Miami worth a visit & car rental

[Floridatrip]

I have posted a couple of times reg a trip to Florida next Easter. The plan so far is:

Fly to Miami and spend 1 or 2 nights there, drive to Naples and Spend 6 nights, drive to Orlando and spend 6 nights, fly to London from Orlando;however I have been reading about Miami and not so sure anymore; some people love it and some people hate it. I think I just wanted to see it but may not like it too much if it is too crowded, dirty, lots of homeless people and drugs. DH said he is not so fuss about Miami.

Also, planning to rent a car, picking up in Miami airport and dropping in Orlando, will this be too expensive? I read is expensive to park in Miami.

Perhaps we should add a night in Naples and a night in Orlando and not do Miami?

Thanks in advance

I would do Orlando first and Naples/ beach etc later to recover! We flew in and out of Miami as cheaper than flying to Orlando. Flew to Miami- one night there and picked up car near the hotel we were staying. ( other plan was to stay near airport and pick car up at airport was car hire prices were crazy when we went and picking up in Miami centre was way cheaper). Drove to Orlando for 9 nights ( 6 Disney, 3 universal) and then drove down to Marco Island near Naples for 5 nights. Then drove to Miami Beach and dropped the car before spending 2 nights in Miami Beach.

It was all great but we could have done without Miami Beach at the end. Me and the kids would have had the extra days in Orlando, DH would have had them in Naples! If you're only 6 nights in Orlando I'd do the extra 2 there.

Basically- if you're not too fussed about Miami, don't bother!

Agreed. The Florida Keys, however, are worth a visit and the drive to Key West is fab.

Thank you.

I don’t know what to expect of Miami as have not been there (apart from the airport 15 years ago which was a nightmare) hence wanted to see it and get my own opinion. DH said he was not too fussed a put Miami.

The idea of doing the parks after was that the second week in April would be likely to be less busy.

Will think about adding the 2 nights in the keys or in Orlando. Also reg flying from and to Miami if much cheaper. Initially wanted to do the Keys but decided Naples instead because of the beaches. Maybe we can do both.

They might be less busy but I think last year it was super busy all through April. Happy to answer any other questions- wish we were going again!

It’s half term the first two weeks of April for some schools in the U.K. regardless of when Easter falls.

Miami is a nice place to visit for a few days and has some good areas to visit . It’s a fair old way from there to the Keys, it’s a drive of about 3 hours to Key West and the road there in parts is single lane.

Thank you. I think it is because of the American school holidays too; some people suggested second week will be slightly less busy. Easter in some South American countries is only one week for instance, the first one.

We may need a night in Miami when we get there to recover before driving anyway.

I think it would be nice to see the Keys but maybe is trying to fit too much plus all the driving . Will probably do one night in Miami and the other one in Orlando

We may get the Ferry from Naples to Key West for a night depending on how we are feeling when there.

You can use spot hero to find a cheaper parking space in Miami - it’s a third party app that books spaces in places you wouldn’t necessarily know exist otherwise e.g. office car parks. I used to use it a lot when I lived in Chicago so used it on a trip to Miami and it worked perfectly. And like a PP we found picking up the car in downtown Miami was cheaper than the airport. Love South Beach, not so fussed about the rest of it. Definitely do the Keys if you can though.

I didn’t know what to expect from Miami but loved it. The food is fantastic. South Beach is great fun. Not elegant but great fun and because of the huge Latin American influence, it’s like nowhere else in the USA. Visit Little Havana and look around at the art and culture, I recommend a walking tour with a knowledgable local guide.

I was also a bit “meh” about visiting Miami but I am so glad I did as I thought it was awesome. BUT you really need to stay in the right areas and listen to local advice. I wouldn’t drive, particularly to South Beach as 1) parking is extortionate and 2) you could inadvertently end up in a place you don’t want to be and stand a very high chance of being a victim of crime (usually violent).

For example, we stayed at The Lowes at the top of the art deco district. It was fine there. You could walk to restaurants, the Lincoln Mall, art deco district, right on the beach etc. If you go too far down the art deco area then it does get sketchy.

Also avoid Miami during Spring Break like the plague. That’s basically most of March. A few colleges go into the start of April. It becomes party central and can get quite unpleasant with rowdy behaviour.

