3 nights pre cruise, more to see staying in FLL or Miami

We are most likely cruising out of FLL in December (haven't made a final decision yet on our cruise) and will have a few days pre cruise to see a bit of the area and do some fun things. We will be visiting from Australia, and first time in Florida. Would you recommend spending a few days in Miami or Fort Lauderdale, and which areas would be best to stay in if we want the best experience of seeing the city, and enjoying the beach areas. I really know nothing about either city, and will do research before we leave, but just wondered where we should book a hotel. Thanks :)

Both cities have lots to do to keep you busy for 3 days. Check out their tourist sites: http://www.sunny.org for Fort Lauderdale, http://www.miamigov.com/home/visitors.html for Miami and http://www.miamibeachfl.gov/visitors/ for Miami Beach. If you are visiting between December 6th and 9th be aware that is Art Basel this year and Miami Beach hotels will be expensive and full with some overflow to the Miami hotels.

Both cities have lots to do to keep you busy for 3 days. Check out their tourist sites: www.sunny.org for Fort Lauderdale, http://www.miamigov.com/home/visitors.html for Miami and http://www.miamibeachfl.gov/visitors/ for Miami Beach. If you are visiting between December 6th and 9th be aware that is Art Basel this year and Miami Beach hotels will be expensive and full with some overflow to the Miami hotels.

Thanks I'll check out those websites.

That's exactly when we will be there :( - maybe in that case it would be better to stay in Fort Lauderdale. I guess if we rent a car we could drive down to Miami for the day...

Everglades airboat tour is a must. Drive down A1A also. L

Little Havana and Coral Gables.

Crandon Park Beach.

Lots and lots to do.

Enjoy.

The timing is a little unfortunate because the hotels in Miami Beach and Miami will be pretty expensive. Though check out the prices now and see if you can get a good deal. The city will be very busy that weekend, more traffic than usual too. But its an exciting time to be in the city.

The distance between Ft. Lauderdale and Miami is not much, so yes you can easily stay in Ft. Lauderdale and drive to Miami and Miami Beach. Just try to avoid longer drives during rush hour.

You could also look at areas on the beach in between the two such as Surfside, Bal Harbour, Sunny Isles Beach or Hallandale Beach.

Unless you are staying in Miami Beach or Downtown Miami/Brickell a car is needed to get around easily.

There are many things to do that time of year. I agree that The Everglades is a must do. Little Havana is also nice to see and South Beach area of Ocean Drive and Lincoln Road. Ocean Drive is right there by the beach. Downtown Miami and Brickell area can be a nice spot to check out as well. Wynwood will be crazy busy during Art Basel. But if you like art at all there will be tons of free and open galleries that weekend all over the city, but primiarly in the Wynwood area.

The best area to stay is Miami Beach South Beach area east of Washington Ave, and south of 25th street. But again hotels might be a bit expensive due to Art Basel. Other areas are the areas I mentioned above, and if you don't need to be walking distance to the beach Downtown Miami, Brickell and Coconut Grove are good spots too.

Ft. Lauderdale is also a nice area to stay, but do drive down to see Miami and Miami Beach.

Great, comprehensive information, thank you so much!

More to see in Miami by far. But Fort Lauderdale is excellent, too. It really depends on what you want to do. If you want to visit the special neighborhoods and see the "things to see" then Miami is better. Wynnwood, South Beach, etc. Fort Lauderdale is awesome as a beach destination as well as Hollywood Beach as Hollywood has the nice broadwalk. Miami is a quick drive if you get a rental car so it doesnt have to be one or the other. Heck, we do day trips to the upper Keys.

It's a tough question since there is endless things to do and see, who knows what you would enjoy more?

I will give you my opinion but like most thing everyone has different perspectives.

If you want to spend a lot of time at the beach then Fort Lauderdale or Miami would be nice.

If you want to mainly tour around the city but also spend some time at the beach then I would go with Miami.

I just find Miami has more to do and also is more cosmopolitan.

As to pricing it depends.

If you arrive in the first half of December prices aren't too bad. Starting a few days before Christmas and then over New Years they jump. I would try to book a hotel though as soon as you finalize plans and then just keep watching prices. If they go down you can followup for the lower price. If they go up you are protected.

