Miami

Miami International Airport (MIA) is the main gateway — about 8 miles/20 minutes from Downtown and Brickell, a little more to South Beach — and it is genuinely one of the best-connected airports in the world for Latin America and the Caribbean, plus a major American Airlines hub with strong connections across the U.S. and to Europe. If you're flying from Sweden, expect at least one connection, commonly via a major European hub or a U.S. gateway city — there is no reliable nonstop from Stockholm, so build a realistic connection time into your plans. Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International (FLL), about 30 miles north, is worth comparing on price: it's smaller, faster to clear, and home to more low-cost carriers, with fares often noticeably cheaper for domestic and some international routes. Landing at FLL doesn't mean a slow trip in, either — a short shuttle gets you to the Brightline station, and the train reaches downtown Miami in well under an hour. Palm Beach International (PBI), further north again, only really makes sense if your trip also includes Palm Beach or the northern part of the coast. Driving in from elsewhere in Florida is straightforward via I-95 or the Florida Turnpike, and Brightline's high-speed train links MiamiCentral Station downtown with Fort Lauderdale, Boca Raton, West Palm Beach, and Orlando — a genuinely pleasant alternative to flying or driving if you're combining Miami with an Orlando trip. PortMiami, right downtown, is one of the busiest cruise ports in the world, so plenty of visitors pair a few days in the city with a cruise departure — worth factoring into your hotel choice if you're doing the same, since Downtown and Brickell sit closest to the terminal.

Miami was built for cars, and if you are covering multiple neighborhoods in a day that is still the easiest way to see it — but you do not need one if you are based in South Beach, Brickell, or Downtown. From Miami International Airport (MIA), the cheapest way in is the Route 150 Miami Beach Express bus ($2.25), or take the free MIA Mover to the Metrorail and be downtown in about 20 minutes for $2.25 (tap a credit card straight at the fare gate). Uber and Lyft both run from a dedicated pickup level at MIA; budget $33–$40 to South Beach outside rush hour, and more like $50–$60 during evening surge or big events like Art Basel. Once you are downtown, the Metromover is free, loops through Downtown, Brickell, and up to the Arsht Center every 90 seconds to 3 minutes, and doubles as a solid 30-minute sightseeing ride over Biscayne Bay. Metrorail and Metrobus cover greater Miami but thin out on evenings and weekends, so build in extra time. If you're day-tripping up the coast, Brightline's high-speed train runs from MiamiCentral Station downtown to Aventura, Fort Lauderdale, Boca Raton, West Palm Beach, and Orlando roughly hourly — it beats driving I-95 hands down and is worth booking even just for a Fort Lauderdale day out. Miami Beach's free trolleys are handy for hopping along Collins Avenue without dealing with beach parking, and Citi Bike stations are dense enough in South Beach, Brickell, and Downtown to make short rides genuinely practical, if you don't mind the heat. Parking downtown and on Miami Beach is pricey and valet is the norm — have $2–$5 cash ready for when your car comes back, and if you rent a car, get one with a SunPass transponder built in or you'll get billed extra fees for every untagged toll on the expressways.

Uber and Lyft are both widely used and reliable across the city — Uber tends to have a slightly deeper driver pool in South Beach on weekend nights. For short hops within Miami Beach, Downtown, Brickell, Coconut Grove, and a handful of other zones, download Freebee: it is a free, on-demand electric shuttle that locals genuinely rely on, not a tourist gimmick. If you will be using transit for more than a day or two, the EASY Card/EASY app covers Metrorail, Metromover, and Metrobus fares, though tapping a contactless credit card directly at Metrorail gates also works for one-off rides. Waze is what a lot of Miamians navigate by rather than Google Maps, since it tends to reroute faster around the city's causeway bottlenecks and erratic traffic. Book restaurant tables ahead through Resy or OpenTable, especially for anywhere in Wynwood or South Beach on a Friday or Saturday night — walk-ins can mean an hour-plus wait at the popular spots. For food, Uber Eats, DoorDash, and Grubhub all operate across greater Miami. If you're using Citi Bike, its own app unlocks bikes and shows real-time dock availability, and it's worth having the Brightline app installed if you plan to take the train up the coast.

