Episode 10 | Tips and Tricks for the Best Visit to Miami

Hopefully, your summer is off to a great start. I know many of you are traveling because you are tagging me and commenting on Instagram. I love seeing all your travels!

I recently returned from my first official trip of the summer and I went to Miami Beach. In this episode, I am going to recap my trip to Miami Beach in a post-vaccinated world. I will share some tips if you are planning to travel to Florida and update you on what has been going on lately with some of the travel restrictions being lifted.

Show Notes:
[01:44] The very first time I went to Miami was for my 27th birthday. I had a great time and stayed in South Beach. I have also visited several other times so I am very familiar with Miami.
[02:11] I decided to go to Miami this year for the Fourth of July holiday.
[02:21] Our original plan was to go to Destin since I had never been there before.
[03:01] American Airlines is my preferred airline.
[03:17] Destin is a hotspot for families so we found it difficult to find a place to rent or reasonably priced hotels so we diverted the trip to Miami instead. Destin is on my list for 2022 and I am going to start planning now.
[04:22] We stayed at the Kimpton Palomar South Beach. It was a couple of blocks from Lincoln Road Mall and about a ten-minute walk down to the beach. It was a great location!
[06:09] There are two airports in the Miami area. Fort Lauderdale is about 30 miles outside of Miami Beach. Miami International Airport is 10-15 minutes from downtown and about 20 minutes to Miami Beach.
[07:39] If you are flying into Miami most hotels will offer a complimentary shuttle but not all of them so you may need to Uber or taxi. It was a $40 Uber ride from Fort Lauderdale to our hotel on South Beach.
[09:06] This time we opted to stay in South Beach just because we wanted proximity directly to the water and some of the restaurants and clubs we were more familiar with. It is not entirely necessary that you stay in South Beach.
[09:52] A lot has changed since the last time I was in Miami in regards to downtown. I would really recommend looking into staying in downtown Miami as well.
[10:26] Miami is becoming increasingly more known for art. The Art Basil Festival takes place in Miami every year and all of that is centered around the Brickell City Center.
[11:35] Staying in South Beach has its perks. If you are looking to book a place and be right in the middle of the action, you want to look for any hotel along Ocean Drive or Collins Avenue.
[12:48] The Lincoln Road Mall is one long road with nothing but stores along there. Everything from Victoria Secret’s, bouquet shops, restaurants, and other unique shops.
[14:03] In South Beach there is shopping and all kinds of boutiques along Collins Avenue.
[14:29] There are restaurants directly on Ocean Drive. My favorite thing to do is eat and people watch on Ocean Drive. We enjoyed the fireworks over the beach. Always make it a point to go down on Ocean Drive.
[15:26] A great place to visit on Ocean Drive is the Versace Mansion. Wet Willies is a really popular daiquiri shop. Walk over to Miami Beach.
[16:41] Mangos is a very popular dancing place. The Clevelander hotel sits right on Ocean Drive and is known for having this outdoor huge dance floor. Always a good time to be had up and down Ocean Drive.
[18:19] When you are in South Beach, be prepared that wherever you eat there is going to be a service fee and gratuity (18%) automatically included. The taxes are also higher.
[20:15] Some people opt to not stay in South Beach because everything is heavily taxed and has additional gratuity. In other parts of Miami Beach, it differs.
[20:44] One of my favorite places we ate was Lido Bayside Bar and Grill at The Standard Hotel. It was right on the water and had amazing cocktails.
[21:58] Another place we visited in Miami Beach that I was excited about was Bar One Miami Beach. When you go there, even if you’re not a whiskey drinker try The Black Panther cocktail.
[23:31] At Bar One the food, service and the drinks were good. It is a beautiful location and a great ambiance.
[24:01] Look into your different flight options with Fort Lauderdale or Miami. Keep in mind that if you stay in South Beach, you are going to be taxed extra and have service charges on everything you eat.
[24:20] If you do try to stay downtown, look into the Brickell City Center. It has really grown. There is shopping, great restaurants, and there is a lot going on in that area.
[24:37] If you want to be in on the action in South Beach, stay on Ocean Drive or Collins Drive. Lincoln Road Mall is a great place to shop. Collins Drive has a lot of great places as well.
[25:17] Have you been to Miami? What did you like about it? Do you plan to go to Miami?

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