South Beach and Miami
 

I'm going to be staying at our beach house in South Beach. This time it will be for 9 days around 4th of July. I don't know what I'd be doing. I can go to the clubs and all that but I'm not really looking into a fast-paced vacation. Any ideas on what I can do other than eat and get some sun? I also want to avoid that annoying crowd that rolls into the area around every holiday.

-Rudey

Take a short cruise. They're not terribly expensive and you can do as much or as little as you care to. As I'm sure you know, from South Beach you can practically walk to the pier.

Stupid question but what is there to do on a cruise? It sounds like a big floating country club.

-Rudey

i always just lie by the pool and drink.

Please my little Rudith, wear sunscreen. We wouldn't want your fair skin to burn.

- Lil' Hannah
--The FL sun is stronger than in IL!

The cruises we take are the ones where most of the actually sailing is done overnight and the ports-of-call are daylight.

There are a lot of nice places to visit. Good activities such as snorkeling, para-gliding, sailing (as in smaller ship with sails), sight seeing, etc.

There are generally a good party or two per cruise and generally excellent musical entertainment on board.

However, many of the things I've listed above have additional costs.

You can really fill up your daylight hours, or just be lazy and eat and drink.

hey,

i never been there but I am going to go soon....NIKKI BEACH

www.nikkibeach.com

I've been almost every time I go down there. It attracted a little bit of an older crowd though dude. My place is right on Ocean drive...it's not huge but it's on the beach and near all the cool spots.

I was thinking of renting a car and driving through naples and west palm beach for a couple days. I don't remember how florida folks drive (yeah that's right I'm scared to drive) and if it'd be worth it to leave south beach.

And hannah, I've been hitting the tanning bed pretty well so I'm good to go ;)

-Rudey
--Aren't you just as white as I am??

There's lots of good shopping the West Palm and Naples area if that's your thing. If you want to make a stop in Ft. Lauderdale, they have nice cruises and boat rides up and down the intercoastal.

If you've got a lot of extra time, I would recommend doing the drive to Orlando. It's approximately 4 hours from Miami if you want to go the theme parks.

Florida drivers....errr....it depends on where you'll be. Orlando is scary because there's a lot of tourists who don't know where they're going. West Palm has the old people who can't see the road. Miami and Ft. Lauderdale has the crazy, fast drivers. If you drive to West Palm from Miami, I'd advise taking the Florida Turnpike over I-95 since there's less accidents/crazy drivers on that road.

As for Florida drivers - everyone bitches about them when they're in another state, but when all the out-of-state drivers come down to Florida, we bitch about them!

Most of them like to drive really fast, but the old people (esp. along the beach) drive about 5 mph under the speed limit. VERY annoying, esp. when you work on the beach and you're running late!

4th of July weekend in South Beach is mostly local people...it's at its best during tourist season, so I don't blame you for wanting to leave. (That says something about my fellow Miamians ;) )

I wouldn't go to Naples - way too laid back, IMO - unless you have a date to go with. Then it's nice to watch the sunset. I wouldn't call the shopping there "great," unless you're into touristy stuff. (Much better shopping in Miami.)

Taking a drive up A1A to WPB is nice & scenic, but it's really hot in the summer...even if your car has AC. And Florida drivers - well, we have all types, but the roads are much less busy now that the snowbirds are gone. Driving in Miami is extremely aggressive.

A 3 day cruise is an option, but often, it all depends on the crowd who's on the ship. If you're stuck on a ship with an elderly church group, it's not much fun. But other times, there are fun people. Check out the cruiselines' websites.

If I were you, I'd take a drive down someplace in the Keys & go snorkeling or scuba diving (get certified!). Stay away from Islamorada (The Tiki bar), because a lot of Miamians head there for the weekend too.

South Beach, huh? Watch out for the one armed midget. He owes everbody money and will get you in trouble.

if youre into the laid back atmosphere, i'd suggest going to Boca (Raton) for a day or two, or even driving down to the Keys (Tiki bar)... its great and VERY relaxing down there...

i mean south beach ALWAYS has something going on, but again it depends what you're in the mood for (as you very well know by now)

if youre not up to have to drive too far for a pleasnt detination, i'd suggest you look into some bars/spots in the gables (coral gables)... its not a far drive from the beach, and its defined by a moderately "young" crowd

Older crowds calls for older women. older women means more experience...:eek:

well spank my ass and call me Pacey :D

How far are the keys from south beach?

I've only been to Miami, south beach, wpb, and ft lau.


-Rudey