Tipping is real and expected here — 15–20% at sit-down restaurants, a couple of dollars for valet, a dollar or two in a barista's jar. Since July 2025 restaurants have had to visibly disclose any automatic service charge on the menu or bill, but it is still worth reading your check before adding a second tip on top of one already included. Spanish is spoken as often as English in large parts of the city, especially Little Havana, and a "gracias" goes a long way even badly pronounced — plenty of small ventanitas and family-run spots run more smoothly if you can order a cafecito or a colada in Spanish. Sun and heat sneak up on visitors fast — reef-safe sunscreen, water, and a midday break are not optional most of the year, and summer afternoon thunderstorms are short but genuinely torrential, so check the sky before you commit to an outdoor plan. Hurricane season officially runs June through November, peaking August to October; it rarely derails a trip outright, but it is worth having travel insurance and checking the forecast if your visit falls in that window. Miami also runs late: 9 or 10pm dinner reservations are completely normal and South Beach nightlife rarely gets going before midnight — plan naps accordingly. Many of the best small Cuban and Haitian spots are cash-preferred, so keep some on hand even though cards are accepted almost everywhere else. Beaches fly colored warning flags for rip currents and marine hazards — take them seriously, Miami's currents can be stronger than they look. And a good number of Miami Beach's nicer restaurants and clubs enforce a dress code after dark, so what worked on the sand at 2pm won't always get you past the door at 9pm.

South Beach is the classic first-timer's pick — walk out of your hotel onto the sand or onto the Art Deco strip along Ocean Drive; it is touristy and loud on weekends but hard to beat for a first trip. Brickell is Miami's financial district doubling as a genuinely walkable, quieter base with new high-rises, solid restaurants, and easy Metromover access to everywhere else. Wynwood suits anyone who wants murals, galleries, and breweries over beach access, which is a 15–20 minute drive from here. Coconut Grove is the leafy, low-key option — good for families, with marinas, shade trees, Vizcaya's gardens nearby, and the Saturday Coconut Grove Farmer's Market a short walk from most hotels there. Coral Gables, a little further southwest, is the polished, Mediterranean-Revival alternative: wide tree-lined boulevards, the historic Biltmore Hotel, and the Miracle Mile shopping strip give it a slower, more affluent small-city feel — good if you want quiet nights and don't mind a short drive or Uber into the action. Key Biscayne, reached via the Rickenbacker Causeway, is Miami's real island escape — calmer beaches and a genuine sense of distance from the city despite being 15–20 minutes from Brickell, though hotel options there are limited and pricier. Little Haiti and the neighboring MiMo District along Biscayne Boulevard are the up-and-coming, budget-friendlier picks for anyone who wants character and a strong local rather than tourist feel, with reasonable access to the beach causeways and a fast-growing restaurant scene.

Little Havana is the essential food neighborhood: walk Calle Ocho for a cafecito at a ventanita, then sit down properly at Old's Havana Cuban Bar & Cocina or the long-running El Pub Restaurant for classic Cuban plates, or Cafe La Trova for the same roots dressed up with serious cocktails and live music most nights. Do not skip Sanguich for one of the best Cuban sandwiches in the city, or La Camaronera Seafood Joint and Fish Market a few blocks over for no-frills, very fresh seafood. Wynwood and the wider Design District area are where the newer, more international scene lives — Wyn Pizza is a solid wood-fired stop for refueling between murals, while NiDo Caffe Italian Restaurant up in the MiMo District on Biscayne Boulevard and Asian Thai Kitchen 2 both turn up on locals' regular-rotation lists rather than tourist-trap ones. Down on the water, Bayside Marketplace in Downtown is more about the bay views and casual bites than fine dining, but it is a pleasant stop between Metromover loops. For a proper splurge, book ahead at Joe's Stone Crab in South Beach — stone crab season runs mid-October to early May and this century-old institution is still the benchmark, best eaten cold with mustard sauce; finish with a slice from Fireman Derek's Pies (Wynwood or Coconut Grove) for the city's most-loved key lime pie. Coral Gables' Miracle Mile is worth a dedicated meal for its denser, more upscale restaurant row, while Little Haiti is the place to look for griot (fried marinated pork) and soup joumou at family-run Haitian kitchens well off the tourist trail.

