Turquoise waters, boundless shores, round-the-clock fun: this is Miami, a city where design, arts, and visionary architecture have more than one moment in the sun. Occupying the southernmost three miles of Miami Beach is gorgeous South Beach, with its hundreds of dazzling pastel-coloured 1920s and 1930s Art Deco buildings. By night, Ocean Drive becomes one of the liveliest stretches in Miami. If this is too much for you, head a block west of the beach to Collins Avenue or to Washington Avenue, with fashion shops and cool coffee bars. For more shops, restaurants and cafés, head for the Lincoln Road Mall (between Alton Rd and Washington Ave), a pedestrianized zone where you can stroll and graze. North of downtown the Design District, hemmed in by 36th and 41st streets between Miami Avenue and Biscayne Boulevard, is also worth a visit, crammed with hip restaurants. Miami does Cuban food best, and it’s not limited to the traditional haunts in Little Havana. You’ll also want to try Cuban coffee. Cuban cooking is complemented by sushi bars and American home-style diners, as well as Haitian, Italian and new Floridian restaurants, among a handful of other ethnic cuisines. Coral Gables, South Beach and the Design District are best for upmarket cafés and restaurants. Seafood is abundant. Stonecrab claws (served Oct–May), are another South Florida speciality.
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Day 4 — Miami → Key West
The Overseas Highway with its countless bridges is the only connection between these long, narrow Atlantic islands and the Gulf of Mexico. The Keys are a chain of coral islands stretching almost 200 km, with the most eastern tip - Key West - just 150 km from Cuba. They are not a beach vacation destination, as the beaches are modest and the sea is not very suitable for swimming; but the islands are fascinating for their nature and human environment.
