by Marina Muhlfriedel

 

...Goes Hot, Hot, Hot

What city are you thinking of right now? Gotta be Miami, right? Whether it’s fun in the sandy sun, table hoping at fabulous luncheries along South Beach, or hitting the clubs and dancing into the wee hours of the morning, Miami is America’s hippest 24-hour hotspot. The perception once held that the Floridian metropolis existed primarily as a winter warm-up for chilly New Englanders. Then, it became regarded as America’s largest retirement community. All the while however, the hip, vaguely Latin-tinged culture was summoning scene makers from across the world to its non-stop party culture. These days, over 7 million visitors head to the Southern Florida metropolis each year.

Never been? Whoa girl, what are you waiting for? Grab those dancing shoes, a bathing suit, a little black (or red!) dress and you are on your way. Like any big city, Miami is divided into numerous areas. While shopping visits to mega-mall, Aventura and the Italian-Spanish spiked Coral Gables, daytrips to colorful Little Havana and Little Haiti districts, checking out the ever- chic Coconut Grove District, or a nature exploration of the unique Everglades ecosystem are more than worth the effort, my hunch is, with just a weekend to spare, you’ll spend your time luxuriating in the diverse cultures that comprise Miami Beach.

Geographically, the sandy stretch runs nearly 15 miles along the Atlantic side of a barrier island in Biscayne Bay, just northeast of Miami’s mainland. Traveling the full extent of the coastal parallel, Collins Avenue, all the way to Bal Harbour, there’s plenty of sightseeing, swimming, snorkeling, biking, sunning, jet-skiing, and yes, even walking to be had. Explore the trendy, family-oriented, gay, straight, clothed, and clothing-optional stretches. The generously appointed beaches, literally offer something for every variety of beach-goer. And, from art museums, to the lovely botanical garden, to first class restaurants and nightclubs, even off the beach, you’ll find it all here.

Start your Miami Beach adventure in the South Beach Area (SoBe) with a stroll (or skate) from 5th to 15th Street along Ocean Drive, an Art Deco National Historic District. SoBe beckons the hippest of Florida’s tourists and is possibly the most happening spot on the entire Atlantic seaboard.

After a glamorous, albeit notorious start with carousing Chicagoan gangsters of the roaring 20’s, by the 1960’s South Beach had sunk deep into urban disrepair. Gazing today upon block after block of perfectly dolled up structures, it’s hard to believe that a scant thirty years ago, SoBe was a drug and crime ridden slum. Much to the credit of the television show, “Miami Vice”, the area was renovated in the late 1980s as a haven of ice cream colored hotels and restaurants, just footsteps from a perfect stretch of beach. The Miami Design Preservation League offers excellent 90 minute guided tours through the hundreds of Streamline Moderne, Art Deco, and Spanish Mediterranean Revival style structures.

With a crowd easily as attractive as the curvy cornered and geometrically adorned architecture, you could spend the entire weekend indulging in Caribbean-style drinks, people watching, and sampling the luscious beaches, nightclubs and blossoming art scene. From Al Capone’s early influence, to Gianni Versace's palatial home, where he was murdered in 1997, to supermodels playing volleyball on the beach, South Beach is an icon of American culture.

If you find yourself in need of a break from all the fabulous-ness (and, dare I say traffic), meander just a short distance north to Central Miami, a quieter area full of dazzling estate homes, lush golf courses, and yes, more beaches.

From Central Miami, follow Collins Avenue north and you’ll eventually wind up at Miami Beach’s most exclusive destination, Bal Harbour. There are few choices of accommodations in the area, and all are pricey. But, if upscale shopping is your thing, this is the spot. Other parts of the North Miami Beach District include Surfside, the Sunny Isles and Golden Beach areas, and Haulover Beach, a divine locale, particularly popular in its northern reaches for its clothing optional policy.

Yearning for a little quiet seclusion? Check out the North Shore Open Space Park between 79th and 87th along Collins Avenue. Named for its refreshing absence of development, graced by sea grape trees, palms, and greens the area boasts both park and beach environments.

Then it’s back to SoBe, with its effervescent buzz of nightclubs, sidewalk cafes and scene makers from every corner of the planet. Get the picture? Miami Beach epitomizes all that we love about the spirit of summer. Capture it for a weekend, even better, capture it for a week, just as soon as you have a chance.

From The Palms, to The Avalon, to Loews, to The Hotel of South Beach, accommodations are plentiful and offer a variety of price ranges and amenities. Check out hotels.com, southbeach-usa.com or southbeachgroup.com for lots of options.

 

 

 

© Melt Magazine 2007