miami beach Travel Guide

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Cruise Down Collins with Miami's First 'Hertz On Demand' Car Sharing Program

January 24, 2012 at 10:54 AM | by | Comments (0)

There’s no longer the need to walk from Fontainebleau all the way down to Shake Shack—trust us, it’s far—as car sharing is now making its way to South Beach. Sure there are plenty of two-wheeled options available in Miami, but sometimes you just need to put the pedal to the metal. After all, cruising down Collins isn’t quite the same with streamers coming out of the handlebars.

There’s no cutesy name or gimmick associated with the city’s new program, as they’re simply partnering with Hertz to bring the car share scheme to the masses. Thanks to Hertz on Demand, Miami Beach will now be the first city—at least by their math—to offer up a city-sponsored car sharing system in the Sunshine State. Things officially get underway starting today, and there’s even some kind of ribbon cutting ceremony at the Miami Beach City Hall Garage to celebrate.

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Five Awesome Things You Can Do at Miami's New World Center

Where: 500 17th Street, Miami Beach, FL, 33139
January 19, 2012 at 11:25 AM | by | Comments (0)

Apart from being a new architectural landmark for Miami Beach, the New World Center is a cool place we highly recommend checking out. The building was designed by Frank Gehry and is worth gawking at for that fact alone.

The venue's main role is to be the home of Miami's New World Symphony and its slate of live performances. But even if you don't dig on classical or orchestral music, don't start yawning just yet. You might just like one of other activities the New World Center has going on. For example, you could...

1. Walk Your Dog Through the Park—or Sit and Eat a Sandwich
We love walking our dog here because, unlike Lumus Park down by the beach, it's almost always quiet. The grass is landscaped with little hills and pathways, and there are curved concrete seats to sit on and take five. Sure, you may share the park with the occasional homeless person, but they're usually just catching some zzzs and not bothering anybody. Besides, there is a security guard who rides around on a bike to keep you nice and safe.

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Break Out the Spats and Pin Curls for Miami's Art Deco Weekend

January 5, 2012 at 9:38 AM | by | Comments (0)

Miami may kick off the year as vice city for hordes of NYE revelers, but as January gets underway, the beach goes back to its pre-Cocaine Cowboys roots to celebrate all things Deco.

From January 13–15, the Miami Design Preservation League (the folks who keep South Beach looking so pretty) kick up their heels Charleston style with the annual Art Deco Weekend.

This year's three-day festival will include a fashion show, car show, musical performances, furniture fair and, as always, a lineup of walking tours to show off all the glorious buildings the MDPL has managed to save over the years.

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Headphones On: Miami's South Beach Now Has Its Own Audio Tour

November 3, 2011 at 9:26 AM | by | Comments (0)

Models steal children, tell story about 'uncle Gianni'.

It's easy to think that everyone knows the stories that make South Beach the glitzy, sleazy, underdressed spectacle it is, but luckily a brand new company, Discovery Miami Beach, has come along to educate the uninitiated with a new self-guided audio tour—one that 'showcases 29 of the most important places in South Beach’s past and present.'

Of course, this includes a stop outside the Versace Mansion--now known as The Villa By Barton G. You can't go inside unless you want to have a very fancy meal or rest your head on a $1,000-a-night pillow, but you can take a peek at the photos our sister site HotelChatter snapped beyond the gate last fall.

As for the story about how Gianni was slain right there on the steps along Ocean Drive--how's that for education, kids?!

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As the Clocks Go Back This Weekend, Miami Will Party for 13 Hours

November 1, 2011 at 11:20 AM | by | Comments (0)

Staying up all night in Miami is not novel, but this weekend's Sleepless Night Miami Beach means you can do more than just hit the clubs and eat dodgy pizza between midnight and 6 a.m.

The insomniac's dream cultural festival kicks off at 5:30 p.m. on Saturday November 5 and runs through the next morning, culminating in a beachfront sunrise breakfast from Whole Foods.

The event was held in 2007 and 2009 but this year Sleepless Night coincides with the weekend when we turn our clocks back—meaning you can party for one sneaky additional hour.

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Miami's Next Big Mega Club Debuts This Weekend

Where: 136 Collins Ave, Miami Beach, FL, 33139
October 19, 2011 at 2:11 PM | by | Comments (0)

If nightclubs are your thing, South Beach is your place. But if you've been danced till dawn at Mansion and partied with the stars at LIV, you're probably on the prowl for a new spot. This weekend, the beach delivers, with the grand opening of Amnesia Miami.

