Three Days in Miami with All the Vibes and None of the Tourist Traps

Miami has always had an undeniable allure. The draws have changed over the years, but its magnetism has pulled people to the furthest corner of the country for decades, whether for real estate, retirement, or just starting their lives over. Like the classic comedy set here, there’s just something about Miami. And no matter your interests, there’s a reason you’ll ultimately feel the city’s irresistible pull.

“The key word is ‘special,’” says Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau President and CEO David Whitaker. “Miami just turns up the volume, literally and figuratively, in every sense. The sound of Miami, the taste of Miami, the visual appeal of Miami.

It can be a thrill ride for some, bouncing from dancing in nightclubs to partying on boats. It can mean tranquility for others, paddling through mangroves and breathing in the warm sea air. It can also be a sensational look at art from all over the Americas, and a cultural immersion without the need for a passport.

With all that in mind, we’ve assembled the must-dos in Miami for all kinds of visitors, from art and culture lovers to outdoor enthusiasts and foodies. And even if you can’t hit every spot on the list, everything we’ve included will scratch your Miami itch. As Whitaker says, “It’s the variety and volume that resonate, and a Miami experience always elevates you.”

See: Art deco architecture along Ocean Drive. Miami Beach has the largest collection of art-deco architecture in the world, and you can see the best of it strolling Ocean Drive. Start on Fifth Street and walk up the east side of the street, stopping at the Art Deco Welcome Center for a daily tour at 10:30 am if you really want to learn a thing or two.

Touch: The rays at the Frost Museum. The stingray tank on the top floor of Miami’s downtown aquarium and science museum is the perfect place to start a visit. Take in the views of the city and the port as you pet a live stingray, then wander down through mockups of the Everglades, a living coral reef, and a 500,000-gallon aquarium filled with hammerhead sharks.

Smell: The seagrapes and ocean air of natural Florida. Step away from the concrete, and the Miami air is filled with the salty ocean breezes, mangroves, seagrapes, and switchgrass. The best places to breathe it all in are Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park on the south end of Key Biscayne, or along the beach dunes in Miami Beach.

Hear: The sounds of salsa music. Stroll down Calle Ocho on any given afternoon and you’ll hear live salsa music pouring out the doors of Ball and Chain and the Cubaocho Museum and Performing Arts Center. You’ll get the same beats at night at Spanish clubs like Hoy Como Ayer, a local institution that recently reopened.

Taste: A Cuban sandwich. The mixture of ham, mojo-marinated pork, mustard, and swiss on Cuban bread is the quintessential flavor of the city. You’ll find a great one at Enriqueta’s, a little Midtown sandwich shop surrounded by mid-rise condos. In Miami Beach, Cubaton makes the best Cubano on that side of the bay, with a cool Pitbull-themed bathroom to boot.

America’s largest concentration of residents born outside the country lives in Miami, bringing with them the art, music, food, and energy of Latin America and the Caribbean. Miami has also put itself squarely into the top echelon of the world’s great art destinations, with world class museums and neighborhoods filled with murals. It’s impossible to take it all in during a single day, but follow this itinerary and you’ll come close. 

9 am - Sip cafecitos in Little Havana
Miami runs on Cuban coffee, so kick off your trip and find out first hand why this little drink has become a city-wide obsession. The high-octane Cafecitos will keep you wired until after lunch, and you can grab one at several windows along Calle Ocho like El Cristo or Los Pinaneros. After, catch locals playing dominos at Maximo Gomez Park, then grab a hand-rolled cigar at the Guantanamera Lounge and enjoy it out on the sidewalk.

12 pm - Lunch at Versailles
Stop into pretty much any spot along Calle Ocho and you’ll find a big menu of authentic Cuban food. But if you want to eat at Miami’s epicenter of Cuban culture, head a little west on SW Eighth Street to Versailles. The mirror-and-brass dining room is Miami’s landmark Cuban restaurant, where waiters still wear ties and abuelos talk politics at the bakery outside. Pastelito ice cream at Azucar afterward is a must.

