Three generations of Boyd Hamilton’s family have owned and operated the campground on Florida’s southernmost island.
Sixty years ago, Boyd and Elsie Hamilton were so determined to escape Canada’s chill that they took a trip south from their home in Winnipeg and didn’t stop until they arrived in Key West.
They immediately fell in love with the town. So much, in fact, that they eventually built Boyd’s Key West Campground, which celebrates its 60th anniversary this year.
Now operated by three generations of the Hamilton family, the 250-site campground 3.5 hours south of Miami is the annual rendezvous point not only for snowbirds from the northern U.S. and Canada, but growing numbers of families seeking a summer escape.
“We’re closer to Cuba than Walmart,” said Shaun Hamilton, Boyd’s third generation manager, adding, “We have some sites right on the water.”
Boyd’s guests include Jennifer Little and her family from Amelia Island, Florida, a tiny town near the Georgia border, who have been camping at Boyd’s every year for nearly half a century.
“My dad started going to the Keys around 1972,” Little said. “We used to stay in hotels when I was really little. Then we started camping at Boyd’s when I was about three or four.”
Once her father discovered Boyd’s, however, he never wanted to go anywhere else. “He just loved lobstering, fishing and diving in the Keys,” Little said, adding that her father started getting her entire family to make annual trips to Boyds that eventually grew to groups with as many as 50 to 70 family members and their closest friends.
“Most of my best memories are there,” Little said, adding that she remembers going to Boyd’s before park manager Shaun Hamilton was even born.
Boyd’s provided the perfect setting for family gatherings. Her family traditions included having all of her family members spend the day on the water. “Everybody would get in their boats at the campground and we would travel around together, snorkel and then come back and have a big dinner together.”
Little herself plans to celebrate her 50th birthday at Boyd’s this summer along with her husband, Will, two sons, Tyler, 21, and Tanner, who also grew up camping there.
The only regret Little has is that Boyd’s is no longer unknown. “I’ve watched it go from being completely empty to completely full.”
Shaun Hamilton, for his part, says he could easily fill the park, even if he had another 200 campsites.
“Grandpa Boyd and Grandma Elsie wanted to create a place where people would come to make memories. Their goal was to create a place that kids would beg to come back to,” Hamilton recalled, adding that the family has succeeded in implementing their dream.
Boyd’s has 200 RV sites and 50 tent sites. Through a partnership with Key West RV Rentals, they’ll set up a travel trailer on site and have it ready and waiting when guests arrive.
“We have guests that fly down and rent an RV,” Hamilton said, adding that the drive south of Miami is a once in a lifetime adventure that includes passing Everglades National Park. Many of Boyd’s guests also enjoy snorkeling at Dry Tortugas National Park. “The water quality there is incredible,” Hamilton said.
Onsite amenities at Boyd’s include a swimming pool and a food truck that provides breakfast and lunch. The food truck vendor, De Luna’s Cafe, specializes in delicious Cuban cuisine, which is highly sought after, Hamilton said.
Demand for campsites at Boyd’s has gotten to be so strong during the winter season that the park has implemented a lottery system to give everyone an equal opportunity to reserve a campsite during the January to March period. Boyd’s campsites typically book up a year in advance during the winter season.
“It’s the fairest way we have found to allocate campsites during the winter season,” Hamilton said.
Boyd’s, for its part, has continued to do everything it can to make those memories continue, making improvements, such as replacing electrical infrastructure and putting new asphalt on park roads. This year, Boyd’s is resurfacing its swimming pool and pool deck, which should be completed not only for summer guests, but the lucky guests who will be able to spend the winter at Boyd’s.
“We want to be as welcoming as we can to new campers,” Hamilton said.
Boyd’s is a longtime member of the Florida RV Park and Campground Association, the trade association that represents Florida campgrounds, RV parks and resorts, which it markets through CampFlorida.com.
More information about Boyd’s is available through its website, www.boydscampground.com.
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