We go to this area of Florida usually once or more a year and often in December for a cruise and stay for a few days prior to the cruise.

For Miami you have a couple of options.

If you want the beach say for one of the days you could stay downtown and then take a taxi or Uber over to South Beach or some other area of Miami Beach. Personally I like being dropped off at the beginning of Ocean Drive near the Art Deco Hotels. You can go to the beach there or walk for awhile even on the boardwalk and stop where you would like.

We often stay in downtown Miami and do just this and enjoy nice walks downtown, shopping and food. Also we can go to areas such as South Beach as I mentioned not only for the beach but also for other things including museums.

If you would have asked this question twelve or more years ago I would have recommended Fort Lauderdale but in these past years Miami has gone through a major renovation and there is lots of new hotels, restaurants, shopping and it really has made our stays wonderful. This is not a knock of Fort Lauderdale as some people love it including my brother's family who spends a week in Fort Lauderdale every year for the last many years. I just have found myself enjoying Miami more and I did stay in Fort Lauderdale in early 2016 before a cruise but for us Miami works better.

This is a list of hotels that I often recommend. They vary by price.

We spend about one week in Miami each year before a cruise.

Not knowing your price point that you want to spend on a room I will give you several selections; some of which have been mentioned.

They are all within about one mile of each other.

Close to the Port:

Intercontinental

Marriott Maquis (about four years old)

Epic Hotel (priciest of the ones I am mentioning)

Holiday Inn (some like it but I would recommend the other two)

Hyatt (I like the location better of the first three even though it is close by)

These hotels are about five minutes from the port. Near restaurants and CVS Pharmacy which is good to pick up last minute items and near a Whole Foods.

Just a couple of minutes further from the port

Mandarin Oriental (priciest of the ones mentioned). Private man made beach.

About 10 minutes from the port or maybe 15 depending on traffic but relatively close so no worries.

JW Marriott

Conrad Hilton

East Miami (relative new hotel so doesn't get mentioned much and is near the new Brickell Centre. More on Brickell in a moment.)

And then just another few minutes away

Four Seasons (like Mandarin a bit pricier then most I've listed) but in a very quiet location.

Hampton Inn (a lot of value here. It is not a full service hotel but it is a nice Hampton and includes breakfast)

The last group of hotels I have mentioned starting with Mandarin Oriental and ending with Hampton Inn are near lots of restaurants.

There is Mary Brickell Village and right near there are lots of restaurants (for Italian I like Perricone's) and also near two CVS Pharmacies (JW Marriott right next to a 24 hour one) and near Publix (there are two in the area) where you can pick up lots of last minute items.

Then there is the new Brickell Centre which opened last in 2016. Lots of stores and restaurants.

I have stayed at some of these hotels and have been inside each and everyone.

Again, they represent a wide range of price points.

Keith

Thanks so much for your comprehensive replies - sounds like Miami beach is definitely the place to stay. I'll check out all those great hotel suggestions too.

Does Art Basel impact the city that much? If so we may consider staying a few days in Miami after our cruise instead of before, and then coming into Miami 2 nights before and driving down to the Keys? Do you think 2 full days driving down and back up, and one overnight in Key West would be enough time? Of course more time would be better, but if that's all we have...

Also when we're in Miami beach is it advisable to rent a car or would it be a pain with parking and traffic, and better to use Uber?

Lots of questions I kniw but being from Aus, I don't know much about Florida :p

Thanks so much for your comprehensive replies - sounds like Miami beach is definitely the place to stay. I'll check out all those great hotel suggestions too.

 

DorD Art Basel impact the city that much? If so we may consider staying a few days in Miami after our cruise instead of before, and then coming into Miami 2 nights before and driving down to the Keys? Do you think 2 full days driving down and back up, and one overnight in Key West would be enough time? Of course more time would be better, but if that's all we have...

 

Also when we're in Miami beach is it advisable to rent a car or would it be a pain with parking and traffic, and better to use Uber?

