Florida · Atlantic Coast
Miami
Year-round 75-90°F, the most Latin American big city in the US, an actual world-class food scene since 2018, and 25 miles of Atlantic beach. Mostly priced for tourists, but if you avoid South Beach proper you can still find good 1-2 week stays and learn what locals already know.
Median 7-night
~$2,200
hotels + apartments
Cheapest
$720
budget hotel near Brickell
Best season
Nov-Apr
75-82°F, dry, no hurricanes
Avoid
Aug-Oct
peak hurricane + 90°F humid
Cheapest 7-night stays right now
Live from our API. US prices include state and county tax (about 13% in Miami-Dade). Refreshes when you load this page.
Neighborhoods to actually stay in
Best for first visits
Brickell / Downtown
Walkable, modern high-rises, Miami River views, Metromover free above-ground transit connects everything. Closest neighborhood to actual city living. Good restaurants, grocery delivery works fast. 15-min Uber to South Beach. Best for 7-14 night stays where you want both city + beach without renting a car.
Slowmad-friendly
Wynwood / Edgewater
Murals, design shops, brewery scene, no beach. Lots of digital nomads, coworking, third-wave coffee. Cheaper than Brickell or South Beach and quieter at night. Best for 2-4 week stays with a working calendar. Food is genuinely great.
Quiet + family
Coconut Grove
Bayfront village, marina, banyan-tree streets, family restaurants, less party. More expensive than Wynwood but the quietest part of "real Miami". Closest to Vizcaya and bayside parks. Best for multi-week family stays.
Skip for stays 7+ nights
South Beach (Ocean Drive area)
Beautiful for 2 days. Exhausting for a week. Tourist trap restaurants, $25 "resort fees" added at checkout, 4am club spillover, undercover undercover- cop scenes. Real Miami Beach locals live further north, between 60th and 80th. Visit South Beach for a half-day, stay somewhere else.
Settle-in basics
SIM cards
US domestic. T-Mobile and Verizon both have full 5G coverage Miami-Dade. International visitors: Mint Mobile is the cheapest 30-day option (~$15 for 5 GB on T-Mobile network).
Money / ATMs
Tap-to-pay everywhere. Carry $20-40 in cash for valet tips and the rare cash-only Cuban window. Tip 18-22% at sit-down restaurants. Most places auto-add 18% gratuity for parties of 6+, double-check the bill before adding more.
Coworking
WeWork (multiple Brickell + Wynwood locations), Brickell House, The LAB Miami (Wynwood, popular with creators), Industrious. Day passes $25-45. Beachside coworking is mostly hotel lobbies; not great for video calls.
Transit
You'll want a car or constant Uber budget. Miami's public transit is limited: Metromover (free, downtown only), Metrorail (one line, useful for airport), Brightline (high-speed train to Fort Lauderdale + West Palm + Orlando, genuinely good). Walking only works inside specific neighborhoods. Uber from MIA airport to Brickell: 20 min, $25-40.
Healthcare
Jackson Memorial (public, biggest), Baptist Hospital (private, English+Spanish), University of Miami Hospital. CVS/Walgreens MinuteClinics for non-emergencies. Travel insurance recommended for non-US visitors; ER visits run $1500-5000 without insurance.
Hurricane awareness
Hurricane season runs June 1 to November 30. Peak risk is mid-August through mid-October. Major hurricanes hitting Miami direct are rare (last was Andrew in 1992) but tropical storms causing flight cancellations and beach closures happen 1-3 times per season. If you're traveling in this window, get refundable rates and pack a backup day of activities.
Visa basics
- US passport: Domestic. Drive, fly, no documentation needed.
- Visa Waiver Program (UK, EU, AU, NZ, Japan, etc.): ESTA required (apply online before flying, $21, valid 2 years for multiple entries). 90-day stay limit. Inside our 7-30 night scope.
- Other passports: B1/B2 visitor visa from a US embassy in your home country. Approval rates and wait times vary widely (2-12 months). Latin American travelers note: Miami immigration has historically been faster + friendlier than other US ports of entry, but processing time has worsened since 2023.
- Hablas español: If you have a Latin American passport, Miami is one of the easiest US cities to navigate without English. Hospital staff, taxi drivers, restaurants, government offices commonly serve in Spanish.
Our honest take
Miami is fun. The food has improved enormously since 2018, the music scene is real, and you genuinely can sit at a window-seat counter at Versailles Cuban Restaurant and watch Calle Ocho politics happen in real time. Beaches are good if you go north of South Beach proper. Wynwood is the best neighborhood that isn't a beach.
What gets glossed over: Miami is expensive even by US standards. Median 7-night stays run $2,200, and that doesn't include the meals you'll eat (sit-down dinner for two: $80-150 minimum at any decent place). Rental cars are nearly required unless you stay strictly in Brickell. South Beach is genuinely a tourist trap designed to extract from you. And hurricane season's flight risk is real.
For a 1-week stay in winter (Dec-Mar), Brickell or Wynwood is the move. For a 2-3 week stay, base in Wynwood or Coconut Grove and rent a car for day trips to Key Biscayne, the Everglades (1 hr west), or even Key Largo (1.5 hr south). Skip July-October entirely if you have flexibility.
How this guide is built: the price stats are pulled live from our search API at page load. The neighborhood + settle-in content is hand-written by Nick (founder), based on direct experience and traveler interviews, not affiliate- optimized copy.
How we earn: on bookings made through links from this page, we earn a 3% member commission (sign-in required) or ~13% public commission (anonymous). Same supplier, same room as Booking.com. We do not earn more on more expensive stays. Full affiliate disclosure.
Sources: Visit Miami tourism data, Greater Miami CVB pricing surveys, traveler interviews. We don't accept sponsored placements or hotel partnerships in this guide.