Downtown Miami
The Capital of Latinamerica
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Hours of operation: All time long :-)
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Tips
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Parking is expensive in Miami. There is parking in the street at a rate of $1.5 an hour.
The city of Miami covers a large area but there are not that many places worth visiting. That makes easier choosing your excursions.
One of those places worth seeing is downtown Miami. Since beginning of 2013 construction has been frantic and almost all of the projects halted because of the financial crisis have been restarted. By 2018 thousands of apartments, office spaces, hotels and shops will be added to this downtown area already crowded.
They boast that downtown Miami is going to be Manhattan-II with lots of high-rise living spaces and office buildings. I wish we had 1/4th of the Manhattan Public Transportation system. Now remember that Miami and, in fact, all of South Florida is flat. Due to the risk of flooding there are no underground parking garages and no subways. The only means of public transportation you have in the downtown area is a picturesque bus decorated as an old tram and an air train (Metromover). The good news is that both offer free rides for everybody. Be careful with the Metromover: It's the most confusing train in the world with three lines sharing the rails...
If you get lost. The street naming system in Miami is very simple and helpful: North-South streets are avenues. East-West streets are streets. Street names are numbers that start at 1 from Flagler Str. with numbers growing to the North and to the South. Avenues are numbered starting at Miami Avenue growing going both East and West. That makes four quadrants that are called NE, NW, SW and SE. Each block has 100 potential addresses, so that 4415 SW 88th Ave is on the 88th Ave, between 44th and 45th Streets, Southwest part.
Bayside is a nice place to visit. It has dozens of shops both Souvenirs and brands. It's picturesque and has restaurants on the ground floor and an inexpensive foodcourt on the second floor overseeing the harbor.
The axis Biscayne Boulevard - Brickell Avenue is the closest thing in Miami to the Chicago's Magnificent Mile: It's the Financial City of Miami. It includes the Panorama Tower, the tallest building south of New York, not yet finished. You can walk it or take an Aerial ride to the Financial District station, end of the line.
Brickell City Centre is a recent addition to Downtown Miami. A High-Level mall with all the brands you may expect. Take an aerial ride to 8th Street station. It has a direct access to the mall.