 

Lots of questions but being from Aus, I don't know much about Florida :p

It's a 3 1/2 hour drive to Key West. It's up to you if that's worth it. You can day trip to the upper keys (Islamorada area) very easily and there is quite a bit to see and do as well. Key West is all about the night life. So if you leave the first day and get there around noon, you would have a substantial amount of time to enjoy the nightlife if that's what you enjoy, then leave the next day. The drive is interesting and may be worth it. If you aren't going for the evening/night life, then I would personally think that's a long drive to Key West.

If you are thinking more daytime stuff on your Keys trip, then I would plan on upper keys. You have John Pennekamp with kayaks, snorkeling, glass bottom tours, etc. Robbies tarpon feeding and shops, Theater of the Sea, even fishing charters and all sorts of stuff. Upper keys has a ton to do and has plenty of lodging, too. If you had 3 days and wanted to do something really unique, I'd suggest Key West and booking a full day to go see Fort Jefferson/Dry Tortugas.

Uber works great in Miami Beach. The question is whether you want to rent a car to do things outside of Miami Beach. Some people are very active, driving out to the Everglades and tons of tourist spots. If you just want to pop around a little and maybe only see Wynwood, then you probably can get by with Uber just fine. It's not expensive here to use Uber.

Keep asking questions, the more you ask, the more specific your requests get, and the better advice you'll get from the people here. "I'm visiting Miami, what should I do?" is a tough question because there is a million things to do, but as you start dialing in your plans more and more, it's easier to help, like Keith did with the great hotel suggestions.

Thanks to your suggestions I'm starting to fine tune our time in Florida - Seems like going down to Key West when we only have 2 days doesn't make a lot of sense. We're not so much looking for night life, and want more to see the area.

So I think it would work better to do the Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood area on the couple of days before our cruise, and then Miami for around 4 days after, including a possible day trip to the upper Keys. A trip to the Everglades will also be in there somewhere (and will look into Wild Lime adventures).

Our 2 early 20s kids will be with us for this trip (rare these days,) so I want to make sure there's something for everyone.

And it seems like a rental car is the way to go for the first part, and maybe for just a couple of days in Miami.

Thanks to your suggestions I'm starting to fine tune our time in Florida - Seems like going down to Key West when we only have 2 days doesn't make a lot of sense. We're not so much looking for night life, and want more to see the area.

 

So I think it would work better to do the Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood area on the couple of days before our cruise, and then Miami for around 4 days after, including a possible day trip to the upper Keys. A trip to the Everglades will also be in there somewhere (and will look into Wild Lime adventures).

 

Our 2 early 20s kids will be with us for this trip (rare these days,) so I want to make sure there's something for everyone.

 

And it seems like a rental car is the way to go for the first part, and maybe for just a couple of days in Miami.

Sounds like great plans! If you have a rental car, I suggest visiting Shark Valley in the Everglades National Park (https://www.nps.gov/ever/planyourvisit/svdirections.htm). It is about an hour drive from Miami and you will pass airboat rides along the Tamiami Trail. Alternatively, if you are driving to the Keys, you will be within 10 or 15 miles of the Ernest Coe Visitors Center and Royal Palm (https://www.nps.gov/ever/planyourvisit/coedirections.htm) so that might be an easier visit but they don't have airboat rides. We take all our visitors to one or the other and no one has ever been disappointed.

Thanks to your suggestions I'm starting to fine tune our time in Florida - Seems like going down to Key West when we only have 2 days doesn't make a lot of sense. We're not so much looking for night life, and want more to see the area.

 

So I think it would work better to do the Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood area on the couple of days before our cruise, and then Miami for around 4 days after, including a possible day trip to the upper Keys. A trip to the Everglades will also be in there somewhere (and will look into Wild Lime adventures).

 

Our 2 early 20s kids will be with us for this trip (rare these days,) so I want to make sure there's something for everyone.

 

And it seems like a rental car is the way to go for the first part, and maybe for just a couple of days in Miami.

Keep in mind that the person suggesting Wild Lime is an employee or owner of the company and just using the forum to spam their business, it's against the rules, they have been banned before, and they keep doing it. For that reason alone, I wouldn't use them. Lots of better operators.

