street from each other on the 1100 block of Fleming, New Orleans House on the second floor above Bourbon Street Pub, and La Te Da, the hotel with a drag cabaret and the Sunday Tea Dance on the property. This guide covers each one using the policies, amenities, rates and minimum stays published on its own website as of October 2026. For the wider list, including the boutique inns and the beachfront resorts, see our Gay Friendly hotels in Key West guide; this one is the gay properties only.
Planning a wider Florida trip? Our Gay Resorts in Florida roundup covers Fort Lauderdale, Miami Beach, St. Pete and Tampa too.
Gay Resorts in Key West at a Glance
- Gay men's resorts, clothing-optional: Island House (1129 Fleming St, 39 rooms, pool, two jacuzzis, sauna, steam room, 24-hour café and bar; non-male guests stay only in its detached apartments, off the clothing-optional side) and New Orleans House (724 Duval St, above and behind Bourbon Street Pub, clothing-optional backyard with pool, jacuzzi and the Garden Bar)
- Adults-only, no gender restriction: Alexander's (1118 Fleming St, 21 and up, "everyone is welcome" in its words, 15 guest rooms plus a suite and apartment, pool, jacuzzi, poolside bar) and La Te Da (1125 Duval St, 21 and up, pool deck, restaurant, piano bar and nightly cabaret; no clothing-optional areas)
- Published rates: Island House $369 to $769 a night by room type; New Orleans House "from" $260 to $350 by room; Alexander's and La Te Da quote through their booking engines
- Day passes: Alexander's $20 ($10 for locals), 11 AM to 8 PM; New Orleans House's Garden Bar is open to the public but men only; Island House and La Te Da do not advertise one
- Minimum stays: three nights on weekends at Island House; five nights for Fantasy Fest and New Year's at New Orleans House and La Te Da; seven nights for both at Alexander's
- Closed: Equator Resort (since January 2025)
Pro Tip
With four properties and well under 100 rooms between them, the gay guesthouses fill early for Key West Pride in June, Tropical Heat in August, Bear Weekend in late October into November and Fantasy Fest. Island House does not take online bookings; you call or email, and its site says the desk answers around the clock.
What's on in Key West
Live from our events calendar — updated daily.
Clothing-Optional or Not
Property by property, in each site's own words:
- Island House: "Clothing is optional everywhere in the clothing optional side of the resort except the gym," where state law requires shoes and shorts. Women and non-male guests may stay, per the FAQ, but are not allowed on the clothing-optional side.
- New Orleans House: "a large clothing-optional backyard with our Garden Bar"; the pool-side bar is "open to the public, as well as clothing-optional and restricted to men only."
- Alexander's: its own site does not state a clothing policy. Island House's FAQ refers to Alexander's "clothing optional sundecks" across the street, and our venue listing has the two upper decks as clothing-optional; ask when you book.
- La Te Da: "LaTeDa does not offer any clothing optional areas."
Clothing-optional applies inside the property only.
Fleming Street: Island House and Alexander's
Island House Key West
Island House (1129 Fleming St, at the corner of White Street) calls itself a clothing-optional sanctuary for gay men since 1976 and, on its FAQ, the oldest operating gay men's resort in the world. It is the full-service one: a heated pool the resort describes as the largest guesthouse pool on the island, two large jacuzzis (one indoor, one outdoor), a dry sauna and steam room, a 24-hour gym, and a 24-hour café and bar inside the gates. Thirty-nine rooms run from the entry-level SSQ ($369 to $439 a night) through poolside and deluxe kings to the OP1 suite ($669 to $769). There are no resort fees; extra guests are $50 a night, tax is 12.5 percent, weekends carry a three-night minimum and a 50 percent deposit is due at booking. Registered guests get four free drinks at the daily happy hour, 5 to 6:30 PM; the site also lists Hot Naked Sunday and Hot Naked Humpday pool parties. Eight free parking spaces go first come, first served. The resort says it is six blocks, or about a 12-minute walk, from Duval Street. Next door, the privately run Island Mates Manor rents two villas for 30 nights or more.