I also stayed at The Loews, @DibbleDooDah. Nice pools, good direct access to their strip of the beach, out back . Easy walk to nice restaurants, I recommend Byblos, a couple of doors down. We went during the city-wide ‘Miami Spice’ which is a month long food festival. It’s amazing. We didn’t eat off the special menu every time but it was a really fantastic way to eat in some great restaurants. Even if you’ve got a big budget for food, I recommend giving the special menus a go if you go during the aug-sept period.

https://www.miamiandbeaches.com/deals/temptations/spice-restaurant-months

South beach in Miami is one of the most beautiful and clean beaches I’ve ever been on.

we stayed 2 nights at the end of a road trip. It was chilled out.

I did Orlando- Crystal River- Naples- Miami- Orlando. Wish I hadn’t bothered with Miami, it was horrible. We stayed in the Bay Harbour Island area which was lovely, but the city we found to be very unpleasant. Glad we only did one night, I wouldn’t go back. Didn’t feel safe and it was all massively overpriced.

We had the best holiday recently staying in Miami Beach for 6 days after a work thing in Hollywood further up the coast. It wouldn’t have been my first choice but we loved it. Stayed in an art deco hotel on the front, on the no cars bit, and it was all brilliant.

we cycled along the front, did the stars houses tour, watched the cruise ships going out, ate some fabulous food, lovely beach.

Openions shout Miami vary so much; maybe it depends on where you stay as in any big city.

Those who loved it can you recommend me the hotels please?

South Beach is pretty nice and IIRC felt pretty safe (many years ago mind). Could def spend a day or two there, that said there will be other nice beach places.

I would do anything to avoid Miami airport tbh it was a hellhole.

We stayed at the leslie. Lovely little pool on the roof. Quiet as well..not a spring break kind of place.

Like I say, we stayed at The Loews.

I’ve been to Miami many times and will be going back for 4 days as part of a bigger USA trip this summer. I really like it for a long weekend / short break.

It’s a big city, and the main tourist attraction is a small part of it - South Beach and along the coast. It’s a nice short city/beach holiday and much more exciting and cosmopolitan than Orlando. Good food, bars, beach and nightlife. Not cheap, though!

Thank you; will look at the places recommended

I’m another Miami fan. 💃

I really wanted to stay in South Beach art deco hotel & stayed in the Beacon (which was actually a bit basic but fine). Had a great time just looking at all the architecture & fancy lifeguard huts & swimming in the warmest water I’ve ever felt! It comes alive at night too with lots of bars, restaurants and nightclubs if that floats your boat.

On a subsequent visit I stayed further up in the Grand Beach hotel with direct access to the beach & a lovely pool area.

I would leave the Keys for another trip unless you could stay a minimum 3 nights and make it all the way to Key West (probably my fave holiday destination!)

Thank you, getting excited about Miami now; would love to see Key West too; initially we planned to go there but someone said that not sure the kids will find it interesting, 16 and 13 year olds, also I read that are not really beaches there so changed to Naples.

Are the Keys a party destination?

We went to the keys this year and the boys learned to scuba dive (it’s a great place to learn). We go to Florida fairly often, but I wouldn’t rush back to the keys, it has a similar vibe to Barbados, but with bigger roads and less nice beaches. Nice as a one off though.

Miami is interesting for a couple of nights. I wouldn’t pick the hire car up until you’re ready to leave Miami.
So, maybe fly to Miami, spend two nights there, pick up hire car drive to keys. Drive back to Miami, drop off hire car. Fly to Orlando.

if you’re staying onsite at Disney, you won’t need a car there. Just use Lyft.

Morning OP, I personally always think of Key West as a place for adults. Whilst there are fun activities for kids like water sports etc, it just feels a bit more grown up to me.

There are no large white sandy beaches in Key West that you would normally find in Florida. You also may want to have a quick look at hotel costs in KW for your dates. Prices have risen quite dramatically the last couple of years.

Another place you might want to consider is Clearwater, which is about 2hours north of Naples. This is a fun family place & really close to Tampa which is a wonderful city with lots to see & do.

Wherever you end up, you will have the best time. Florida is great!