2 pm - See Latin American artists at Perez Art Museum and MOCA
Miami’s art museums offer the dual advantages of colorful, provocative art and refreshing air conditioning, making them an ideal afternoon respite. Across the bay, Perez Art Museum uses its glass walls to make the surrounding bay and city views as much a part of the experience as the art on the walls. Exhibits focus largely on Caribbean and Latin American artists, and the onsite restaurant Verde offers unfettered waterfront views and fantastic Latin-inspired food. In North Miami, the Museum of Contemporary Art also showcases a large number of Afro-Caribbean artists, and has live jazz in its courtyard on select Fridays. It's just north of Little Haiti, so you can drive around before to get a sense of Miami’s Haitian influence.

6 pm - Stroll the Wynwood Walls
Start at the Wynwood Walls, the art district’s official outdoor museum where murals from the likes of Shepard Fairy and Tristan Eaton adorn the sides of old warehouses. Then set out and explore Wynwood’s streets, where ever-changing murals offer provocative takes on everything from pop culture to Latin American politics.

11 pm - Go dancing at La Otra or El Patio
Choose from the many restaurants in Wynwood and be sure to order a whole lot so you can fuel up for a night on the dancefloor. Reggaeton and Latin trap fans are in luck, the city’s most popular Spanish clubs aren’t just old-school, sweaty spots for salsa dancing. This is 2024, so if you wanna dance to Spanish music in Miami it means you’ll hear plenty of Nicky Jam, Karol G, Ozuna, and J Balvin and you’ll find the best crowds in Wynwood at El Patio and La Otra.

Not so very long ago, tasting the Miami cuisine meant grabbing a Pub Sub, maybe a croqueta, and a late-night slice of pizza. Today, we’ve got world-renowned restaurants all over the city reflecting flavors from all over the world. The trick to dining in Miami is filtering greatness from hype, so follow this itinerary, and you’ll be delighted in every meal you try. Just make sure you come hungry.

8:30 am - Pick your own strawberries and have breakfast in Homestead
There are plenty of IG-worthy breakfast spots in the city proper. But Miami’s thriving agricultural area sits about 40 miles southwest in Homestead, and it’s the local’s pick for the best way to start the day. Stop into Knaus Berry Farm and pick some fresh strawberries, then taste the cinnamon rolls that have locals standing in line for hours. About 10 minutes down the road, Robert is Here is a fruit stand that makes the best milkshakes in Miami, combining locally-grown tropical fruit with fresh ice cream.

1 pm - Take a Miami Culinary Tour
Every neighborhood in Miami has a distinct culinary vibe. Miami Culinary Tours offers two and a half hour food adventures through several Miami neighborhoods, with guides who explain why each stop is significant to the city’s food scene. The Wynwood tour digs into buzzy new restaurants in the artsy neighborhood, while options in Little Havana and South Beach explore other enclaves.

4 pm - Take a walk around Brickell Key
This has absolutely nothing to do with food, but the scenic, 1.25 mile-loop around the island is going to be a much-needed halftime after all that eating.

6:30 pm - Have martinis and apps at Michael’s Genuine
Many locals point to Michael’s Genuine as being the first chef-driven, local-ingredient restaurant that paved the way for our current dining explosion. Grab a seat at the bar and try one of the restaurant’s signature martinis, then nosh on a housemade mafaldine or lamb pizza to get an idea of what chef Michael Schwartz does best.

8 pm - Crack open stone crab claws at Joe’s Stone Crab
The South Beach staple has been mentioned in everything from There’s Something About Mary to The Golden Girls, and it is as much a part of Miami lore as art deco and drug dealers. Today, it still boasts the same grand dining room and bow-tied waiters as it always has. If you're not into stone crabs, the fried chicken is a true local’s order—and low-key some of the city’s best.

10 pm - Try dessert and drinks at Cafe La Trova
This joint effort of famed chef Michelle Bernstein and master mixologist Julio Cabrera is what many consider Miami’s top cocktail bar. Step inside and you’re greeted by a live Cuban Cuban band and tuxedoed bartenders shaking Cabrera’s creations. After a Hotel Nacional or a Daiquiri, grab an order of Michy’s Bread Pudding for dessert. Then, probably fast for the next week.

One of the big advantages of having warm weather all year round is you can plan an outdoor adventure pretty much any time you want. We’ve got beaches, big cypress swamps, mangrove tunnels, and stunning aquamarine waters. What Miami lacks in elevation we more than make up for in unique subtropical ecosystems. Plan your day right, and you can get a little taste of it all.

9 am - Ride bikes on Key Biscayne
Drive across the Rickenbacker Causeway and grab your bikes on the key at Key Cycling. Once you’ve gotten your steed, ride along the causeway as you rise over Biscayne Bay’s turquoise waters, then through the thick tropical foliage of Crandon Park.

