Things to Do in Miami Beach

Miami Beach is a barrier island connected to mainland Miami by causeways — a 7-mile strip of sand, art deco buildings, and some of the most energetic nightlife in the Western Hemisphere. South Beach is the famous part, but the city extends north through Mid-Beach and North Beach with progressively less chaos and more actual beach.

South Beach

Ocean Drive — The iconic stretch of art deco hotels, restaurants with outdoor seating, and people-watching. It’s the postcard version of Miami. Walk it in the early evening when the neon signs light up and the buildings glow.

Art Deco Historic District — The largest collection of art deco architecture in the world. Over 800 buildings from the 1920s-40s. The Miami Design Preservation League runs walking tours ($30) that explain the architectural details.

Lummus Park Beach — The beach along Ocean Drive. Wide, white sand, lifeguard towers painted in pastel colors. This is the beach from every Miami montage ever filmed.

Española Way — A pedestrian street with Mediterranean Revival architecture, string lights, outdoor dining, and live music. More relaxed than Ocean Drive.

Wynwood & Art

Wynwood Walls — An outdoor museum of street art covering entire building facades. The murals rotate and change. Free to walk around (the main Wynwood Walls complex has a small admission fee).

Wynwood — The neighborhood surrounding the Walls has become a full arts district with galleries, breweries, restaurants, and shops. Second Saturday gallery nights are the big events.

Pérez Art Museum Miami (PAMM) — Contemporary art on Biscayne Bay. The building itself (designed by Herzog & de Meuron) is as much a draw as the collection.

Food

Versailles — The most famous Cuban restaurant in Miami. On Calle Ocho in Little Havana. The Cuban sandwich, ropa vieja, and café con leche are the standards.

Joe’s Stone Crab — Seasonal (October-May). South Beach institution since 1913. The stone crab claws and key lime pie are legendary. No reservations — the wait can be long. Takeaway window is the hack.

Mandolin — Mediterranean food in a charming house in the Design District.

Little Haiti & Little Havana — The real food in Miami is in the ethnic neighborhoods, not on Ocean Drive. Griot and fried plantains in Little Haiti, ventanitas (walk-up coffee windows) in Little Havana.

Nightlife

Miami Beach nightlife is world-class and world-priced. The big clubs (LIV at Fontainebleau, E11EVEN, Story) are $50-100+ cover charges with bottle service tables running into five figures.

For a more reasonable night out: Broken Shaker (craft cocktails in a hostel courtyard — weird, works), The Anderson (dive bar vibes, great drinks), Ball & Chain in Little Havana (live Latin music, dancing, mojitos).

Day Trips

Everglades National Park — 45 minutes west. Airboat tours, alligators, anhinga trail, and the largest mangrove ecosystem in the Western Hemisphere.

Key Biscayne — 20 minutes south over the Rickenbacker Causeway. Crandon Park Beach (calmer, less scene-y than South Beach) and Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park with its lighthouse.

Biscayne Bay — Kayak or paddleboard through the mangroves at Oleta River State Park. Or take a boat tour to Stiltsville — historic houses built on stilts in the middle of the bay.

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