2 night downtown Miami layover

[WAVTAM]

We have a 2 night layover staying at the Hampton Inn Brickell post cruise.

Have never been in city proper as tourist, and looking for recommendations for thinks to do.....................

Hop/Hop off

Trolley tours

Shopping

Restaurants not to miss

etc

[sandav]

We have a 2 night layover staying at the Hampton Inn Brickell post cruise.

Have never been in city proper as tourist, and looking for recommendations for thinks to do.....................

Hop/Hop off

Trolley tours

Shopping

Restaurants not to miss

etc

 

We've stayed twice in this hotel. The Mary Brickell Village area has lots of restaurants and is a nice place to visit. We didn't do any Hop on/ Hop off but it looked as if there were plenty available . The Metro Mover isn't far from the hotel. Really enjoyed the hotel and staying again before next cruise in April.

[RC Dancers]

I would try taking the Metromover to Bayside mall.

 

If you haven't been there, take an Uber or Lyft to South Beach.

 

If you are up for even a one day car rental, try driving up the A1A and coming back through Coral Gables, etc..

[Flymia]

Well there are plenty of options for you to do. It all depends on what you want out of your stay. You want to see more typical tourist areas, just stay in the city?

 

For in the city without a car my must dos are the following.

 

As a local I have never taken the hop on and off bus, but I have heard good things, you can tie it into a tour boat ride as well, which is a great thing to do. So you could take the most of one day doing the hop on and off, and a tour boat ride around Biscayne Bay. Take the bus to little Havana, see the Biltmore Hotel, and take the bus to Wynwood. Have lunch in little Havana or Wynwood. Do the boat tour in the late afternoon. The boat will leave and come back to Bayside, a great place to grab a drink before dinner. Then get dinner in downtown Miami or Brickell. Tons of a great places to chose from, my favorite listed below.

 

Other day time options are going to the beach, going to all the very good shopping malls, (if you are big into shopping) going to the Everglades for the day. Biscayne National Park for snorkeling, the Miami Zoo is one of the best in the country.

 

The other dinner you must head to Miami Beach, I would highly suggest Yard Bird or Drunkin Dragon as two great spots, after dinner head to Lincoln Road and walk up and down the outdoor mall. Shops stay open late, lots of places to stop and get a drink or dessert on the sidewalk cafe. You can also walk over to Ocean Drive and check out the famous Art Deco buildings are night.

 

My favorite, non-expensive choices in Downtown/Brickell for dinner or lunch.

 

Pollo y Jarras

Fratelli Milano

Vero Italian Restaurant

Perricone's Marketplace & Café

Burger & Beer Joint

Crazy About You

Novecento

River Oyster Bar is a good choice too.

Garcias

Havana 1957 if you want Cuban food

 

There are more fancy places of course, which the list is even longer.

[Grant2000]

There's plenty to see in and around Miami. There are at least a couple of companies that offer hop-on hop-off tour bus services. We took one that included a harbor cruise, which was very good. The two day passes are quite economical.

 

http://miamiflorida.ca/transportation/hop-on-bus.html

[Keith1010]

In addition to Mary Brickell Village there is a relatively new shopping center right nearby; Brickell Centre. It already has lot of stores and with more stores and restaurants coming in.

 

Consider getting out to South Beach. It's a 30 minute drive from there and nice to walk around and people watch. I would take UBER. We also walk over to the island that the Mandarin Oriental is on. About a 15 minute walk from where you will be. Nice to walk around there and enjoy the views.

 

Keith

[villauk]

In addition to Mary Brickell Village there is a relatively new shopping center right nearby; Brickell Centre. It already has lot of stores and with more stores and restaurants coming in.

 

Consider getting out to South Beach. It's a 30 minute drive from there and nice to walk around and people watch. I would take UBER. We also walk over to the island that the Mandarin Oriental is on. About a 15 minute walk from where you will be. Nice to walk around there and enjoy the views.

 

Keith

 

Keith,

 

Which hotels would you recommend? I value your knowledge and advice. We have honeymoon friends that are joining Celebrity Equinox and have a 2 night stay before the cruise starts in Miami. Just wondering where they would be best positioned near the port?

 

TIA :).

[Keith1010]

Keith,

 

Which hotels would you recommend? I value your knowledge and advice. We have honeymoon friends that are joining Celebrity Equinox and have a 2 night stay before the cruise starts in Miami. Just wondering where they would be best positioned near the port?

 

TIA :).

 

TIA thank you for the kind words.

 

I am going to give you some hotels at various price points not knowing precisely what the budget is.

 

They are all in downtown Miami not too far from the port.

 

Let me begin with one of the newest hotels. We didn't say there in January but did check it out. It is located right at the new Brickell Village Centre. Hotel is called East Miami and the reviews have been great.

 

http://www.east-miami.com

 

Closest to the port that I would recommend are:

 

Intercontinental

Marriott Marquis

Epic Hotel

 

Just about a 10 minute drive to the port including lights and near restaurants and each one maybe a 20 minute walk to Mary Brickell Village and to Brickell Village Centre. Epic is the highest price of those three.