9:30 am - Breakfast at Flour and Weirdoughs
Miami’s best bakery is along your route in the Village of Key Biscayne. Stop here for coffee and an expertly crafted croissant, you’re gonna need that fuel for the rest of your ride and day full of adventure.

11 am - Explore the Everglades
Drive out west on Tamiami Trail and you’ll find a number of airboat tours taking you deep into the mangroves and grasslands of the Everglades. Venture further and you’ll come to Shark Valley, Everglades National Park’s northern entrance where cycling and tram tours take you into the thick of the ecosystem. Further west on US-41, the Big Cypress National Preserve offers a swamp walking tour, where rangers lead you through waist-deep water among towering cypress.

4 pm - Kayak Oleta River State Park
Rent a kayak in Miami’s most popular state park, then explore mangrove tunnels before emerging onto Biscayne Bay. You can also paddle to beaches only accessible by boat, as well as some small islands in the bay. On land, the park has 10 miles of mountain bike trails along with bikes for rent.

6 pm - Sunset drinks at Gramps Getaway
Finish your active day where it began on Key Biscayne with drinks at Gramps Getaway. The funky bar at the Crandon Marina is a multi-level outdoor dive, where you can kick back with a cold beer and views of the sunset over the Miami skyline.

7 pm - Zipline over Jungle Island
Between Miami and Miami Beach you’ll find Jungle Island, a verdant home to birds and other tropical animals with a ropes course running on top. At night, you can traverse that ropes course while the rest of the park is closed, ziplining above the trees while the Miami skyline glitters in the distance as part of its Night Trek program.

Life House Little Havana $
Staying in the middle of Little Havana is ideal for an intrepid traveler, and Life House sits just a couple of blocks from Calle Ocho. Life House is also home to the neighborhood’s best rooftop bar at Terras, where cocktails are crafted with ingredients from the onsite garden.

Pelican Hotel $$
This Ocean Drive hotel is delightfully unique, where each suite is meticulously themed and decorated, from the Mad Men-inspired Executive Sixties suite to the jungle-themed Go Bananas. Pelican Cafe, the Italian restaurant in the lobby, is also a culinary gem along usually touristy Ocean Drive.

Elser Hotel $$$
Downtown’s Elser Hotel offers fully-furnished studios or one-bedroom apartments with sweeping views of the city. The two-story gym is the most complete hotel fitness center in Miami, and the lobby is home to ViceVersa, an Italian cocktail bar from the people behind Jaguar Sun.

Miami Beach EDITION $$$
If you book a stay at the EDITION, you really won’t have to leave. Beachfront chairs and cabanas can keep you by the water all day. The onsite restaurants Market and Matador Room come from chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten, and the bar at Matador Room is a sexy cocktail lounge that throws back to the 1930s. And the pool scene is as swanky as it gets, without an ounce of pretension.

The most straightforward way to get around Miami is by car, so plan to rent or set aside some budget for Uber. But if you prefer public transportation, the Metrorail takes you to the airport and is convenient going to downtown and Brickell. In downtown and Brickell, the automated Metromover train runs above the streets and is the most efficient way to explore the urban core. No trains run to Miami Beach, though the Poseidon Ferry takes an aquatic route from downtown if you’d like to get out on the water for an affordable price.
The sleek Brightline train will whisk you from downtown to Aventura, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, and Orlando in seats nicer than most domestic first-class flights. For more budget-minded explorers, the TRI-Rail runs from downtown to West Palm Beach with stops all along the way, as well as one at Miami International Airport.

Miami has two seasons: hurricane season and tourist season. So when to visit really depends on which you’d rather deal with. The weather is about perfect from November to April, with most of the year’s best events happening during those months, too. But the whole world knows this, and they’ll be there too.
Summer is hotter but far less crowded. So if you can deal with an afternoon thunderstorm or two, you’ll have much of the city to yourself. You’ll also find great deals at local restaurants and spas during Miami Spa Months and Miami Spice.

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Miami has never recorded a single or triple digit temperature in its entire history. So while you might see heat index numbers of 120 during the summer, the ambient temp has never gotten to 100. On the flip side, it doesn’t get too cold either, and the last time the city saw a recorded snowfall was in 1977.

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