For beaches, activities and warmth, Miami Beach has it all.
This seaside town has everything you need to have a great time.
A little family trip in July. Here is our stay.
Destination City: Miami Beach, Florida, USA
Travel Month: July
Length of Stay: 9 Days
We thought we’d take the car and go on a family road trip. So I got out my calculator.
2700 km one way, that means 26 hours of driving. At 10 hours per day, that’s 3 days. So a round trip is 6 days. That adds a week (or takes away 1 week on site). Plus 4 days at the hotel, plus quick eats. Not to mention parking on site because most hotels/AirBNBs and others don’t have parking included. I also won’t need my car on site.
In return, I found great plane tickets for $350 round trip. So for $1400, I have the plane for the family and it works out cheaper than all the restaurants and hotels required on the road. (Don’t forget to sign up for my newsletter to get Avion’s great deals directly in your emails)
Departure from Montreal
Off to Montreal airport. This is the first time we’ve all flown together. We had looked at things to do and see including excursions so I’ll come back to that later.
9 days in Miami Beach, we travel with only carry-on luggage. After passing through security and US customs at the airport, we can relax a little before our flight.
Take off, we’re gone! Next stop: Miami!
We finally landed shortly after midnight and I had already planned to take an Uber to take us to our home, Kasa El Paseo right on Española Way.
Exploration and beach
After a short night’s sleep, we have to do some shopping. Our home includes a kitchen which allows us to make lunches and meals without having to go to a restaurant every day.
First observation: Food is expensive in supermarkets! (I will later find out that there are more affordable grocery stores and I will shop there in the future)
The location is perfect: Close to the nightlife without being invaded by the noise of party people, 1 block from the Trolley which is free throughout Miami Beach and 7 minutes walk to the beach! What more could you ask for!
Española Way is a pedestrian avenue with restaurants on both sides. Above it, there are various dwellings for tourists passing through or extending their stay.
The beaches stretch all along the coast and are open to all. We bought ourselves an umbrella instead of “renting” one every day. It’s windy! I didn’t regret getting some ink for the sand. We then left the umbrella to the next resident of our house.
The children quickly noticed the shops within walking distance. They went there almost every day…
Getting around
Getting around Miami Beach is free. Yes! Yes! Free! The city offers the free trolley within Miami Beach. It operates 15 hours a day, 7 days a week. Convenient for grocery shopping and longer trips.
We walked most of the way and also took the regular bus to take a quick trip to Miami.
Restaurants
There are plenty of restaurants with a variety of menus. Whether it’s Mexican, Cuban, Italian, Japanese, Turkish, Colombian, Peruvian and so on. There’s plenty to discover new dishes. My wife loved the empanadas (which I made myself when I got home).
Special note: a 20% tip is already added to the bill. It increases the final bill by a lot!
Expeditions and visits
Since I was going to get tired of the beach, I planned a few expeditions to see and do something else.
South Pointe Park Pier
This park located at the southern end of Miami Beach is large, the beach also goes there. The pier is very long and gives a view of both the port of Miami and the long beach of Miami Beach. It is common for music to be played there in the evening after dark.
Key West Snorkeling
We took a package to go to Key West and do some snorkeling. Key West is several hours drive from Miami Beach but the bus was comfortable.
Arriving in Key West, we had little time before our catamaran expedition.
On the catamaran we had live music, open bar service (on the way back) and an hour of swimming over a coral reef. Swimming with the fish is magical.
Once we got back to the dock, we had barely an hour before our bus left for Miami Beach. We didn’t even see the buoy at the southernmost point of the continental United States.
If you want to snorkel, do not take this type of package with Key West. You will run out of time. Key West is beautiful, walkable but with a 3 hour excursion in the middle, we did not see anything of the city.
Everglades Park
To do something different, I wanted to see the alligators in their natural habitat. My wife is not a fan of animals in nature, so she preferred to go to the beach. So I left with the children. Again, the bus picked us up not far from our home.
We were able to see alligators, turtles, peacocks and other small birds.
It is also possible to eat alligator but due to lack of time, I had to resign myself to passing my turn so as not to miss the return bus.
The final word
We chose Miami Beach for the beach and to relax. We were served. It is a beautiful city, where the different cultures of Latin America rub shoulders.
I wish you a good trip!