Where to stay in Miami?

[Wismgari]

We have two nights in Miami (but only one evening and one full day) and we will have a car with us (it is a stop between Disney and the Keys). Does anyone have any suggestions of an area to stay or even a specific hotel where it isn't stupidly priced, there is parking and we are not too far from the attractions. The main things we have on our list are the South Beach area, Little Havana, and Wynwood walls.

Thanks in advance

[Gabsnoot]

Hi, We stayed in Miami last month for a couple of nights.

We stayed just north of South Beach at the Fontainebleau, the hotel itself can be expensive but we booked a junior suite through Airbnb which was much cheaper, the price also included valet parking at the hotel. We had a balcony with views of the beach, it’s just steps away. There is also a boardwalk that runs alongside the beach which was a lovely walk down to South beach, you can hire bikes to use on the boardwalk too.

We did a Big Bus, hop on hop off, city tour which stopped off at all the attractions you mentioned, there was a bus stop 2 minutes walk from the hotel.

I got a deal on the bus tour through Groupon but if you didn’t want to do that you can hop on free trolleys that cover Miami Beach and I think they have them over in downtown Miami too. There is an app that shows live trolley info so you can find your closest stop, see when the next trolley is due and it also has details of all the routes.

[enjibenji]

We have stayed at The Albion and The Pestana, both in south beach, very good location for beach etc. This year we are staying in FBH fashion boutique hotel. We haven't been to Miami since 2015 so not sure what south beach is like now. Every hotel we've stayed in has charged parking fees or you have to park in public car park. 😊

[EatandPlay]

I've stayed at The Albion before as well. Great spot. If you're only in Miami for a couple of days, consider South Beach and if so I'd stay south of 17th so you're right in the thick of things and can more easily explore the area in a short period of time. The hotels tend to be smaller/boutique here. Also, Coconut Grove has a unique vibe that's worth checking out too.

[Garlicbread]

1We did exactly the same as you 2 weeks ago. Arrived about 6pm and had that night and the following day in Miami and had the same things as you on our list to do!

We stayed on mid beach as a family of 4 at the RUI Hotel Plaza on the beach. I found mid beach a good location to enable us to cover off what we wanted to do. 1st night we dumped our bags and just mooched on the beach/boardwalk before crashing. Then next day we took a nice walk from Mid Beach to South Beach, seeing Ocean Drive etc. Then uber'd to Winwood Walls and then uber'd to Little Havana and then finally uber'd to Bayside Waterfront for a boat trip early evening. It was a long, tiring day but we felt we ticked off all the things we wanted to.

The hop on hop off bus stops outside the RUI too but when i compared the cost of this for 4 of us (c£150) compared to using Uber it was a no brainer.

[Wismgari]

Thanks all for the tips. I have looked into them all and all too expensive sadly - I think maybe because the first night is Saturday night which seems to push the price up a lot.

Originally Posted by Garlicbread

1We did exactly the same as you 2 weeks ago. Arrived about 6pm and had that night and the following day in Miami and had the same things as you on our list to do!

We stayed on mid beach as a family of 4 at the RUI Hotel Plaza on the beach. I found mid beach a good location to enable us to cover off what we wanted to do. 1st night we dumped our bags and just mooched on the beach/boardwalk before crashing. Then next day we took a nice walk from Mid Beach to South Beach, seeing Ocean Drive etc. Then uber'd to Winwood Walls and then uber'd to Little Havana and then finally uber'd to Bayside Waterfront for a boat trip early evening. It was a long, tiring day but we felt we ticked off all the things we wanted to.

The hop on hop off bus stops outside the RUI too but when i compared the cost of this for 4 of us (c£150) compared to using Uber it was a no brainer.

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Thanks for this - it is good to know it is possible in one day. However, I think due to the cost we may need to skip Miami this time and do it on a future trip. I think I need to avoid Saturday night and having a car to park!

[Garlicbread]

Yes, unfortunately parking is a premium in Miami. Can you pick up your car on Day 3? Thats what we did and just got an uber from the airport to the hotel and saved as we wernt going to use the car until we drove to the Keys?

Also, take a look at somewhere like the Hyatt Regency in Downtown Miami and just get a quote for the nights you want. I know its not on the beach but I remember it being reasonably priced. It also has the metromover right outside which links you up to Wynwood, Little Havana and you can also use the free trolley buses to get about. Anyway... good luck with the planning!

[Wismgari]

Originally Posted by Garlicbread

Yes, unfortunately parking is a premium in Miami. Can you pick up your car on Day 3? Thats what we did and just got an uber from the airport to the hotel and saved as we wernt going to use the car until we drove to the Keys?

Also, take a look at somewhere like the Hyatt Regency in Downtown Miami and just get a quote for the nights you want. I know its not on the beach but I remember it being reasonably priced. It also has the metromover right outside which links you up to Wynwood, Little Havana and you can also use the free trolley buses to get about. Anyway... good luck with the planning!

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If we were starting in Miami I would 100% do this... sadly, we are doing Orlando first, picking up the car at the end of our Disney trip and then driving down to the Keys. We have a bit of time in the middle where I was hoping to do Miami, but I do not think it will work out this trip sadly.

I did look up that hotel but it is the same price as a lot of the others sadly. Really appreciate the suggestions though!

I may add some extra time in the Everglades and the Keys instead.

[Garlicbread]

Awesome... im sure you have picked up loads of tips from this site but let me know if you need anymore from the Keys and Everglades as weve just come back from there.

If you are planning on staying in Key West for example, the price of accomodation is £££££ but we found a gem of a budget place which was so nice - Truman Hotel. You can book direct with them for best prices. Anyway... any questions, just ask!

[Wismgari]

Originally Posted by Garlicbread

Awesome... im sure you have picked up loads of tips from this site but let me know if you need anymore from the Keys and Everglades as weve just come back from there.

If you are planning on staying in Key West for example, the price of accomodation is £££££ but we found a gem of a budget place which was so nice - Truman Hotel. You can book direct with them for best prices. Anyway... any questions, just ask!

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Ahh, this made me sad - we had Truman hotel booked for April 2020, but we all know how that worked out! It wasn't available for my dates this time so I have booked Blue Marlin hotel, which is slightly cheaper, but doesn't look quite as nice. I am currently planning two nights in Key West and I was going to do one night in Marathon, but I may up this to two nights instead of Miami.

I would love to hear your must dos for both Everglades and Keys if you don't mid sharing? This is our first time in both and well overdue after our cancelled 2020 trip!

Hope you had an amazing time on your trip