Miami Travel Guide

Miami is a major city in the south-eastern United States and makes up part of the largest metropolitan area in Florida. Being part of the South Florida region, it is 20 miles from Fort Lauderdale, 106 miles from Naples (Florida) and 156 miles from Key West.

Far and away the most exciting city in Florida, Miami is an often intoxicatingly beautiful place, with palm trees swaying in the breeze and South Beach's famous Art Deco buildings stunning in the warm sunlight. Away from the beaches and the tourists, the gleaming skyscrapers of downtown herald Miami's proud status as the headquarters of many US corporations' Latin American operations. Even so, it's the people, not the climate, the landscape, or the cash, that makes Miami so noteworthy. Two-thirds of the two-million-plus population is Hispanic, the majority of which are Cuban, and Spanish is the predominant language almost everywhere.

Just over a hundred years ago Miami was a swampy outpost of mosquito-tormented settlers. The arrival of Henry Flagler's railroad in 1896 gave the city its first fixed land-link with the rest of the continent, and cleared the way for the Twenties property boom. In the Fifties, Miami Beach became a celebrity-filled resort area, just as thousands of Cubans fleeing the regime of Fidel Castro began arriving here as well. The Sixties and Seventies brought decline, and Miami's dangerous reputation in the Eighties was well deserved – in 1980 the city had the highest murder rate in America.

Since then, with the strengthening of Latin American economic links and the gentrification of South Beach – which helped make tourism the lifeblood of the local economy again in the early Nineties – Miami is enjoying a surge of affluence and optimism.

Welcome to Miami -- the sunny southern city in the sunny state of Florida. To most people who have never taken a Miami trip, just think of Sonny Crocket and Ricardo Tubbs in a speedboat chasing some drug dealers. Be your own judge and take a Miami vacation to find out what this city really is like: a melting pot of cultures, a warm and friendly city on one of the most beautiful spots in the world, a city of great architecture and the perfect starting point for exploring the rich variety of sights and sounds in Florida.

But most people think Miami is only a city of fun and games based just on tourism. Miami is a lot of fun, but it is also a huge financial center of the world. Downtown Miami has the largest concentration of International Banks in the United States. Miami was named a Gamma world city based on its economic importance especially towards Latin America. U.S. Southern Command Headquarters are in Miami, also the National Hurricane Center calls Miami home. Miami also how the highest percentage of foreign- born residents in the world! 59% of Miami residents were born outside the US. This makes Miami one of the most diverse cities in the world.

Miami is also known as the capital of Latin America and the Caribbean for economic, transportation, and cultural reasons.

When you are in Miami, one thing is sure, you will not be bored! There are too many Miami activities to enjoy such as going to museums, hanging out at one of many Miami restaurants, cafes, or bars, and dancing until dawn at a hot nightclub.

Now, if you haven't taken a Miami trip for Memorial Weekend, you are missing out. Imagine BCR weekend in Daytona with class and about 100,000 more people. There are three main streets where all the action can be found: Ocean, Collins, and Washington. All three streets are within walking distance from one another. A great place to find excellent Miami hotels is along the ocean -- and it's well worth the money. You're always within walking distance to the beach, of course and a Starbucks is always nearby.

The beach is beautiful, the water is very warm and the view to the bottom of the ocean is crystal clear. You can rent an umbrella and 2 lounges for about $24 for the entire day. It's not as hot as you think it would be on the beach, however. It's actually hotter on the strip than on the beach. Collins offers plenty of shopping and lots of expensive boutiques. The Miami restaurants in the area are pretty amazing as well and reasonably priced. Ocean drive restaurants may be a bit more expensive, but the excellent cuisine and service is well worth the price tag.

The Art Deco architecture in the old section of Miami Beach alongside the beach is impressive and worth a leisurely stroll to view its beauty.

Source and more info: http://www.world66.com; http://www.wikitravel.org