Start with the Cuban sandwich — roast pork, ham, Swiss, pickles, and mustard pressed on Cuban bread — and compare Sanguich's version in Little Havana against any of the ventanita counters along Calle Ocho; everyone in Miami has a strong opinion on who does it best. Order a cafecito (a shot of sweet, dense Cuban espresso) or a colada (the same thing in a larger cup meant for sharing, with little plastic cups attached) from a walk-up ventanita window — it's a genuine daily ritual here, not a tourist photo-op. Croquetas (fried, breaded ham or chicken cylinders) and pastelitos (flaky, filled pastries, guava-and-cheese is the classic) are the go-to snacks, often eaten standing up for under a few dollars. For a sit-down Cuban meal, order ropa vieja (shredded braised beef in tomato sauce) or a medianoche sandwich (a sweeter, softer cousin of the Cuban sandwich). Stone crab claws are Miami's most iconic seafood splurge — in season mid-October through early May, served chilled with mustard sauce, classically at Joe's Stone Crab. Key lime pie, made with small, tart Florida Key limes, is the definitive local dessert; Fireman Derek's Pies has become a modern standard-bearer alongside the old-guard spots. Because Miami is as much Caribbean and South American as it is Cuban, branch out: ceviche (Peruvian-style, often with sweet potato and choclo corn) shows up on menus across the city, Venezuelan arepas and Colombian empanadas are easy to find in several neighborhoods, and Haitian griot (twice-cooked marinated fried pork, usually with pikliz, a fiery cabbage slaw) is worth seeking out in Little Haiti. Wash it down with a mojito or a Cuban-style batido (fruit milkshake) rather than a generic tropical cocktail.

Lincoln Road Mall in South Beach is the classic pedestrian shopping strip — eight car-free blocks of mid-range and designer stores, sidewalk cafes, and prime people-watching, lively well into the evening. The Miami Design District is the place for genuine luxury (Chanel, Dior, Hermès, Louis Vuitton) alongside serious public art and design showrooms, worth a wander even if you are not buying. Brickell City Centre mixes accessible brands like Zara and Sephora with higher-end names under a striking climate-cooled canopy, and pairs naturally with a Metromover-based day downtown. Bal Harbour Shops, a bit further north, is Miami's original indoor/outdoor luxury destination anchored by Saks and Neiman Marcus. Coral Gables' Miracle Mile is a gentler, walkable alternative for boutiques and independent stores rather than big international names, and pairs well with a Coral Gables lunch. If you want scale, Aventura Mall between Miami and Fort Lauderdale is one of the largest malls in the U.S., with a genuinely huge brand mix under one roof. For something slower and more local, hit the Saturday morning Coconut Grove Farmer's Market or the nearby Vizcaya Village Farmers Market for produce, crafts, and a break from air conditioning, or browse the small artisan and gallery shops along pedestrianized Española Way just off Lincoln Road.

Walk the Art Deco Historic District in South Beach around golden hour, when the pastel hotel facades on Ocean Drive and Collins Avenue light up — it is the largest collection of Art Deco architecture in the world and earns the guided-tour cliché. Spend a few unhurried hours at Vizcaya Museum and Gardens, the Italian Renaissance-style waterfront estate that feels dropped in from another century, then loop into Coconut Grove afterward. In Wynwood, the murals at Wynwood Walls are the obvious anchor, but the district rewards wandering on foot — keep an eye out for permanent installations like Buckminster Fuller's Fly's Eye Dome, one of only a few of its kind anywhere; if you can time a visit for the second Saturday of the month, the Wynwood Art Walk adds open galleries and real gallery-crawl energy after dark. In Little Havana, slow down at Domino Park (officially Máximo Gómez Park) to watch serious games in progress, ideally with a cafecito in hand. A little further north, the Little Haiti Cultural Complex is a genuine, non-touristy way to spend a couple of hours among Haitian art, music, and dance. In Coral Gables, swim a lap at the Venetian Pool, a 1920s public pool carved out of a coral rock quarry and fed by spring water — unlike anything else in the city. Book a Biscayne Bay boat tour to see the skyline and celebrity-home shoreline from the water, or head out to Key Biscayne for a snorkel along the northernmost living coral reef in the continental U.S. And if you have a spare half-day, book an airboat tour into the Everglades — about 45 minutes from downtown and a completely different Florida, with your best real shot at spotting a wild alligator. If your trip lands in early December, Art Basel Miami Beach turns the whole city into a temporary contemporary-art fair — book accommodation months ahead if so.