While lots of new nightclubs have been focusing on the more intimate lounge end of things, Amnesia is unabashedly big, with over 26,000 square feet of all-white space over two levels. That's room enough for four bars, 70 VIP tables, two obligatory VIP sections, a large wall of LED screens, and a dance floor for 800. There's even a recording studio underneath the stage for visiting DJs and musos to tinker around in.

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It's South Beach Wine and Food Fest Tix Time

Where: Miami Beach, FL
October 13, 2011 at 12:01 PM | by | Comments (0)

The South Beach Wine & Food Festival may be four months away, but the date to mark on your calendar—the day tickets go on sale to the general public—is much sooner: October 24.

And if you're an AMEX card holder, you can go ahead and start plotting your February gluttony now, via the American Express pre-sale. After standing on many a line and overhearing many a desperate plea for spare tickets at this year's fest, we recommend making your plans for February 23–26 pronto.

Here's what's new for 2012:

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Reason #429 to Love Miami This Weekend: The Brazilian Film Festival

August 18, 2011 at 9:49 AM | by | Comments (0)

Watch out, Miami: the Brazilians are coming! Ha. Yes, yes, they're already here. It's high season for Brazilian visitors to the beach, but this weekend will be even more bombastic and beautiful than ever, so prepare yourselves: the Brazilian Film Festival of Miami kicks off on Friday and runs through August 27.

It's the 15th birthday for the event, so expect amplified revelry, as parties and preening organize themselves around--oh, yeah--the screening of 25 award-winning features and docos. There will also be 15 short films shown, and a series of events starring directors, actors and producers.

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Miami's DecoBikes: The Best Way to Pedal Around South Beach (with a Case of Corona)

August 11, 2011 at 9:31 AM | by | Comments (0)

The preferred mode of transportation in Miami Beach is a Bentley. But if you don't want to risk getting yours rained on—and don't mind getting caught in a rain shower yourself—DecoBike is the best way to zoom up and down the beach.

Sure, there's walking (narrow sidewalks, crazy people on Washington Ave., tourists on Collins and Ocean) or catching the South Beach Local bus, which costs a mere quarter. But if you want that magical combo of control, convenience and the feel of the sea breeze in your hair, you've gotta go Deco.

We first told you about this bike rental program a year ago but then, like a new hotel with the best intentions, it got delayed and only made its debut this March. We've been getting our Deco on here and there ever since, and can tell you that it totally lives up to its promise.

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'Jersey Shore' Gets to Work in Miami: Where to Find Snooki and Pals

Where: 1051 Collins Ave [map], Miami Beach, FL, United States, 33139
April 9, 2010 at 4:45 PM | by | Comments (0)

Jersey Shore, we wish we knew how to quit you. But with Season 2 filming now in Miami, we luckily don't have to, and so instead we'll be tracking your debaucherous, Ed Hardy-clad steps all around the Art Deco district.

According to these pics from stalkerazzi site, X17 Online, it looks like MTV is putting the cast of Jersey Shore to work again. Last year it was at a silly souvenir t-shirt shop on the boardwalk in Seaside Heights, NJ. This year, it's the Lecca-lecca Gelato Caffe on Collins Aveue, just a block from the beach and close to hotels, trendy restaurants and shops galore.

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The Pretty People Have Arrived in South Beach

December 5, 2009 at 1:33 PM | by | Comment (1)

South Beach's high season officially begins this weekend with the annual Art Basel Miami Beach extravaganza, bringing hordes of pretty people to this thin barrier island off the Atlantic coast of Florida. Newspaper travel sections are filled with images of the young, fashionable, and childless frolicking in the sun, but the beauty of Miami Beach is that there's room for everybody to have a good time. And it's not even that expensive, unless you want it to be.

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Jeff Takes His 'Creative Monkey' Back to the Beach

Where: One Lincoln Road [map], Miami Beach, FL, United States, 33139
January 29, 2009 at 11:10 AM | by | Comments (3)

Top Chef New York is finally getting serious. They've gotten rid of the lower half of contenders, the ones we knew never had a chance, and now we're down to the top seven, the chefs who each seem like they could realistically win it all.

In last night's Super Bowl episode, we saw three favorites fall to the chopping block, including the dynamic Euro duo, Fabio and Stefan. But I think we all knew Bravo producers weren't going to let either of those camera hogs go home this early, which was of course bad news for poor Jeff.

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