Alexander's Guesthouse
Alexander's (1118 Fleming St, directly across from Island House) is the one for couples of any gender, women, and anyone who wants Fleming Street without a men-only policy. Its site says everyone is welcome and describes the property as adult exclusive and LGBTQ+ friendly; all guests must be 21. The house is a 1902 Conch home on the National Register of Historic Places, with 15 numbered guest rooms (kings, queens, two junior suites with four-poster beds) plus a guest suite and an apartment. Out back are a pool and jacuzzi open 24 hours and the poolside Tropicana Bar. The stay includes an expanded continental breakfast and a poolside happy hour from 4:30 to 5:30 PM for up to two guests per room, with unlimited-drinks packages from $40 a person per day. Rates are quoted through the booking engine; a $35-plus-tax daily resort fee applies, a non-refundable first night is charged at booking, and Fantasy Fest and New Year's both carry a seven-night minimum. Day passes are $20, or $10 for locals, 11 AM to 8 PM, with limited spaces. Street parking is free and the hotel is smoke-free.
Fleming Street gay guesthouses
HotelIsland House Key West, Key West
Key West, Florida
Duval Street: New Orleans House and La Te Da
New Orleans House
New Orleans House (724 Duval St) is the guesthouse above and behind Bourbon Street Pub, some rooms directly over the bar and others not, and calls itself the only gay all-male guesthouse on Duval Street. Guests are adult males 18 and over; the site adds that all-welcome accommodations are available by phone. The clothing-optional backyard has a 24-hour pool, a 15-man jacuzzi and the Garden Bar, which is open to the public until 4 AM and restricted to men. A continental breakfast is served on the Grand Balcony over Duval, happy hour drink specials are included, and the front desk hands out free passes to the nightly drag shows at 801 Bourbon Bar. Fourteen rooms are listed, from queens with kitchenettes to the Key Lime Calypso suite, each with a "from" rate on its page: $260 to $350 a night, the Calypso at $270. On top of quoted rates come 6 percent state tax, 1.5 percent county tax, a 5 percent county hotel tax and a 5 percent resort fee; extra guests are $25 a night; Fantasy Fest and New Year's require five nights and are booked by phone. Parking is $10 a day in a lot at Petronia Street and Shavers Lane, with none during Fantasy Fest week. The site is plain about the trade-off: some rooms sit directly over the pub, and the music runs until the bar closes at 4 AM.
La Te Da
La Te Da (1125 Duval St) is a hotel, restaurant and cabaret in an 1892 building put up by cigar manufacturer Teodoro Perez. It is adults-only (21 and up) with no gender restriction on its site, and it states outright that it has no clothing-optional areas, which makes it the pick for a mixed group that still wants to be inside the gay scene. The draw is downstairs: Christopher's restaurant with live entertainment nightly from 8:30 to 11:30 PM, the piano bar, a new terrace bar, and the cabaret room where Randy Roberts sings live (no lip-syncing, per the site), plus, per our venue listing, the free Sunday Tea Dance by the pool that Key West Pride traditionally ends at. Sixteen rooms are listed across Superior Queen, Superior King, Deluxe King, Cabana King and Conch King types, maximum two guests per room, no pets, no groups. There are no resort fees; a one-night deposit holds a standard booking and 50 percent holds Fantasy Fest. Minimum stays are two nights most of the year, three for July 4, Christmas and New Year's, four for Power Boat week and five for Fantasy Fest. Breakfast is not included, but registered guests get 20 percent off breakfast at Christopher's; street parking on Catherine Street is free.
Duval Street stays and the bars beneath them
Pro Tip
Read the fee line before comparing rates. Island House and La Te Da charge no resort fee; Alexander's adds $35 plus tax a day and New Orleans House adds 5 percent, on top of Key West's 12.5 percent lodging taxes everywhere.
Plan Your Key West Weekend
Every Key West bar, guesthouse and weekend party in one place, from Fleming Street to the Pink Triangle.
