Little Havana

Downtown Miami and the adjacent Brickell to the south form the city's center: skyscrapers, banks, hotels, and amidst them, parks along Biscayne Bay. Brickell is named after William and Mary Brickell; Mary Brickell had Brickell Avenue parceled for villas in the early 20th century. From the 1970s onwards, office towers replaced the mansions, and Brickell became one of the largest financial districts in the USA. Today, it's primarily apartment tower residents, and the streets are lively even in the evenings.Much of the action for visitors unfolds along the bay. Museum Park features the Pérez Art Museum with its hanging gardens and the Frost Museum of Science with a large aquarium. Further south are Bayfront Park, designed by sculptor Isamu Noguchi, and Bayside Marketplace with its shops and boat docks. Opposite, the Freedom Tower commemorates the 1960s, when Cuban refugees were registered here.The best part: The Metromover, a free, driverless elevated train. Glide above the streets, see the skyline from above, and get off wherever interests you.Best Time: Museums in the morning, followed by a Metromover ride. Bayfront Park is worthwhile in the late afternoon, and Brickell's rooftop bars in the evening.

Miami is situated in southeastern Florida on Biscayne Bay, with Miami Beach located on a barrier island just opposite. You visit for its beaches, Art Deco architecture, and Cuban-influenced districts.The Art Deco District in Miami Beach is home to around 960 historic buildings, which have been on the National Register of Historic Places since 1979. The hotels on Ocean Drive overlook Lummus Park and the beach. In Little Havana, locals play dominoes in Máximo Gómez Park, known as Domino Park, on Calle Ocho. In Wynwood, the Wynwood Walls have showcased murals and sculptures by over 130 artists since 2009; a ticket is required for entry.Miami International is the largest aviation hub between the USA and Latin America. In Downtown and Brickell, the Metromover operates for free. The warm dry season lasts from November to April, and hurricane season from June to late November.

Coral Gables is a distinct city southwest of Downtown Miami and one of the first planned communities in the USA. Real estate developer George Merrick designed it during the 1920s Florida building boom, following the ideals of the City Beautiful movement; it was officially founded in 1925. The original plan prescribed the Mediterranean Revival style, and to this day, tiled roofs, arcades, fountains, and tree-lined streets define its image. Coral Gables bears the nickname The City Beautiful for good reason.At its heart lies Miracle Mile, the commercial street Merrick planned as the main axis. Right next to it, Giralda Avenue has been a pedestrian zone with restaurants since 2017. The Coral Gables Museum, housed in the old police and fire station, tells the city's history and serves as a visitor center.Two buildings from Merrick's era you shouldn't miss: the Venetian Pool, an outdoor swimming pool in a former rock quarry, and the Biltmore Hotel, whose tower, like the Freedom Tower in Downtown, is inspired by the Giralda in Seville. Further south are the University of Miami campus and the Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden.Best Time: Mornings at the Venetian Pool before it gets crowded, lunch on Miracle Mile, and an afternoon stroll through Fairchild.

Coconut Grove is one of the oldest settlements in the Miami area and much greener than the rest of the city. The name dates back to a post office established by Horace P. Porter in 1873. Early residents included sailors, naturalists, and artists from the northeastern USA, as well as workers from the Bahamas who built many of the early structures. To this day, many families with Bahamian roots live in West Grove. In 1925, Coconut Grove was incorporated into the City of Miami.The district stretches along the shore of Biscayne Bay. In the north, at the edge of the neighborhood, lies Vizcaya, the Italianate winter residence of industrialist James Deering. In the center, around Main Highway and Grand Avenue, you'll find cafés, restaurants, and the CocoWalk shopping center. At The Barnacle, you can see how pioneers lived in the 19th century, and at Dinner Key, Miami's City Hall is located in a former terminal for Pan-Am seaplanes.If you like plants, visit The Kampong, the tropical garden of plant collector David Fairchild. Otherwise, the Grove is a place for strolling: under banyan trees, past yacht harbors, with a coffee on the terrace.Best Time: Mornings to Vizcaya, before it gets hot; afternoons stroll through the town center and to the bay for sunset.

North of Downtown lie two neighborhoods that have completely reinvented themselves in the last two decades. From the 1920s, Wynwood was a textile district; in the 1940s and 1950s, many families from Puerto Rico moved here, earning the neighborhood the nickname Little San Juan. When the clothing factories closed in the early 1990s, the warehouses stood empty.In 2009, real estate developer Tony Goldman, together with curator Jeffrey Deitch, had the exterior walls of several of his buildings painted by street artists: The Wynwood Walls were born. Today, almost every facade in the district is painted, interspersed with galleries, breweries, cafes, and bars.Directly north lies the Design District. Here, in the 1920s, T. V. Moore built a furniture store on a former pineapple farm; starting in the late 1990s, developer Craig Robins and his company Dacra acquired numerous buildings and brought in designers and later luxury brands like Louis Vuitton, Dior, and Hermès. Among the boutiques, there is much public art, such as Buckminster Fuller's Fly's Eye Dome, and the ICA Miami showcases contemporary art with free admission.Best time: Come in the afternoon when galleries and museums are open, and stay for the evening in Wynwood. The Wynwood Art Walk takes place on the second Saturday of the month.