An upper keys trip makes a lot of sense. When you decide to plan that out, just ask and we can give you some help with the itinerary and the things you'll want to see, where to eat, etc. A day trip is very practical and fun.

Ok perfect, I have lots of research to do now based on your suggestions. And thanks for the heads up BNBR re Wild Lime (I should have realised) - I'll definitely look further. I had a quick glance and they're hugely expensive anyway, so 2 reasons to look elsewhere.

Capriccio, for the airboat rides in the Everglades - would we need to pre-book or can we just turn up?

Once we have a clearer day by day plan I'll come back to this thread and ask more advice. Thanks so much everyone for all your help!

Thanks so much for your comprehensive replies - sounds like Miami beach is definitely the place to stay. I'll check out all those great hotel suggestions too.

 

Does Art Basel impact the city that much? If so we may consider staying a few days in Miami after our cruise instead of before, and then coming into Miami 2 nights before and driving down to the Keys? Do you think 2 full days driving down and back up, and one overnight in Key West would be enough time? Of course more time would be better, but if that's all we have...

 

Also when we're in Miami beach is it advisable to rent a car or would it be a pain with parking and traffic, and better to use Uber?

 

Lots of questions I kniw but being from Aus, I don't know much about Florida :p

Art Basel does impact a lot of the city. Traffic anywhere near where an event is going on is a nightmare. Hotels will also seek out and prices will be higher because they can charge more due to the event. There are parties and events all around Personally if it was me, I would stay the weekend after.

I just happened to go to Key West over night this weekend for another visit. Left Brickell Avenue Friday morning at 9:15 and was Key West at 1:00 PM. Fantastic afternoon and night. Drove back yesterday leaving at noon. Really took our time coming home as we stopped in Islamorada for lunch, Key Largo to pick up seafood at Key Largo Fisheries and then stopped at Robert Is Here Farmstand in Homestead. After all of that we were still home by 5:45.

The drive is lovely and Key West is always worth it in my opinion! It’s only my opinion but living here locally, I would enjoy Key West prior to your cruise and then spend 2 days here afterwards.

Capriccio, for the airboat rides in the Everglades - would we need to pre-book or can we just turn up?

 

Check out https://www.nps.gov/ever/planyourvisit/guidedtours.htm. The 3 airboat companies are National Park Service vendors located en route to Shark Valley from Miami.

...then stopped at Robert Is Here Farmstand in Homestead.

I should have mentioned Robert is Here - it is located about halfway from Route 1 and the Ernest Coe Visitors Center in the Park and has fabulous milk shakes/smoothies (key lime is my favorite), fruits, vegetables, home made condiments, and an animal farm! https://www.robertishere.com/

Ooh lots of great options and I wish we had more time! Lucky we've got quite a few months to research all your great suggestions and put an itinerary together. In the meanwhile, I'll book a (refundable) hotel in Miami for 3 or 4 nights after the cruise.

We will most likely fly in on Wed night 5th Dec and cruise from FLL on Sat 8th, so we have all of Thurs and Fri. If we do decide to drive down through all the Keys and stay in Key West I'm assuming it's better to fly into Miami rather than FLL?

Ooh lots of great options and I wish we had more time! Lucky we've got quite a few months to research all your great suggestions and put an itinerary together. In the meanwhile, I'll book a (refundable) hotel in Miami for 3 or 4 nights after the cruise.

 

We will most likely fly in on Wed night 5th Dec and cruise from FLL on Sat 8th, so we have all of Thurs and Fri. If we do decide to drive down through all the Keys and stay in Key West I'm assuming it's better to fly into Miami rather than FLL?

If you can fly into Miami, then go for that. If flying into FLL costs less, then by all means go into there. It will just add about 30-40 minutes to your drive to Key West.

If you can fly into Miami, then go for that. If flying into FLL costs less, then by all means go into there. It will just add about 30-40 minutes to your drive to Key West.

Thanks, wasn't sure of the distances, I'll check the flight pricing for both.

Thanks, wasn't sure of the distances, I'll check the flight pricing for both.

Yea, there is really no difference between FLL and MIA when your'e talking about staying for more than a day. Just see FLL and MIA as both serving the Miami area.