Which One to Book
- Men only, inside the gates all day: Island House, which has the pool, the gym, the sauna and a bar that never closes
- Men only, on top of the nightlife: New Orleans House, one staircase from Bourbon Street Pub and across the street from 801, if you can sleep through a 4 AM close
- A couple or a mixed group: Alexander's on Fleming for quiet, across the street from Island House, or La Te Da on Duval with the cabaret on site
- No clothing-optional areas at all: La Te Da is the only one of the four that says so
When to Go
Every property above prices by season and tightens its minimum stay for the big weekends:
- Key West Pride — early June, when the parade ends in La Te Da's Tea Dance
- Tropical Heat — mid-August, the all-male week whose pool parties run at the guesthouses
- Key West Bear Weekend — late October into November
- Fantasy Fest — late October, with five-night minimums at New Orleans House and La Te Da and seven at Alexander's
For what is on the week you are booking, check the Key West events calendar and the Key West venue directory.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which gay resorts in Key West are clothing-optional?
Island House, everywhere on its clothing-optional side except the gym, and New Orleans House, in its backyard pool and Garden Bar. Alexander's does not publish a clothing policy, and La Te Da states it has no clothing-optional areas.
Are the Key West gay guesthouses men-only?
Island House is a gay men's resort; its FAQ says women and non-male guests may stay but cannot use the clothing-optional side. New Orleans House is for adult males 18 and over, with all-welcome rooms available by phone. Alexander's says everyone is welcome; both it and La Te Da are adults-only (21 and up) with no gender restriction.
Is Equator Resort in Key West still open?
No. Equator Resort on Fleming Street, which had run as a men-only clothing-optional resort since 1997, closed on January 9, 2025. Management said at the time, in a post carried by the Key West Chamber of Commerce, that the property was not being sold and that new shareholders in the family corporation wanted to shift focus.
How much do gay resorts in Key West cost?
Island House publishes its rates: $369 to $439 for its entry-level room and $669 to $769 for its top suite, plus 12.5 percent tax and no resort fee. New Orleans House publishes "from" rates of $260 to $350 a night by room, with about 17.5 percent in taxes and fees on top. Alexander's and La Te Da quote by date; Alexander's adds a $35 daily resort fee, La Te Da none.
Can I buy a day pass to a Key West gay resort?
Alexander's sells day passes for $20 ($10 for locals) from 11 AM to 8 PM, with limited spaces. New Orleans House's Garden Bar is open to the public but men only. Island House and La Te Da do not advertise day passes.
What is the minimum stay for Fantasy Fest?
Five nights at New Orleans House and La Te Da, seven at Alexander's. Island House sets longer minimums for holidays and events than its usual three-night weekend rule; call for the number.
Which Key West gay resort is closest to the bars?
New Orleans House, which is upstairs from Bourbon Street Pub and across Duval Street from 801 Bourbon Bar. La Te Da is four blocks south on Duval. Island House says it is six blocks, about a 12-minute walk, from Duval, and Alexander's is across the street from it.
Does Island House take online bookings?
No. Its site says reservations are by phone or email, with a 50 percent deposit and a $50 administrative fee on cancellations.
Enjoyed this article?
Subscribe to our newsletter for more LGBTQ+ travel guides, local discoveries, and community stories delivered to your inbox.
Subscribe to Newsletter
Robbie S.
I'm Robbie, the founder of Out x Out. I'm from Minneapolis, though I'm spending 2026 building this community from the road — somewhere between South America and Asia. The idea for Out x Out came from a trip to Berlin, where the gay nightlife calendar was years ahead of ours: you could see not just where to go out, but which night to go — so naturally I wanted that kind of insider info for every city in the US (and beyond... eventually). I'm more of a behind-the-scenes type, but the whole point of this is connection: I'd take one real one over a hundred surface-level ones, and I'm trying to build that for the community, city by city.
Related Posts
Gay Resorts in Florida (2027): Fort Lauderdale, Key West, Miami Beach, St. Pete and Tampa
Florida's gay resorts are spread across five cities with very different styles. Here is the statewide picture: which cities have clothing-optional men's resorts, which have gay hotels anyone can book, what each one's own site says it costs, and where to go deeper.
LGBTQ+ Friendly Hotels in Key West 2027
The best Gay Friendly hotels in Key West — from clothing-optional gay resorts and historic guesthouses to boutique hotels, plus neighborhood tips and seasonal pricing.
Best Gay Beaches in Florida (2026): The Statewide Guide
Your guide to the best gay beaches in Florida — the top LGBTQ+ sands from Miami to Key West, what to expect at each, and where to stay nearby.