things to do in Miami?

[jhickey1414]

We are doing a Wonder cruise out of Miami the end of Feb. It will be our first time there. We will have a day and a half before the cruise. I'm very excited for both the cruise and Miami. Any suggestions of must sees? Thanks

 

[jrabbit]

Everglades.

"Just" west of the airport is Shark Valley (part of the national parks service) There is a tram (can/should make reservations) that does the loop - lots of alligators and birds and turtles to look at - they do stop frequently when animals are spotted, but you stay on the tram until you get to the tower. We spent many hours here (about 4), In addition to the tram tour we walked part of the loop for a closer look at the animals.

Everglades "South"
South of Miami, near Homestead is the entrance to the southern part of the everglades. There is a visitor / welcome center and a few mile past that is the Ahinga trail where you probably will see lots of animals. If you continue on you will reach the area called Flamingo. There are two excursions here - both boat rides. The first is the Backwater Tour (our favorite) and then there's the Florida Bay tour.

Here in the southern everglades is the only place where Alligators and Crocodiles environments overlap

 

[cedricandsophie]

Just hanging out around south beach is a lot of fun. Lots of bars and restaurants. Great people watching. Beautiful beach. I would recommend a hotel in south beach just to be close to the action. If there is a Miami heat game I would personally love thst. The stadium is close to downtown. The Bayside Marketplace which is right on the bay us also fun to hang out if you don't wAnt south beach. The holiday inn at the port is right across the street and a good place to stay.

 

[lorimay]

Lincoln Road, which is very close to South Beach is a great place to walk around and enjoy the beautiful weather we usually have here in Feb.
There are shops, restaurants and a movie theater.
Also, Jungle Island is very close by.

 

[blondietink]

We hang out South Beach before each cruise. Love to have breakfast on a street café, watch the beautiful people, body builders working out, etc. Our December Wonder cruise will be no exception!

Also if you have a hotel in the Fort Lauderdale area, there is a water taxi that goes around the bay. Fairly cheap, you get to see all the fabulous houses of the rich and famous, the taxi captain is usually a good tour guide. You can hop on and off wherever you feel like it.

 

[jhickey1414]

thanks for the info. I found a tour of Miami/airboat ride combo from Miami Tour Company that picks up right at our hotel - Holiday Inn -POM. It is an all day activity (7.5 hours). I found it on www.miamibeach411.com
It includes:
Professionally guided tour of Miami, Miami Beach, and the Everglades
Airboat ride
Wildlife show
Free bottled water
Souvenir tour map
Pick-up and drop-off from most hotels
Air-conditioned tour bus

 

[BensDaddy]

Anybody been to Everglades Holiday Park, where they film "Gator Boys"? Was thinking that sounded like fun after the cruise.

Before the cruise (ours is in March) I booked the Holiday Inn at the Port. We typically fly in the day before, so probably will be there early afternoon the day prior to sailing. But looking at this thread maybe I should be looking for a hotel in South Beach instead?

Thoughts?

 

[egesicki]

We went to the Seaquarium, kind of pricey but the boys loved it, lots of stuff to see, areas to play in, concessions.

Interested to try some of the other places mentioned if we go next year.

 

[Bonniec]

I really loved the Hop On Hop Off tour bus.

It's a double decker bus line with many stops. You just get on and off at your leisure. We started at Bayfront Marketplace which has all kinds of cool touristy stuff, saw several landmarks, a few celeb homes were pointed out, got off at South Beach and went swimming for a while, etc. It was really nice and I didn't have to drive.

 

[HermanTriplets+1]

Hi,
I sailed out of Miami with 5 friends this past February. We rented a car and went to the Vizcaya gardens and museum - very pretty!
http://vizcaya.org/
The evening before the cruise some of us also went to see a show here:
http://www.arshtcenter.org/
Enjoy!