 

Closer to Mary Brickell Village and the Village Centre and maybe another five minute further from the port is the JW Marriott and the Conrad Hilton. Then there is the Four Seasons Hotel but that will be the priciest of all of the hotels I've mentioned.

 

I would start with these. They are all good options. As I mentioned it will give you a range in price. All are full service hotels.

 

Please let me know if you have more questions.

 

Keith

[villauk]

Thanks, Keith, I've forwarded your information on to them :).

[CA_Cruzing]

Any thoughts on the JW Marriott Marquis vs W Hotel?

 

I'm in a similar situation. Seeking a hotel for 3 nights pre-cruise Nov 2017, celebrating our 25 anniversary.

 

Thank you!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[Keith1010]

I don't know much about the W Hotel in downtown Miami. My wife and I walked by it several times during our recent visit in late December/early January and saw that it replaced the iconic Viceroy Hotel. I just looked at the reviews on Trip Advisor and they are mixed. Some excellent, some average and a few poor. Some say that it has not been fully transitioned to a W Hotel and that things are lacking. Sorry I can't give you anymore then that.

 

Keith

[Host CJSKIDS]

I don't know much about the W Hotel in downtown Miami. My wife and I walked by it several times during our recent visit in late December/early January and saw that it replaced the iconic Viceroy Hotel. I just looked at the reviews on Trip Advisor and they are mixed. Some excellent, some average and a few poor. Some say that it has not been fully transitioned to a W Hotel and that things are lacking. Sorry I can't give you anymore then that.

 

Keith

 

I will give a warning that the wonderful rooftop pool at the W closed in December and will be closed for at least a year. They have also closed the rooftop pool. So if that's a consideration, you may want to look at other hotels.

[aoco]

We just booked the W for a 3 day stay in November pre cruise. Got an awesome deal on line. Love the location we don't care about the pool so if it is closed its no big deal for us. We figured for the price we paid they must be undergoing renovations. We previously have stayed at the Hyatt and found the city to be quite walkable with great options for food.

[Flymia]

Yes the pool is closed and will be for some time, they are going through a major lawsuit with the contractors and developer and the pool needs millions in fixes. That is likely the reason for the great price. Other than the pool issue its an awesome location right on the bridge that makes it easy to walk to both the best spots in Brickell and Downtown Miami.

[Keith1010]

I would read the reviews on Trip Advisor.

 

I realize that reviews don't always mean what ones experience will be like but I would still read to see what others have been saying.

 

Keith

[millineumwoman]

We just booked the W for a 3 day stay in November pre cruise. Got an awesome deal on line. Love the location we don't care about the pool so if it is closed its no big deal for us. We figured for the price we paid they must be undergoing renovations. We previously have stayed at the Hyatt and found the city to be quite walkable with great options for food.

 

 

 

Are you on the dec 2 carnival vista cruise?

We are staying at this hotel dec 1 pre cruise also got great deal which I got on Hotwire for same price

[BlueHerons]

Well there are plenty of options for you to do. It all depends on what you want out of your stay. You want to see more typical tourist areas, just stay in the city?

 

For in the city without a car my must dos are the following.

 

As a local I have never taken the hop on and off bus, but I have heard good things, you can tie it into a tour boat ride as well, which is a great thing to do. So you could take the most of one day doing the hop on and off, and a tour boat ride around Biscayne Bay. Take the bus to little Havana, see the Biltmore Hotel, and take the bus to Wynwood. Have lunch in little Havana or Wynwood. Do the boat tour in the late afternoon. The boat will leave and come back to Bayside, a great place to grab a drink before dinner. Then get dinner in downtown Miami or Brickell. Tons of a great places to chose from, my favorite listed below.

 

Other day time options are going to the beach, going to all the very good shopping malls, (if you are big into shopping) going to the Everglades for the day. Biscayne National Park for snorkeling, the Miami Zoo is one of the best in the country.

 

The other dinner you must head to Miami Beach, I would highly suggest Yard Bird or Drunkin Dragon as two great spots, after dinner head to Lincoln Road and walk up and down the outdoor mall. Shops stay open late, lots of places to stop and get a drink or dessert on the sidewalk cafe. You can also walk over to Ocean Drive and check out the famous Art Deco buildings are night.

 

My favorite, non-expensive choices in Downtown/Brickell for dinner or lunch.

 

Pollo y Jarras

Fratelli Milano

Vero Italian Restaurant

Perricone's Marketplace & Café

Burger & Beer Joint

Crazy About You

Novecento

River Oyster Bar is a good choice too.

Garcias

Havana 1957 if you want Cuban food

 

There are more fancy places of course, which the list is even longer.

 

This. Just follow this plan.

[STIguy]

Follow Flymia and BlueHerons advice. Spot on!

[aoco]

We are on the Celebrity Equinox. I did read all the reviews on the W. For us it is in a great location and the pool is not a big deal. If I had a young family I would be disappointed in the pool being closed, and would not want to stay there. We are thrilled with this hotel and looking forward to staying there.